In July 1862, the first proprietor of the Alloa Advertiser James Lothian died, so the business passed to his son James. Over the years Lothian had faced his critics but one of the earliest controversies arose with Peter Porteous.
The name Drysdale has been prevalent in Dollar, and Clackmannanshire as a whole, for centuries. However, the name was not originally a local one.
A long time ago, not far from old Hillfoot House in Dollar, was a glen called Burngrens, where there was a small stream, and a large number of tall trees. Many of these were felled to be used in homes as firewood or in the construction of barns, but strong saplings were growing in their place. In this glen there was a large stone that had been formed in the shape of a baby’s cradle. It was believed by the superstitious locals that every Hallowe'en night, the stone was raised from its place and suspended in the air by some unseen force. Old Sandy, as the Devil was sometimes known in Scotland, was said to sit on it, and was swung back and forth by his followers, the witches, until daylight came when they had to leave. One Halloween night a young man, who had been drinking with his friends, boasted in front them that he would visit the stone alone. Taking a bottle of whisky to give him some Dutch courage, he soon set out. The stone was not too far away so he reached his destination quickly. After a good gulp of whisky, he sat down on the cradle shaped stone and determined to dispute the rightful ownership, should the Devil appear, and claim this as his seat. Every rustle of a leaf, as the wind whistled through the glen, seemed to the young man that it was the Devil approaching, so he had a few more gulps of ‘John Barleycorn.’ However, due to the amount he drank, he fell asleep on the stone. His friends, who had followed him, approached the sleeping man. Shouting and making loud noises, they grabbed him, and carried him, half-awake, to the burn. They dipped him in it repeatedly, and every time he was immersed in the water, they would yell loudly. The young man, in his drunken and sleepy state, and thinking a whole legion of devils were surrounding him, was frightened almost to death, and screamed for mercy so pitifully that his friends soon stopped their mischief. No sooner had the young man got to his feet that he rushed off up the glen and ran home, resolving never to drink ever again, or attempt to toy with the Devil. For a long time, he did not know that it was his friends who had tormented him.
Around midnight on Friday 24th October 1902, fire broke out at the Carsebridge Distillery in Alloa. It spread rapidly causing thousands of pounds worth of damage to the mash mill where most of the distillation process took place.
The Tullibody Orcahrd was subject to a grand theft in 1873.
AT THE time of Mary, Queen of Scots in the 16th century, a cloth was manufactured in Tillicoultry that became known as Tillicoultry serge.
At the time of Mary, Queen of Scots in the 16th century, a cloth was manufactured in Tillicoultry that became known as Tillicoultry serge.
POACHING in Clackmannanshire was rife during the 19th century.
Miner David Anderson of Alva was a drawer at the Furnacebank Pit at the Devon Colliery which belonged to the Alloa Coal Company.
On Wednesday 10th October 1866 before W. Bennet Clerk, the Sheriff Substitute in Alloa, three men stood charged with breach of the peace and malicious mischief that had been committed on 21st September at a public house in Menstrie run by Mrs Margaret Dickie.
