MacThomas Bridge - Spittal of Glenshee, Perth & Kinross.
Posted by: creg-ny-baa
N 56° 48.733 W 003° 27.452
30V E 472066 N 6296576
Plaque inserted on a stone pillar commemorating the opening of the MacThomas Bridge on the A93 road at the Spittal of Glenshee in Highland Perthshire.
Waymark Code: WM113KA
Location: Northern Scotland, United Kingdom
Date Posted: 08/10/2019
Views: 1
The A93 road runs from Perth to Aberdeen, not directly but by a lengthy route northwards over the Cairnwell Pass to Braemar and then eastwards along Royal Deeside. The route northwards into the Highlands runs up Glen Shee, reaching the head of the glen at the Spittal of Glenshee. Once a military road from the 18th century that twisted through the hamlet, it was replaced by a by-pass in the 1960s as traffic increased.
A new bridge over the Shee Water was required in the 1980s and was named after the clan MacThomas, whose home is in the glen, having settled here in the 14th century. A metal plaque is inserted in a stone on the west side of the road, south of the bridge. It reads as follows:
'MACTHOMAS BRIDGE
OPENED ON 14th FEB 1984 BY DR WK FITZGERALD CONVENOR OF TAYSIDE REGIONAL COUNCIL
THIS BRIDGE IS NAMED AFTER
THE CLAN MACTHOMAS
WHICH FIRST SETTLED HERE
BESIDE SHEE WATER IN THE 14th CENTURY
PLAQUE UNVEILED BY ANDREW MACTHOMAS OF FINEGAND
19th CHIEF OF THE CLAN - 18th AUGUST 1984'