|Scottish Gaelic: Brùra|
Harbour Road, Brora
Brora shown within the Sutherland area
|Population||1,140  (2001 census)
est. 1,160 (2006)
|OS grid reference|
|Sovereign state||United Kingdom|
|UK Parliament||Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross|
|Scottish Parliament||Caithness, Sutherland and Ross constituency in the Highlands and Islands electoral region|
The name Brora is derived from ancient Norse, meaning 'river with a bridge.' A small industrial village having at one time a coal pit, boat building, salt pans, fish curing, lemonade factory, the new Clynelish Distillery (as well as the old Clynelish distillery which is now called the Brora distillery ), wool mill, bricks and a stone quarry. The white sandstone in the Clynelish quarry belongs to the Brora Formation, of the Callovian and Oxfordian stages (formerly Middle Oolite) of the Mid-Late Jurassic. Stone from the quarry was used in the construction of London Bridge, Liverpool Cathedral and Dunrobin Castle. When in operation, the coalmine was the most northerly coalmine in the UK. Brora was the first place in the north of Scotland to have electricity thanks to its wool industry. This distinction gave rise to the local nickname of "Electric City" at the time. Brora also houses a baronial style clock tower which is a war memorial.
The village is situated where the A9 road and the Far North Line bridge the River Brora. The village is served by a railway station. Buses operate about every two hours Mondays-Saturdays and infrequently on Sundays from Brora to Golspie, Dornoch, Tain and Inverness in the south and Helmsdale, Berriedale, Dunbeath, Halkirk, Thurso and Scrabster in the north. These are on route X99 and are operated by Stagecoach in the Highlands.
An education is available for primary school children in Brora Primary School in Johnstone Place. The building was formerly Brora High School, that included the primary department. Although the school opened in 1962, the secondary department closed in 1985. Includes a playgroup, nursery and Primaries 1 to 7.
Football club Brora Rangers was founded in 1879 and moved to present stadium, Dudgeon Park, in 1922. Amongst the local amenities are an 18 hole links golf course designed by James Braid in 1923 for sum of £23, bowling and tennis facilities.
Government Radio Receiving Station
- "Comparative Population Profile: Brora Locality". Scotland's Census Results Online. 2001-04-29. Retrieved 2008-09-01.
- "Statistics". Scottish Government.
- Field, John (1984). Discovering Place Names. Shire Publications. ISBN 978-0852637029.
- "Brora". The Wiskey Guide.
- "How Cheltenham entered America's backyard". New Scientist. 5 April 1984. Retrieved 12 December 2014.
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