Parkmill

The Parkmill section of the Clackmannan waggon road was a single track, starting at a kissing gate at the edge of Back Wood NS 903922 and curves around the west side of Kings Seat Hill in a composite cutting/embankment. It heads south and ends at the remains of a road NS 902921 which once led westwards to the Parkmill. There was a passing place NS 902921 of approximately 40m in length close to the end of the section. There are remnants of a hawthorn hedge on both sides of the waggon road. The route is now being used as a narrow informal pathway, with a muddy surface. The total section length is 248m and the elevation runs from 18m at edge of Back Wood to 16m at a modern field gate. The Parkmill section was once part of a waggon road from the Devon Iron Works (NS 898960) in the north to Clackmannan harbour (NS 895903) on the shore of the Forth to the south. Only a small part of the waggon road, linking the Craigrie Quarry (NS 903916) to the Alloa Kincardine railway (NS 912922), was shown as active on OS maps in 1898 (including the Parkmill section). This link was shown as abandoned on the OS map in 1920.

This section of the Clackmannan waggon road can be accessed from the B910 just to the south of the Mary Bridge. The Back Wood footpath starts next to a block of flats adjacent to the road. Follow the well-made footpath until you reach a kissing gate. The Parkmill section starts at the gate, now following the bed of the waggon road as an informal footpath.

Perth and Clackmannan Clackmannanshire OS 25 Inch, First Edition, Sheet CXL.5 (Combined), Survey date: 1861, Publication date: 1866), © National Library of Scotland, 2014 [http://maps.nls.uk/view/74478623]. This map shows the Parkmill section of the line as a single track with one passing place.

Clackmannanshire, OS 25 inch Second Edition, Sheet 140.05, Revised: ca. 1898, Publication date: 1900, © National Library of Scotland, 2014. [http://maps.nls.uk/view/82875258]. This map shows the Parkmill section still being in use as a single line waggon road now connecting the Craigrie Quarry NS 904916 (90429, 91653, -3.76327, 56.10503) to the south to the Alloa to Kincardine main line to the north NS 912921 (91278, 92197, -3.74984, 56.11012). The waggon road is shown as having no passing place.

Clackmannanshire, OS 25 inch Second Edition, Sheet 140.05, Revised: ca. 1989, Publication date: 1922, © National Library of Scotland,[ http://maps.nls.uk/view/82875261]. This map shows the Parkmill section as being abandoned and used as a footpath.

Perth and Clackmannan OS 6 inch Second Edition, Sheet CXL.NW, Date revised: 1898, Publication date: 1901, georeferenced view, © National Library of Scotland, 2014. [http://maps.nls.uk/geo/explore/#zoom=16&lat=56.10603&lon=-3.76222&layers=6]. The Parkmill section runs from NS 903922 (90383, 92293, -3.78427, 56.11078) to NS 902921 (290267, 692129, -376606, 56.10927), a total length of 441 metres. The passing place identified on the OS 25 Inch map, First Edition 1861 was at NS 902922 (290278, 692205, -3.76592, 56.10996) and was measured as about 40 metres in length.

Perth and Clackmannan OS 6 inch Second Edition, Sheet CXL.NW, Date revised: 1898, Publication date: 1901, georeferenced view, © National Library of Scotland, 2014, [http://maps.nls.uk/geo/explore/#zoom=17&lat=56.11009&lon=-3.76444&layers=6] Changing the transparency of the overlay to Google satellite shows the line of the section curving round the hill, the remnants of hedging and the crop mark of the old road to Parkmill.

Google Earth © Getmapping plc, 2014. This map shows the elevation at the edge of the Back Wood as 18 metres and the elevation at the old Parkmill road as 16 metres.