IN

ATHELSTANEFORD ,

SCOTLAND.

Opened on Monday, May 19th 1997

When the SCOTTISH FLAG TRUST launched the 1992 appeal to restore the SALTIRE MEMORIAL at ATHELSTANEFORD, it was quite unprepared for the generosity of the response.

( You too can become a " Friend of the Scottish Flag Trust " )

Over £8,000 was raised, with contributions from hundreds of individuals from all parts of Scotland and abroad, as well  as from companies and local authorities. 
 Hopefully many who donated have since managed to visit the  village and are delighted with the restoration.

Many donors expressly asked that any surplus money should go towards the establishment of a
permanent interpretation centre in the village.
The Trustees have accordingly pursued this objective.

Initial efforts to purchase a derelict cottage in the Main Street were unsuccessful,
but they believe that with the HEPBURN  DOO ' COT an even better
opportunity has been found.

Doo'cot..dovecot, a pidgeon house.
The meat and eggs from the pidgeons kept in the doo'cot were a
reliable source of food throughtout the year.
Most large houses and kirk manses had a doo'cot, to provide fresh meat
in the years prior to the overwintering of cattle, 
which was brought about by agricultural improvement 
in the early 19th century .

Adjacent and to the north of the churchyard,
is a lecturn doo'cot built in 1583 by George Hepburn.

His son, Sir John Hepburn, was the founder and first Colonel of the the Royal Scots.
This famous regiment, the First of Foot, has used the Saltire as its emblem since the seventeenth century. B-listed, the doo'cot bears the arms of the Hepburn family on the door lintel.

The building is accessed on foot through the churchyard.
It commands spectacular views northwards over the East Lothian farmlands towards
the Law at North berwick, the Firth of Forth beyond,and over the general battle site.

Structural work to renovate the doo'cot took place over the months prior to
Heritage Centre opening.

A Visitor Interpretation Facility has been installed in what must be the most unusual
and probably the smallest Heritage Centre in Britain.

The Heritage centre was officially opened on
Monday, 19th May 1997.

When to visit:-

The centre is open from 10.00am to 5.00pm daily,
April to September.
Admission is free.
The Church and the Saltire Memorial are open all year round.

How to get there !

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