IMAGES TAKEN NEAR TO
St. James Road, FORFAR, DD8 1LD

Some traditional houses on the corner of St James Road and New Road. To the right are the steeple of the parish kirk, and the former Don's factory buildings.

Normally a plant which prefers calcareous soils, this smallest British spleenwort has colonised the mortar of a garden wall.

The black stems are unique to this species of spleenwort, which has colonised the east side of this garden wall.

This school has recently been refurbished, and most of the playground where I first learned to ride a bicycle has been turned into parking space. We actually went past the left-hand end of this building to a series of classrooms in prefabs around a second playground beyond, which was called Kirkriggs School.

In the 1950s the primary department was in temporary classrooms behind this Victorian building, but the school has moved to another site in the town. I don't know whether it is being renovated for future use as aschool, or converted for some other use.

These two plum trees in neighbouring gardens will have a bumper crop if there are enough pollinators available and the weather stays reasonable.

This toadflax has colonised the walls by the side of the lane here. These are some of the last few flower heads remaining, most of the rest having gone to seed.

This is part of the premises of Don and Low, the predecessor of which, Don Brothers Buist and Co, was a major employer in Forfar. Life was regulated by the 'bummers', a siren which summoned the employees to work and signalled the end of the working day. The factory was behind where this was taken from. The buildings at Broadcroft, across the road from the factory, are fairly new, but the main factory was moved to a new site on the Glamis road, just outside the town. The original factory was used as the main offices of Angus Council for some years, but the Council also has built new offices off the Glamis Road, and Don's lies empty again. However the Broadcroft depot is still in daily use for warehousing and despatching the fabrics manufactured by the company. In the background there is a glimpse of the houses at the foot of Lour Road.

This is part of the premises of Don and Low, the predecessor of which, Don Brothers Buist and Co, was a major employer in Forfar. Life was regulated by the 'bummers', a siren which summoned the employees to work and signalled the end of the working day. The factory was behind where this was taken from. The buildings at Broadcroft, across the road from the factory, are fairly new, but the main factory was moved to a new site on the Glamis road, just outside the town. The original factory was used as the main offices of Angus Council for some years, but the Council also has built new offices off the Glamis Road, and Don's lies empty again. However the Broadcroft depot is still in daily use for warehousing and despatching the fabrics manufactured by the company.

A side street of 18th and 19th century sandstone cottages.