📌 Town in Falkirk
★
Any town with an apostrophe in its title should attract a second glance – and Bo’ness turns out to be a thought-provoking corner of the Central Belt, albeit with an air of faded glory. The name comes from a truncation of Borrowstounness, or the burgh’s town on the headland – with the burgh in question being nearby Linlithgow. Bo’ness’s location on the tidal Firth of Forth made it an important harbour from at least the 16th century, and later became prime real estate for a long list of industries including coal and clay mining, salt production, fishing, pottery, metalworking and latterly shipbreaking. Unfortunately, much of this heavy industry ran out of steam (literally) in mid-20th century Scotland, and subsequent decades of decline have clearly taken their toll on the town. Focusing on the positives, there are a handful of interesting tourist sites (see below) and many fine Victorian buildings have survived, making the town an unusual but rewarding destination – with enough to fill a whole day if you pick a date when all the attractions are open.
🌍 Location
📌 Falkirk council area
🧭 O.S. Grid Reference: NS 999817
🛰️ GPS coordinates: 56.017452,-3.607564
🚶 Kinneil House and the motor museum are both about a mile from the town centre, in opposite directions. The heritage railway and museum is fairly central.
🚌 The main bus routes are from Falkirk, Linlithgow & Grangemouth.
Explore nearby
<1 mi away
>> Bo’ness & Kinneil Railway and Museum of Scottish Railways ★★★★
>> Bo’ness Motor Museum ★★★
<3 mi away
>> Kinneil House ★★★ (1 mi ←)
>> Linlithgow page: Linlithgow & town sights (3 mi ↓)
