Blue plaques bring history of St Andrews’ mediaeval wynds to life for residents & visitors
Plaques in St Andrews’ historic lanes are bringing the town’s rich history back to life for today’s visitors and residents.
The group behind much of the work has reflected on a huge year of progress, with more to follow in 2027.
The work of St Andrews Pilgrim Foundation has honoured legends including champion golfer Allan Robertson, seen the restoration of the George Whyte Melville fountain, and the Tom Morris statue and, most recently, installed the plaques in historic lanes.
Dita Stanis-Traken chairs the organisation which has, at various points, renovated all four mediaeval wynds.
“Each has its own very interesting history, but these were partly obscured by the programme of anglicisation conducted in the 19th century,” he said. “With centuries of my family living in St Andrews, I wanted to bring the history of the wynds back into the light, providing interest to our visitors and adding to the celebration of the town’s remarkable story.
“These beautiful plaques, designed by Chic Harper and produced by a firm of specialist sign makers, should be with us for decades, or even centuries, to come.”
Looking forward to 2027, Dita added, ‘The foundation still strives to fulfil our founder the late Patrick Cassells’ aim to conserve, improve, and develop the historic character of the town of St Andrews.
“It has been a busy year for the whole team. With our new honorary president, Champion Golfer Sandy Lyle OBE, in place, and our work on the Whyte Melville fountain completed, 2027 is now lining up to be another productive year with golf heritage plaques, plus our support of exciting heritage projects by local groups such as the work at the Castle Sands pool and the Playfair monument restoration in the cathedral.”
The plaques are at landmarks associated with some of the true greats from St Andrews.
Roger McStravick as the lead on new plaques for the trust said, ‘People were passing the homes of legends like Allan Robertson or Tommy Morris, and we simply wanted people to know that they were at a special place.
“Next year the foundation has a few plaques planned to include Mary Queen of Scots at St Leonards, but it is also actively working to address the issue of Champion Golfers without headstones in the Cathedral cemetery.’