Ferry Road drill hall, Dingwall
| Ferry Road drill hall | |
|---|---|
| Dingwall, Scotland | |
 Ferry Road drill hall, Dingwall | |
  Ferry Road drill hall Location within Ross and Cromarty | |
| Coordinates | 57°35′38″N 4°24′59″W / 57.59396°N 4.41629°W |
| Type | Drill hall |
| Site history | |
| Built | c.1910 |
| Built for | War Office |
| In use | c.1910 – Present |
The Ferry Road drill hall, known locally as Seaforth Barracks, is a military installation in Dingwall, Scotland.
History
The building was designed as the headquarters of the 4th (Ross Highland) Battalion, the Seaforth Highlanders in around 1910.[1] The battalion was mobilised at the drill hall in August 1914 before being deployed to the Western Front.[2][3] The battalion amalgamated with the 5th Battalion, the Seaforth Highlanders to form the 4th/5th Battalion, The Seaforth Highlanders (Ross-shire Buffs, The Duke of Albany's), with its headquarters at the Old Bank Road drill hall in Golspie, in 1921.[4] The 4th Battalion and 5th Battalion operated separately from 1939 and 1941, when they amalgamated again after the surrender at Saint-Valery-en-Caux.[4]
After the Second World War, the combined battalion amalgamated with 6th (Caithness and Sutherland) Battalion and 7th (Morayshire) Battalion to form 11th Battalion, The Seaforth Highlanders (Ross-shire Buffs, The Duke of Albany's), with its headquarters at the Ferry Road drill hall.[5] The 11th Battalion then amalgamated with the 4th/5th Battalion, The Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders to form the home defence battalion of the Queen's Own Highlanders (Seaforth and Camerons) in 1967.[5]
The home defence battalion of the Queen's Own Highlanders (Seaforth and Camerons) was in turn absorbed into the 51st Highland Volunteers in 1969, with a rifle platoon of C (Queen's Own Highlanders) Company, 2nd Battalion, 51st Highland Volunteers still based at the Ferry Road drill hall.[6] Following a further re-organisation in 1995, the rifle platoon became part of Headquarters Company, 3rd (Volunteer) Battalion, The Highlanders (Seaforth, Gordons and Camerons) still based at the Ferry Road drill hall.[6] However, following the Strategic Defence Review carried out in 1998, the rifle platoon was disbanded, and only an army cadet unit remains at the drill hall.[3]
References
- ^ "Dingwall, Ferry Road, Drill Hall, War Memorial". Canmore. Retrieved 24 June 2017. (The 1:2500, 2nd edition, Ordnance Survey Plan no. 88.03 (Ross and Cromarty), published in 1906, does not show the drill hall)
- ^ "Seaforth Highlanders". The Long, Long Trail. Retrieved 24 June 2017.
- ^ a b "Dingwall Cadet Training Centre". Army Cadets. Retrieved 24 June 2017.
- ^ a b "4th (Ross Highland) Battalion, Seaforth Highlanders". Regiments.org. Archived from the original on 29 December 2005. Retrieved 24 June 2017.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - ^ a b "11th Battalion, Seaforth Highlanders". Regiments.org. Archived from the original on 3 January 2006. Retrieved 24 June 2017.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - ^ a b "Highland Volunteers". British Army units 1945 on. Retrieved 24 June 2017.