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Portsoy was created a burgh of barony in 1550 and its first
harbour was considered to be the safest in the North East. As a result it handled a lively
trade with England and the Continent. The town was particularly famed for its marble, cut
from a vein of serpentine which runs across the braes to the west of the harbour. Portsoy
Marble was greatly appreciated for its beauty and was used in the construction of parts of
Louis XIV's Palace of Versailles.
The 19th century
herring boom brought further prosperity to Portsoy. At its peak, the herring fleet
totalled 57 boats. The harbour was washed away in an extremely violent storm in 1828 and
it took until 1884 for the harbour to be rebuilt. At one time a railway line ran down to
the older harbour which maintained a busy commercial trade, particularly in coal. Towards
the end of the 19th century the Portsoy fishing fleet moved to the larger harbours of
Macduff and Buckie and today Portsoy's harbours are primarily used by pleasure craft and
creel boats catching lobster and crab.
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