In 1786, the year that Davie Crockett was born and Robbie Burns published his first book of poetry, two men from Kingston-on-Hull in England, William Osbourne & Ralph Dodsworth, established a shipyard at the mouth of the River Spey.

Using timber floated down the river in rafts from the vast Caledonian Pine forests, Kingston-on-Spey, as the village became known, was to become the largest shipyard in Scotland, and by some sources the UK.

At it's height between 1850 and 1870 Kingston had 7 shipyards operating, building ships up to 800 tons, elegant clippers, barques & brigantines which set forth to trade around the world.

The port was also an important  trade route to Europe and the rest of the UK for a large part of the North East of Scotland. Landings of coal  were transported inland to power the fledgling whisky industry, and  there's little doubt that exports of whisky went outward.

Flowing through this hive of industry was a little burn, the last tributary of the River Spey before it joins the sea - The Leinburn.