Ruined Houses and Salt-panning

Ruined house in field next to disused railway track

Ruined house at the top of the beach

About half a mile East of Lower Largo village at a site named as Viewforth on the map, there are some ruined houses on either side of the disused railway track. At one time they would have been known locally as 'The Pans' and the people who first lived in them during the second half of the 18th Century were engaged in salt-panning. Sea-water was collected in pans and then a fire set beneath the pans so that the water evaporated to leave the salt, which at that time was a prescious commodity for preserving meat and fish. It was dependent on a local supply of coal and whilst the main coalfields were in the West of Fife , there were small mines in the Largo area. There were several salt-pans along the Fife Coast. There are substantial remains at St Monans a few miles East of Largo.

Houses at the top of the beach in 1947

Although the salt-panning had long since ceased, the houses continued to be occupied for some time. By 1951 they had almost completely disappeared into the sea

The information on salt-panning and the 1947 picture were taken from the book Largo. An illustrated history by Eric Eunson and John Band. It is an excellent account of the history of the area, and has some fascinating photographs, some from the early 1900s and before. There is a detailed history of salt-panning in the Largo area. Sadly the book is now out of print but local libraries have copies, which can be borrowed.