Carolina Port was a multi-sport stadium in Dundee, Scotland. It staged Scottish national championships in cycling and athletics, and as a football stadium it was an early home of Dundee F.C. and staged Dundee's first international match in 1896. It was the first sports stadium in Scotland to be wholly built and operated by a publicly owned company.
History In the early part of the eighteenth century there was a regular trade between Dundee and different ports in North America, particularly with Charleston, South Carolina, which was at that time still a British colony. When ships from foreign ports arrived in Dundee they were required to quarantine for a period and had to anchor in the river at a place that came to be called Carolina Roads."Dundee Delineated" (1822) p. 74-9 In 1788, the Dundee Glassworks Company was founded on a site approximately one mile to the east of the City of Dundee on the banks of the River Tay, and nearby a house and six workmen's cottages were built on around seven acres of land overlooking Carolina Roads. By 1801 the glassworks had closed down and William Lindsay, a corn merchant originally from Edinburgh with a business premises in Dundee High Street, had moved into the main house and let the cottages to tenants, and the property seems to have been called Carolina Port from that time. The first definite mention of the name is when a child was born there in January 1812, to Mrs William Lindsay, a son."Perthshire Courier", Thu 16 Jan 1812 p. 4
In 1816 there were corn riots in Dundee, Aberdeen, and Montrose protesting at the combination of the high price of corn and low wages. On the evening of Wednesday 4 December 1816 a mob assembled in Hawkhill, to the west of the city, and burned an effigy of Mr Thomson, a local corn dealer. Next they attacked the properties of corn merchants in other parts of the city, in Scouringburn, Overgate, Hilltown, King Street, St Andrew Street, and Murraygate, breaking windows and stealing corn."Dundee, Perth, and Cupar Advertiser", Fri 6 Feb 1863 p. 2 The mob next went to Carolina Port where they broke into the main house, broke furniture, tore down curtains, stole quantities of food and plate and also seized the grain Lindsay had in store."Morning Chronicle", Wed 11 Dec 1816 p. 3Alexander Hastie Millar, Roll of Eminent Burgesses of Dundee 1513-1886 (1887) p. 234-6
In 1838 the Dundee and Arbroath Railway Company laid a line from the Trades Lane station in Dundee to Broughty Ferry that passed through the Carolina Port property, and this section of the line was known at the time as the Trades Lane and Carolina Port Railway."Dundee Courier", Wed 25 April 1855 p. 3 William Lindsay, Provost of Dundee from 1831 to 1833, sought damages from the railway company for their incursion onto his property and interference with his business but ultimately lost his case.
In 1837 Lindsay had, in company with his business partner John Peter of Broughty Ferry, borrowed the sum of £5,000 sterling with the Carolina Port property as security. The loan was from a charitable trust known as Morton Mortification which rendered relief to the poor of the city, and was operated by a board of trustees. In 1849 Lindsay died without the loan having been repaid."Dundee Advertiser", Fri 2 Feb 1866 p. 4 In 1853 the trustees of Morton Mortification took an action to recover their debt against the eldest surviving son, Martin Lindsay, who was at that time believed to be in Italy. Unknown to the trustees, however, Martin had been disinherited by his father and had no interest in the property, did not defend the action, and in due course Morton Mortification were granted an assign in the Carolina Port property."Dundee Advertiser", Thu 13 Dec 1866 p. 3 In 1866 they brought the property up for public auction and at that time the true heirs realised their position and after a hearing before Lord Barcaple at the Court of Session in Edinburgh the two parties agreed that the property would revert to the executors of the estate of William Lindsay on payment of the debt owed to Morton Mortification, which by that time totalled £12,000 sterling."Dundee Courier", Wed 19 Dec 1866 p. 3. The property, approximately seven acres in extent, was at that time described as, "perhaps the most valuable piece of ground within a like distance of the High Street in the town of Dundee.""Dundee Advertiser", Wed 19 Dec 1866 p. 3
The name of Carolina Port had by this time extended beyond the grounds and by 1850 there was a street called Carolina Port and Carolina Port Pier, which was a commercial pier rather than an entertainment and amusement facility."Dundee Courier", Mon 3 Jun 1861 p. 2"Dundee, Perth, and Cupar Advertiser", Fri 8 Nov 1850 p. 4 In 1864 the anchorage off Carolina Port Pier was still being referred to as Carolina Roads but was now being used by sealers waiting their turn to offload their cargo, and maps start to refer to the area generally as Carolina Port."Dundee Courier", Wed 27 Apr 1864 p. 2 In July 1876 William Cooper opened the Carolina Port Saw Mill in Camperdown Dock, on land adjoining Carolina Port and operated by the Dundee Harbour Trust."Dundee Courier", Tue 11 July 1876 p. 1
In May 1872 it was announced that the Carolina Port property had been purchased by the City of Dundee who intended to develop a cattle market there to replace, modernise, and enlarge the existing market at Dudhope Crescent."Dundee People's Journal", Sat 4 Jan 1873 p. 4 The council paid £17,000 sterling for the property, and estimated that a further £20,000 sterling would be required to construct the pens, slaughter house, stabling, offices and auction lots that would be required according to the plans drawn up by William Mackison, the town surveyor. There would also need to be a hotel to accommodate the cattle agents, sellers, auctioneers and buyers that make a market function, and a railway siding to bring the livestock to market."Dundee People's Journal", Sat 1 Jun 1872 p. 2 The final plan also included a house for the Market Keeper and a Porter's lodge."Dundee Courier", Tue 12 May 1874 p. 2
In November 1874 advertisements appeared for men to start work on the construction of the cattle market, and on the 11 November some of these workmen found a cache of nine silver coins dating from 1575. These were described as being "about the size of a florin" (approx. 30mm in diameter) and were donated to Dundee Free Library."Dundee Courier", Thu 12 Nov 1874 p. 1"Dundee Courier", Tue 3 Aug 1875 p. 4"Edinburgh Evening News", Fri 27 Nov 1874 p. 2 The cattle market eventually opened, with very little fanfare, on Tuesday 26 December 1876, and from that time there would be a weekly auction every Tuesday."Dundee Courier", Sat 21 Oct 1876 p. 1"Dundee Courier", Fri 24 Nov 1876 p. 1 The Cattle Market, however, was not a commercial success and as early as October 1881, on the retirement of Provost William Brownlee, he was openly mocked in the newspapers for the "Carolina Port Bungle.""Dundee Courier", Sat 29 Oct 1881 p. 1 In April 1889 a Royal Commission on Market Rights was told that the annual income from the market averaged £960 sterling per year, while the costs averaged £1,336 sterling per year with the deficit made up from the general rates of the burgh, and that at the current rate of repayment the loan and interest would not be paid off until 1937."Dundee Courier", Fri 26 Apr 1889 p. 5
By 1878 cricket was played in Baxter Park, on what was described as a "wretched wicket," and also in "a park near Belmont House.""Dundee Courier", Tue 9 Jul 1878 p. 4 In September 1880 twenty-year-old Miss Gillespie, from Glasgow, swam from the Tay Bridge to Broughty Castle, a distance of four and a quarter miles in one hour and eighteen minutes."Dundee Advertiser", Wed 8 Sep 1880 p. 3 Four years later Ye Amphibious Ancients Bathing Association was founded in Dundee to promote open water swimming. Dundee Bicycle Club had been formed by 1880, and there was a lawn tennis club with four courts at Camphill, Broughty Ferry, by 1883."Dundee Advertiser", Mon 14 Apr 1884 p. 5 In 1884 Quoits clubs opened at Balgillo and Clepington Park, and there was a Bowling club at Baxter Park."Dundee People's Journal", Sat 10 May 1884 p. 7"Dundee People's Journal", Sat 11 Oct 1884 p. 6 Around the same time there were various amateur football teams in the city and the genesis of a league. From 1877 Dundee Our Boys FC played at Baxter Park and Strathmore FC were playing at Magdalen Green where they were joined in 1879 by Dundee Harp FC, while Balgay FC (founded 1881) played at Blackness Park. The Forfarshire Football Association was founded in 1883 with eighteen clubs, twelve of them from Dundee.
Football was played at Carolina Port from the beginning of March 1884. The first known match occurred on Saturday 8 March when Viewforth XI beat Johnstone Rovers 3 goals to nil."Dundee Courier", Mon 10 Mar 1884 p. 4 The following Saturday Taybank FC beat Eastern Athletic by 7 goals to nil, and Carolina Port is described as, "the ground of the former," making Taybank the first club to call Carolina Port their home. Taybank also had a second team known as the Taybank Swifts."Dundee Advertiser", Mon 17 Mar 1884 p. 7 The first athletics club in Dundee was Dundee Harriers, formed in October 1887, who also had a swimming section. The first cinder track in Dundee was the Victoria Athletic Grounds, a cycle track laid in 1887 in James' Park, which no longer exists. The park stretched from Erskine Street to Maitland Street, which was not there in 1887, and from Dura Street down to Lyon Street. The first event there was the sixth East of Scotland Cyclists meet on Saturday 16 July when they had three races over 1 mile, 2 miles, and 3 miles. Cyclists came from as far away as Edinburgh, Glasgow, Perth, and Arbroath to compete, there was a lone New Zealander and thirty eight entrants from two different cycle clubs in Dundee."Dundee Courier", Fri 15 Jul 1887 p. 1"Dundee Advertiser, Mon 18 Jul 1887 p. 5 On the same day Our Boys FC held an athletic sports in West Craigie Park where the 1 mile handicap was won by Charles Pennycook of Strathmore FC. In June 1889 as a member of Clydesdale Harriers he will win the Scottish 1 mile championship at Hampden Park, Glasgow." Dundee Advertiser", Mon 18 Jul 1887 p.\ 7 There was plenty of sport going on in Dundee, but there were not yet any sports facilities within the city with changing rooms, grand stands, or spectator facilitues, except possibly Kinnaird Hall where there were boxing tournaments and gymnastics matches."Dundee Evening Telegraph", Fri 21 Feb 1890 p. 3
In August 1889 it was announced that the Highland and Agricultural Society show was coming to Dundee."Dundee Advertiser", Wed 14 Aug 1889 p. 5 A deputation from the City Council led by Provost Hugh Ballingall had approached the society as long ago as 1885 with a view to bringing the show to Dundee for the first time since 1843, but nothing came of it on that occasion. The proposed location of the show was described at that time as, "Carolina Port, to the eastward of the shipbuilding yards," and was given as 25 to 27 acres in extent, so clearly much more than the original 7 acres of William Lindsay's Carolina Port property."Dundee Evening Telegraph", Thu 3 Dec 1885 p. 3 The land for the show had been reclaimed naturally from the river by silt and mud gradually accumulating to extend the foreshore and narrow the river to the south and east of the original Carolina Port property. The Harbour Board, who effectively owned all this land through a grant from the Crown, then covered this with ash before laying out the grounds for the show."Fifeshire Journal", Thu 31 Jul 1890 p. 5 But this is not where football was being played because there was not and never had been any grass on the showground. The exact location of the Carolina Port football pitch, or pitches, being used before 1891 is not known.