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St Comb's Well

St Comb's Road, Portsoy, Aberdeenshire.

Well house, grass-covered.

"In the South of Links Bay in Portsoy, just by the fire station, there is this large hillock. Head into the cemetery and an open doorway leads into the mound. Inside is a 2' round pool fed by a constantly running fresh water spring, St Colm's Well. The well is housed in a 7' round and 8' high stone lined room with a corbelled ceiling." [J. Swanson, 2025]

"Rubble built tunnel type entrance, the well is said to have been built in the early part of the 7th century. The well 2ft diameter, and still flowing, is now covered by a stone cupola with an arched entrance. The well is hidden away in an earth mound (Perhaps a burial mound since it is adjacent to the cemetery) You can only see the well if you actually enter the cemetery by the gate at the bottom of the hill opposite the caravan for the warden of the caravan site. The plaque, made from the soft unstable yellow sandstone of the area, is just recognisable as St Colm's well but will be lost soon, the plaque dates from when the well was restored in 1893 though the date is now hardly readable.

Near the site of an ancient chapel, or oratory, said to have been dedicated to St Columba the last remnants of which disappeared in the early 1800s." [UoA]

Alternative Names: None recorded.

Notes: Not to be confused with St Colme's Well, Dunkeld.