At The Cross in Dunkeld the Atholl Memorail Fountain was errected in 1866. An information board in front of it provides the following details:
The Atholl Memorial Fountain
The Fountain was funded by public subscription and built in 1866 'to the memory of George Augustus Frederick John 6th Duke of Atholl'. The Duke had introduced a piped water supply to Dunkeld, prior to which all water had to be drawn from the River Tay - hence all the wynds leading to the water.
The Fountain was designed by C S Robertson and erected on the site of the Market Cross.
Several changes are apparent over the years, but there is fine detail in the carvings, which include native animals and birds. Masonic symbols are also incorporated - the 6th Duke was Grand Master Mason of Scotland from 1843 until his death in 1864.
The Atholl Family
The Atholl family has had a long and significant connection with the Dunkeld area and its people. After the Battle of Dunkeld (1689) much of Dunkeld was re-built and successive Dukes gradually acquired many of the properties during the 18th and 19th centuries. Stanley Hill, now a park, was landscaped by the 2nd Duke in 1730. Duchess Anne, widow of the 6th Duke, founded a girls' school in 1854 and the building still bears her name. The 8th Duke was the first President of The National Trust for Scotland and his wife, Katharine, Scotland's first woman MP, used her parliamentary salary to renovate some of the Dunkeld houses.
The Little Houses at the Cross and in Cathedral Street were mostly given to the Trust by Atholl Estates between 1954 and 1961. These near-derelict properties were restored by the Trust and others by the Local Authority to provide homes for local people, as well as re-create the 17th-century approach to the magnificent setting of the Cathedral of St. Columba.
Ownership of the Fountain was publicly transferred to The National Trust for Scotland in 1991 in a ceremony conducted by the 10th Duke of Atholl attended by his Atholl Highlanders. The Duke had a long association with the Trust and was its President at the time of his death. The Trust restored the fountain and its water supply (not drinking quality) with generous assistance from:
The Duke of Atholl
The Atholl Highlanders
Various Charitable Trusts and individuals
Perth and Kinross Members' Group of the NTS
Dunkeld and Birnam Community Council
Local donations
The water is turned off in winter to prevent freezing.