“The Pretender’s Well is still to be seen in the Blackneyhill Wood. The water lies in a mossy basin at the foot of a larch”
(Gillespie 1868, 14).
Tradition has it that Bonnie Prince Charlie drank from the well next to Blaeberry Moor when on the way to the Battle of Falkirk in 1746. It became a popular place for walks in the late 19th century and was regarded as a wishing well. A small reservoir was constructed at the source for use by Scottish Tar Distillers. Around 1920 Falkirk Town Council had it cleaned out and built in (Falkirk Mail Annual 1922, 22).
(NS 857 790)
Falkirk Local History Society 