[5] Like Peterhead, Boddam grew as a fishing town during the 18th century but until 1831, when the first of two harbours was constructed (one by William Aiton and his company)[6] to the north of the lighthouse, boats had to be hauled onto shore by hand.

However, in an ironic twist this very growth led to an inevitable decline as Peterhead lying just to the north benefited from the far greater harbour space available for the continually growing fishing fleet.

The area around the headland of Buchan Ness was for many centuries the point from which trading and whaling voyages departed across open ocean, bound for Archangel, Greenland and Spitsbergen amongst other destinations.

Below the consoled pediment of the main door is inscribed procul negotiis beautus, which, roughly translated, means "lucky is the man who stays away from business".

Today, Boddam serves largely as a commuter settlement for Aberdeen and Peterhead although an involvement in the fishing industry still continues on a small scale, in particular for lobster.

The remains of Boddam Castle lie in a ruinous state, although Earl's Lodge, for many years a hotel and which had previously been gutted in a fire, was repaired as a private home in 2006.

[21] An innovative carbon capture scheme at the power station which had previously been shelved was brought back onto the agenda in late 2007 with the hope of new jobs for the local populace.

[22] A traditional song relates how a monkey was the only survivor from a local shipwreck and thus the villagers of Boddam could not claim salvage rights as those only applied when all had perished.

One version of the first verse thus relates, The recently renamed "Noose and Monkey" pub in Aberdeen recalls this event rather than the infamous monkey-hanging stated to have occurred in Hartlepool during the Napoleonic Wars.

She claims that a popular song about the Boddam incident was adapted over many years as it travelled down the east coast, eventually spawning a Hartlepool version.