Cove, United Kingdom

In 2019, 5 cairns were erected with information plaques detailing the history of Cove Bay and Altens as a farming community. This was made possible with a donation from the late Margaret Allan, whose family occupied the Mains of Loirston farm, and latterly Sergent's Croft.

Cove has been noted for industries such as granite, which was quarried in several locations to the south of the village. Owing to its close-grained texture, Cove granite was one of the hardest in north-east Scotland and proved highly resistant to frost, making it ideal for causeway stones used in the construction of roads. It was widely exported to cities in England, including Billingsgate Market in London.

The village itself sprung up around the fishing industry, with the boats berthed on a shingle beach, a gap in the rocks that afforded a natural harbour. During this time, it is estimated that approximately 300 people lived in the area. In the mid 19th century the fishing was at its height, which, over years, has included cod, haddock, salmon, herring and shellfish. The piers and breakwater were constructed in 1878.At present only a couple of boats pursue shellfish on a part-time basis.

The Annual Reports of the Fishery Board for Scotland provide an insight into the fishing in Cove in the years before the First World War. The summary for 1900 also applies to Downies and Portlethen: "These three fishing villages, almost solely dependent on the line fishing, are unfortunately falling behind. The combinded catch, when compared with the preceding year, shows a decline of 803 Cwts and £503. Fish are scarce on the inshore grounds and small generally. As at best the men are now only making a precarious living, they are gradually leaving the villages and taking up residence in Aberdeen. The fishermens's wives, who hawk the fish, are amiable helpmates in the struggle. Cove harbour and several of the boats there were wrecked in the gale of February. Since then the harbour has been repaired. Fishing goes on in a small way, but the prospects are anything but bright."

Cove Bay harbour has been the centre of a legal battle between a local landowner, who purchased part of the harbour in 2001, and the local fishermen who use the harbour. Attempts were made by the landowner to get the fishermen to remove their boats, as the shore was now considered private land meaning the fishermen could no longer store their equipment and boats on the shore. This legal battle ended in 2018, with the landowner succeeding. Public right of way for vehicles and pedestrians is maintained down Balmoral Terrace, leading to the harbour, and the pier itself.

In 2019, many of the remaining boats on the shore and the storage shed were set ablaze in what was thought to be a deliberate arson attack.

Between 1894 and 1937, Cove also housed a fishmeal factory, the Aberdeen Fish Meal Factory, which was located at the edge of the cliffs. It produced quality manure which was exported to both Europe and America. It became locally known as "the stinker" because of the processing odour, which was highlighted by the Aberdeen entertainer Harry Gordon in a parody entitled A Song of Cove.