Dollar Academy

Dollar Academy was founded in 1818 following a bequest by the Scottish sea captain, merchant and ship-owner John McNabb, who bequeathed £65,000 () to provide "a charity or school for the poor of the parish of Dollar where I was born". Born in 1732 into a poor family of farmers, McNabb escaped from poverty through a career at sea, which eventually led him to own his own shipping company. Between 1789 and 1791, four ships owned by his company engaged in slaving voyages as part of the Atlantic slave trade. In 2019, the academy commissioned a research project in collaboration with external advisors to understand the extent of McNabb’s involvement in the slave trade. The school also teaches…

William Playfair was commissioned to design the building. The interior of the Playfair Building was gutted by a fire in 1961, but Playfair's Greek-style outer facades remained intact. The interior was rebuilt on a plan based on central corridors with equal-sized classrooms on both sides. An extra (second) floor was concealed, increasing the total available space. The school was re-opened in 1966 by former pupil Lord Heyworth, and the assembly hall was rebuilt after the fire. The school library is a "whispering gallery" because of its domed ceiling. Many other buildings have been added to the school over time- such as the Dewar Building for science and the Maguire Building for art and…