Glencadam first opened in 1825, in the ancient city of Brechin. This was the year that the first horse-drawn omnibuses were established in London, the world’s first modern railway opened, with the first public train pulled by steam engine, Cox’s Orange Pippin apples were first grown and London became the largest city in the world, over-taking Beijing. It was little more than one year after the Excise Act of 1823 legalised distilling.
Glencadam is now the only distillery in the county of Angus, an area of the Highlands region of Scotland. The first owner was a “Mr Cooper”, who sold the distillery in 1827. The name “Glencadam” comes from the area known as “The Tenements of Caldhame”. These were plots of ground given to the burghs of Brechin for food production. They were situated to the north and south east of the Den Burn where the distillery stands.