A small town in the Moray parish of Mortlach, Dufftown lies near the junction of the Dullan Water with the River Fiddich, 17 miles (27 km) south of Elgin. Founded in 1817 by James Duff, fourth Earl of Fife, to give employment after the Napoleonic wars, Dufftown is laid out in the form of a crooked-armed cross with a Clock Tower (1839) at its centre. Now used as a Tourist Information Centre, this building was formerly a Jail and Burgh Chambers. The planned village of Dufftown replaced the ancient settlement of Mortlach on the banks of the Dullan Water whose church is said to have been founded in 566 AD by St. Moluag.
Described as the 'Malt Whisky Capital of the World', Dufftown has seven distilleries: Balvenie (1890), Dufftown Glenlivet (1896), Glendullan (1897), Glenfiddich (1887), Mortlach (1823), Convalmore (1869) and Pittyvaich (1973). There is also a Whisky Museum and the headquarters of independent distillers William Grant & Sons. Nearby are the old parish church of Mortlach and the ruins of 15th-century Auchindoun Castle which was destroyed in 1592 in revenge for the murder of the Bonnie Earl of Moray.
Notables born here include the Canadian businessman George Stephen (Lord Mountstephen, 1829 - 1921), health campaigner Helen Mackenzie (1859 - 1945) and jurist William Grant (Lord Grant, 1909-72).
The Dufftown Gala and Highland Games are held annually at the end of July.
