Addiewell is a village in the Scottish council area of West Lothian. It is a former mining village, originally a support residence for the oil shale industry (see "Shale Voices" an excellent history of the shale industry in the voices of the participants). This village received temporary web fame from a posting describing it as "a hellish place to live" by a former resident. The reality is that this rough Scottish working class hamlet has gradually entered the 20th century as a consequence of the burgeoning tourist industry. Local highlights are the five sisters and the residue of Addiewell bing, both remnants of the oil shale industry, constituting the slag heaps of a failed industry. There is a railway station there too which has recently been upgraded as the new prison is a short walk away from it. The prison which opened in December 2008 holds over 800 maximum security prisoners. There are two separate mini-villages there: Addiebrownhill and Loganlea. Addiewell is near Stoneyburn and West Calder. Addiewell has 3 shops 1 Miners club and a softplay/gym called The Pitstop. The local football team is called Addiewell Hearts. It also has 2 schools St Thomas and Addiewell Primary and 1 church St Thomas.
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Coordinates: 55°50′43.78″N 3°36′48.65″W / 55.8454944°N 3.6135139°W
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