Built by David Guthrie in 1823, the distillery stayed with his family until it was bought by DCL ninety-nine years later. During its lifetime the names Townhead, Brechin, and North Port were all used; at some point in recent history the name became hyphenated as North Port-Brechin. When the worldwide whisky market faltered, DCL (part of what would later become Diageo) went on its infamous distillery closing campaign in 1983. North Port got the ax that May. Today a Safeway supermarket stands in its place.