Thurso is a community and previous burgh on the north shore of the Highland council area of Scotland. Situated in the historical location of Caithness, it is the northernmost community on the British mainland. It exists at the junction of the north-south A9 road and the west-east A836 road, connected to Bridge of Forss in the west as well as Castletown in the eastern. The 34-mile (55 kilometres) River Thurso moves through the community and into Thurso Bay as well as the Pentland Firth. The river estuary acts as a little harbour. At the 2011 Census, Thurso had a population of 7,933. The larger Thurso civil church consisting of the community and the bordering countryside had a population of 9,112. Thurso worked as a crucial Norse port, and later patronized ports throughout northern Europe up until the 19th century. A flourishing fishing centre, Thurso also had a reputation for its linen-cloth as well as tanning activities. As of 2015 the Dounreay Nuclear Research Establishment, although mostly deactivated at the end of the 20th century, uses a substantial variety of the local populace. The Category-A provided spoiled Old St Peter's Church (St. Peter's Kirk) is just one of the oldest churches in Scotland, dating to a minimum of 1125. The existing church, St Andrew's as well as St Peter's, was built in 1832 to a style by William Burn in the Gothic design. The town consists of the primary university of North Highland College and Thurso High School, the northernmost secondary school on the British landmass, which was established in 1958. Thurso Castle, integrated in 1872, is in ruins. Thurso is residence to the football (football) group, Thurso FC, established in 1998, which play in the North Caledonian League, as well as the rugby groups Caithness Crushers and also Caithness RFC. Thurso train station, opened in 1874, was one of the most northern station on the Sutherland and Caithness Railway. The neighboring port of Scrabster gives ferryboat solutions to the Orkney Islands; the Northlink ferryboat (MV Hamnavoe) runs between Scrabster as well as Stromness.