Glencadam was first opened in 1825, in the old town of Brechin. This was the year that the first horse-drawn omnibuses were established in London, the world's first modern railway was opened, with the first public train pulled by a steam engine, Cox's Orange Pippin apples were first grown, and London became the largest city in the world, overtaking Beijing. It was just over a year after the Excise Act of 1823 legalised distilling.

Glencadam is now the only distillery in the county of Angus, an area in the Scottish Highlands. 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 land given to the burghs of Brechin for food production. They were located north and southeast of the Den Burn where the distillery stands.