Statistical Account - Muckart Parish

Laid out below is a copy of the Statistical Account of Scotland entry for Muckart parish, published in 1793. 

The Statistical Account of Scotland, Vol 9 (1793)

NUMBER XX.

PARISH of MUCKART.

(County of Perth, Synod of Perth and Stirling, Presbytery of Auchterarder.)

By the Rev. Mr Andrew Gibson.

Name, Extent, Soil, Climate, etc.

MUCKART, was anciently written Mucard, and is said to be compounded of two Gaelic words, Muc and Ard, the first signifying "a wild boar," the last "high," or a height. It is probable, that it derives its name in consequence of that part of the Ochil hills which is situated in the parish, having been formerly infested by the wild boar, an animal which for this century past has been unknown in Scotland.

The parish is of a triangular form. It is about 5 miles in length, from E. to W. and between 2 and 3 in breadth, from N. to S. containing about 4500 acres of land, 3000 of which are arable, and 1500 hill ground, fit only for pasture. The soil is mostly of a light and gravellish nature, and a small part of clay. The west part of the parish, adjoining to Dollar, the lowest lying of which is upwards of 60 feet above the level of the sea, produces very good Oats, barley, and pease. The middle and east part, which is between 500 and 600 feet above the level of the sea, produces the same kinds of grain, but of a much inferior quality. There have been of late several trials made of sowing wheat in the parish, which have succeeded indifferently well in the west part of it ; but in the east part, the ground is too high, light and filly for it. Almost the whole soil, being sandy and dry, is well adopted for the culture of potatoes and turnip, though hitherto few of the last have been in use to be sown. They now begin to be somewhat more frequently raised than formerly.

The climate, in general, is sharp and cold, owing to the highness of the situation; but it is more mild and temperate in the west part of the parish, where the ground lies low, than in the east part of it, where it is high. The difference is perceptible at all seasons of the year, but especially in winter, in times of frost and snow. As the parish lies along the foot of the Ochils, it is frequently covered with fogs and mists, owing to its vicinity to these hills ; and to the same cause, it is perhaps more subject to rains, than places at a greater distance from the hills.

The inhabitants, however, are remarkably healthy, and a considerable proportion of them live to an advanced age. There is at present one woman, aged 83 ; and there were lately living in one house, at the same time, a husband, his wife, and his sister, all above 84. No local distempers are prevalent. Rheumatism seems to be more common than any other.

Hills, River, etc.

Besides the Blairhill and Lawhill, there is a part of the ridge of the Ochils in the parish. The one at the back of the kirk called Sea mab, is about 1350 feet above the level of the sea; but it does not seem to be of so great a height, owing to its arising from an elevated base. These hills are beautiful and green, and are excellent pasture for sheep. The tops of them are mostly covered with bent, and fame of them with heath. The river Devan runs S. E. along the N. E. part of the parish to the Crook, where it turns round a small point of land, changes its course from E. to W. and runs W. along the south side of the parish, intersecting it near the west end, in one place, and cutting off to the south side one farm or plough of land. The Dovan abounds with burn trout of an excellent flavour, of a darkish colour, with red spots ; and there is also salmon that come from the Forth, as far up as the Cauldron Linn, but they have not been able to get above it. There is no town, and only one small village in the parish.

Population.

According to Dr Webster‘s report, the numbers then were 535. There are at present 140 families and 526 persons in the parish.

Of these there are:
Under 10 years of age, 128
Between 10 and 20, 119
Between 20 and 50, 173
Between 50 and 70, 89
Between 70 and 100, 17
Males, 239
Females, 287
Married persons, 192
Widowers, 6
Widows, 17
Bachelors who keep house, 4
Of the Established Church, 264
Of Antiburgher Seceders 249
Of Burgher Seceders, 10
Of Cameronians, 3
Male servants, 38
Female servants, 33
Wrights, 6
Masons, 6
Blacksmiths, 4
Weavers, 23
Tailors, 5
Shoemakers, 6
Flesher, 1
Surgeon, 1
Antiburgher minister, 1
Minister of the Established Church, 1

Table of the births and marriages since the 1786, and of the deaths in the 1791 and 1792.

Agriculture, etc.

The valued rent of the parish is L. 2161 : 13 : 4 Scots.

The real rent was lately estimated in a rental given in to the Court of Teinds, in a process of augmentation of stipend, at L. 1089 Sterling. There are 38 proprietors of land, 21 of whom reside. The greatest number of these have from L. 5 to L. 50 Sterling a-year; a few have from L. 50 to L. 80 ; and only two are worth above L. 100. Of these, the one was estimated in the rental before mentioned at L. 115, and the other at L. 120 a year. The lands belonging to the non-residing heritors are farmed mostly by tenants, but the greatest part of the residing heritors occupy their own lands, which they labour chiefly themselves, with the assistance of their children, a few of them having, besides what they possess themselves, some small pendicles let to tenants.

The ground that is inclosed is commonly let yearly by public roup some time in the month of April, for that season, in separate inclosures, for the purpose of grazing; which generally brings a better rent to the proprietor than could be made by tillage. A considerable part of the lands in the parish is inclofed, but the greatest part is still open, and in a natural state. Some of the proprietors are not sufficiently sensible of the advantages of inclosing, and do not seem to aspire at any thing farther than to trade in the footsteps of their predecessors ; if they can attain this, their ambition carries them no higher. Besides, though they had a proper sense of the advantages of inclosing, the smallness of the possessions of many of them, and their being in the custom of maintaining families upon them, however small, renders it difficult for them to spare money for this useful purpose.

To this may be added, that the whole lands in the parish are thirled to Muckart mill, and liable to pay a heavy multure. All which may be considered as hindrances to improvements in agriculture. The number of horses, black cattle, and sheep, cannot be ascertained with precision. As the inclosed farms are annually let for the purpose of grazing, the numbers are, constantly varying; but it is computed, that there are usually about 140 horses, 620 black cattle, and 320 sheep in the parish. The reason why there are so few sheep, is, that a great part of the hill ground is inclosed with stone fences that are sufficient for black cattle, but not for sheep, and therefore black cattle are mostly pastured on the hills.

Stipend, School, Poor, etc.

The archbishop of St Andrew's was originally patron of the parish, and titular of the tithes. The King is now patron. The stipend is L. 44 : 8 : 0 10/12 Sterling, with a manse and a glebe of about 10 acres. A process of augmentation is now depending. Besides the Established Church, there is an Antiburgher meeting-house. There is one established schoolmaster, who has L. 100 Scots of salary, and about L. 16 Sterling of interest of money, mortified by different persons for the behoof of the schoolmaster. Besides this, he has a right to a school, school-house, and garden, by another mortification, which the heritors are obliged to keep in repair, otherwise they forfeit the benefit of it. The whole, with the profits of the the school and other emoluments, may be estimated about L. 36 Sterling. The average of the scholars is about 36.

As there are few opulent, so there are not many poor in the parish, who are under the necessity of living upon charity. They do not, at an average, exceed 6, and the interest of the funds mortified for the behoof of the poor, with the collections at the church door, are sufficient to maintain them. These added together, make about L. 18 Sterling a year *.

* Public Houses. - There are 3 public houses, whose employment arises chiefly from stranger travellers, and from the drivers of coals from Blairingone and Dollar to Strathern. As the greatest part of their business flows from persons of the above descriptions stopping to refresh themselves and their horses, and not from the inhabitants of the place, they have not much influence upon the morals of the people.

Natural Curiosities

The Rumbling Bridge is built in a hollow over the river Dovan, between the parishes of Muckart and Fossaway. It consists of one arch of 22 feet in span and 12 in breadth. At this place there was originally a bridge of wood. The present stone one was built about the year 1713, by one William Gray, a native of the parish of Saline. It is over a narrow chasm that seems to have been worn through the rock by the river, about 86 feet deep. To look over the bridge down to the river is awful. In some places the waters are scarcely visible, when there is no flood in them, having a concealed course below the rocks, through which they have worn a passage. In others, they are seen gushing among the stones with great rapidity. The rocks on the sides in many places project over one another. At both ends of the bridge, and at various parts on the face of the rocks, are trees and bushes, where daws and hawks have their nests, and from which they are often flying forth. The whole furnishes a most romantic scene.

A little higher up is the De‘il’s Mill, a name taken from the similarity there is between the place and a grinding mill. Here the river, after running by a quick descent, between rocks in a narrow course for some time comes into a kind of bason formed in the rock; out of which the water falls about 14 or 15 feet among the stones, making a dreadful noise, resembling the noise of the happer and clap of a mill. There are several conjectures about what is the cause of the clap that is heard. Some think it is occasioned by the river's falling on a large stone suspended between the rocks, and striking against them by means of the force of the waters ; others, that it is owing to the air’s being carried down by the falling of the water into a vacuity below the rocks, and causing a clap, by regularly bursting out as it is condensed.

The Cauldron Linn, which is about a mile below the Rumbling Bridge, exhibits a still more romantic scene. At a distance is heard the noise of the falls of water, and of the river running by a quick descent among the stones with great rapidity, in a confined course, through which it has to force its passage. The noise increases as you come nearer to the place, which you do not see till you are upon it. The first thing that strikes the eye, are the high rocks on the sides of the river, through which it appears to have worn its way. These rocks are some of them perpendicular, and others project over the river and almost meet. They are on both sides nearly of an equal height, and on a level ; but as there are two cascades, they are much higher from the surface of the water below the second cascade, and even above it, than they are from the surface of the water above the first. At the first cascade, the river, after a short fall, lights on rock hollowed in a curious wonderful manner, into deep cavities of different forms and sizes; most of which are of a cylindric form, open on one side, or of a circular form like cauldrons. One of these is much larger than the rest, over which the rock on the south side of the river is a little projected. In this cavity or cauldron, the water seems as if it were always boiling round, having a thick brown or yellow scum on the top, owing to its great agitation, bearing a striking resemblance to the working of malt liquor in a large brewing vessel. From this the name of Cauldron Linn is taken. A little farther down is the second and great cascade, where the river hath worn its way through the rock, and when there is no flood in the water, it runs below a beautiful arch of solid rock; but this arch must in time be carried away by the violence of the current, or be undermined by the wearing of the water. The height of this fall to the surface of the water, where it drops, is about 44 feet ; and the height from the top of the fall to the top of the rocks is about 44 feet; so that the whole height of the rocks from the top to the surface of the water below the fall, is about 88 feet. Below this cascade the rocks widen considerably, and in the clifts on the face of them, the daws and hawks build their nests. Beneath the rocks there is a steep brae on both sides, covered with trees and bushes, through which there is a foot-path to the edge of the river, from which there is an excellent view of the great cascade.

Coal and Lime.

There are both coal and lime in different parts of the parish ; but for some time past, neither of these hath been wrought to great extent. The whole coal in the parish belongs to the Duke of Argyle, who, as superior, has a privilege of working coal in any part of the feuars lands, upon his paying surface damages. This privilege, and also the lime rock in the lands of Muckart mill, belonging to his Grace, are let to a Company, who are only working the lime at present, for which they have much greater demands than they are able to answer. The inhabitants are supplied with coal from the coal pits in the neighbourhood at Blairngone and Dollar.

Roads and Bridges.

Two roads run through the parish ; the one from Kinross to Stirling; the other from Queen's Ferry to Strathern, by Blairngone ; and there are, besides the Rumbling Bridge formerly mentioned, other three bridges over the Dovan, between the parishes of Muckart and Fossaway; one on the road near the old manse of Fossaway; one on the road from Kinross to Stirling; and one on the road from Queen's Ferry to Strathern, a little north from Blairngone. As this last is a very public road, it is of great importance that it be made as easy for travellers and carriages as possible. Accordingly, an act of Parliament hath lately been obtained for making it a turnpike road, that it may be put and kept in proper repair, which, when done, must be of great advantage to the public.