Tour Scotland photographs and videos from my tours of Scotland. Photography and videography, both old and new, from beautiful Scotland, Scottish castles, seascapes, rivers, islands, landscapes, standing stones, lochs and glens.
Showing posts with label Tour Scotland Rattray. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tour Scotland Rattray. Show all posts
Tour Scotland photograph of the Thomas Robertson gravestone in the cemetery in Rattray, Perthshire, Scotland. Gardener, Rattray, who died 3rd February 1889, aged 86. The Industrial Revolution saw huge profits being made by many of Scotland’s entrepreneurs who, in turn, established their own town house and country estate gardens, industries such as publishing, jute manufacture, shipbuilding and other industries lead to rich landowners employing many gardeners.
All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.
Tour Scotland photograph of the Thomas G. Stewart gravestone in the old graveyard cemetery in Alyth, Perthshire, Scotland. A Mathematical Master in Edinburgh who died from the effects of an accident on the 4th of March, 1863, aged 24. The progenitor of the Stewart family was Alan fitz Flaad, a Breton knight who settled in England after the Norman Conquest. His son, Walter fitz Alan, relocated to Scotland during the Anarchy, became the High Steward of Scotland, hence the origin of the surname. One of the hereditary Stewart stewards, Walter Stewart, married Marjorie Bruce, daughter of King Robert I, and founded the royal House of Stuart, a French spelling, beginning with their son King Robert II. The House of Stewart was the longest serving royal dynasty of Scotland. In 1603, the Stewart King James VI of Scotland became King James I of England and Wales by his succession to Queen Elizabeth I. The Stewart dynasty ruled Scotland, England and Wales, with an interruption during Cromwell's Commonwealth after the English Civil War, until 1714, when Queen Anne died and the British Crown passed to the German Electors of Hanover. The grandson of James II, Prince Charles Edward Stuart, led the last attempt to restore the Stewart dynasty to the British Crown in 1745 and became known to history as " Bonnie Prince Charlie ". This attempted coup d'état ended in the slaughter of Charles' army at the Battle of Culloden in April, 1746.
All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.
Tour Scotland photograph of the James McDonald gravestone in the graveyard cemetery in Rattray, Perthshire, Scotland. Died 3rd November 1889, aged 87. MacDonald, Macdonald, and McDonald are Anglicised forms of the Scottish Gaelic and Irish Gaelic name MacDhòmhnaill, which in modern Gaelic is approximated as McConnell. It is a patronym where Mac means " son " and Dhòmhnaill means " of Dòmhnall ". The personal name Dòmhnall is composed of the elements domno " world " and val " rule ". In the context of Scottish clans, the various forms of the name refer to one of the largest clans, Clan Donald.
All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.
Tour Scotland photograph of the William Thomson gravestone in the graveyard cemetery in Rattray, Perthshire, Scotland. Erected by Flora McDonald in memory of her husband. Thomson is a Scottish patronymic surname meaning " son of Thom, Thomp, Thompkin, or other diminutive of Thomas ", itself derived from the Aramaic תום or Tôm, meaning " twin ". The Welsh surname is documented in Cheshire records before and after the 1066 Norman Conquest. Variations include Thomason, Thomasson, Thomerson, Thomoson, and others. The French surname Thomson is first documented in Burgundy. Variations include Thomassin, Thomason, Thomesson, Thomeson, and others. Thomson is uncommon as a given name.
All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.
Tour Scotland photograph of the J Grubb gravestone in the churchyard cemetery in Rattray, Perthshire, Scotland. A Colour Sergeant in the Royal Scots Fusiliers, he died 22nd August, 1914, aged 38. The Royal Scots Fusiliers was a line infantry regiment of the British Army that existed from 1678 until 1959 when it was amalgamated with the Highland Light Infantry, City of Glasgow Regiment, to form the Royal Highland Fusiliers, Princess Margaret's Own Glasgow and Ayrshire Regiment, which was later itself merged with the Royal Scots Borderers, the Black Watch, Royal Highland Regiment, the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders and the Highlanders, Seaforth, Gordons and Camerons, to form a new large regiment, the Royal Regiment of Scotland. Grubb with variant spellings Grob, Grube, Grubbe etc., derives from the Old German " grube ", a mine, pit, hollow or cavity, from the Old High German verb " grubilon ", to dig, related to the Middle Dutch " grobben ", to scrape, and was originally given as an occupational name to a worker in a mine. The family of Grubbe, spelt in the old registers Grube or Groube, migrated from Germany about the year 1430, after the Hussite persecutions, however, the surname is on record in England from the late 12th Century, suggesting a much earlier initial date of entry. One, Johannes Grubb was noted in the 1379 Poll Tax Returns of Yorkshire. The surname is particularly well recorded in church registers of South West England from the late 16th Century. In 1581, the birth of one, Thomas Grubb is recorded in Devizes, Wiltshire, and on February 18th 1582, Henry Grubb, an infant was christened in Stoke Climsland, Cornwall. The name was introduced into the Irish Counties of Waterford and Tipperary in the mid 17th Century by an English family who settled there. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Richard Grubbe, which was dated 1176, in the " Pipe Rolls of Berkshire ", during the reign of King Henry 11, known as " The Builder of Churches ", born 1154, died 1189. Surnames became necessary when governments introduced personal taxation.
All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.
Tour Scotland photograph of the John Robertson gravestone in the graveyard cemetery in Rattray, Perthshire, Scotland. A Weaver in Rattray who died in 1849, aged 59. Robertson is Scottish and northern English: patronymic from the personal name Robert. This surname is especially common in Scotland, where Robert was a popular personal name and the name of three kings of Scotland, including Robert the Bruce, born 1274, died 1329.
All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.
Tour Scotland photograph of the John Coutts gravestone in the graveyard cemetery in Rattray, Perthshire, Scotland. For 38 years the zealous and respected Schoolmaster of Rattray Paarish, born in Glenshee in 1787, died in Rattray 27th January, 1859, aged 72. Coutts and Couts are English language surnames derived from the Gaelic language. The names are derived from the Gaelic cuilt, meaning " nook ". It also was a habitational name from Cults, Aberdeen, Scotland. William Coutts, a Coutts of Auchintoul, was a vassal of the Macdonald's, settled in Montrose, in the 16th century and became a provost of the town. The Coutts are associated with the the Clan Farquharson.
All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.
Tour Scotland photograph of 5522 Private J. Ramsay, Scottish Horse Regiment, gravestone in the cemetery in Rattray, Perthshire, Scotland. Died 18th November 1916, aged 21. The name Ramsay originated from a place in Huntingdonshire, England, and Sir Symon de Ramesie was one of the many Norman knights who accompanied King David I when he returned to Scotland in 1124. Sir Symon was granted land in Midlothian but by the 13th century the family had become established not only in Fife, Dalhousie, Midlothian but also in Angus and Banff on the Moray Firth. Neis de Ramsay Bamff, near Alyth in Perthshire, was a physician to King Alexander II in the first half of the 13th century. William of Dalhousie was one of the signatories to the Declaration of Arbroath in 1320.
All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.
Tour Scotland photograph of the David Baxter gravestone in the graveyard cemetery in Rattray, Perthshire, Scotland. David Baxter, died 1754. Baxter is an Anglo Saxon and Scottish name, originally from the English occupational surname meaning " baker, " from the early Middle English bakstere and the Old English bæcere. The form Bakster was originally feminine, with Baker as the masculine equivalent, but over time both names came to apply to both men and woman. Ancient variations in the spelling of the surname include Bakster, Baxstar, Baxstair, Baxstare and Baxster.
All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.
Tour Scotland photograph of the James Howie gravestone in the graveyard cemetery in Rattray, Perthshire, Scotland. Died 3rd November, 1839, aged 78. Howie is a Scottish locational surname derived from a medieval estate in Scotland's south west county of Ayrshire. While its ancient name is known as " The lands of How ", its exact location is lost in time. The word " How ", predating written history, appears to originate from the ancient Kingdom of Strathclyde as a locational description of a " hollow " or deep valley. The alternate spelling of Howie is " Howey ". The oldest public record of the surname dates to 1526 in the town of Brechin in Angus.
All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.
Tour Scotland photograph of the Alex G. Grant gravestone in the churchyard cemetery in Rattray, Perthshire, Scotland. 1st Canadian Engineers. It is almost certain that the ancestors of the chiefs of Clan Grant came to Scotland with the Normans to England where the name is found soon after the conquest of that country. Although some historians have asserted that the Grants were part of the Siol Alpin group of families who descend from Alpin, father of Kenneth MacAlpin, first king of Scots. The first Grants to appear in Scotland are recorded in the 13th century when they acquired the lands of Stratherrick. One of the family married Mary, daughter of Sir John Bisset and from this marriage came at least two sons. One of these sons was Sir Laurence le Grand who became Sheriff of Inverness.
All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.
Tour Scotland photograph of the Jane Cathro gravestone in the churchyard cemetery in Rattray, Perthshire, Scotland. Cathra, Cathrae, Cathraw, Cathrow and possibly others, are probably a surname of Scottish origins, although there is at least one other possibility. If Scottish it almost certainly originates from a place now called Stracathro, near the town of Forfar. This place in ancient times was called Cottrhali, from pre 7th century Norse Viking. As such it literally translates as The cats tail, but geographically refers to a thin piece of land, later known as a strand or strath, hence the modern place name. The second possibility is said to be French. If so it may be 16th century Huguenot Protestant, and derive from the female name Catherine. This is from the Ancient Greek word katharos meaning pure. As regards recordings, the surname in any spelling was apparently first recorded in Scotland, the earliest example that we have being that of William Cathraw, who was a burgess of the city of Perth, Perthshire, in 1509. Later we have the recording of Helen Cathrow at Brechin in 1613, and more recently that of Isabella Cathrae, at Newstead, Melrose, Borders, on September 5th 1909. The surname at least in some spellings, is quite well recorded in England. Early examples from the surviving registers of the city of London include Frances Cathrow, at St Dunstans Stepney in 1652, Elias Cottro, who married Ann Betts at the same church in 1728, and William Cathro who married Elizabeth Page at St. Georges, Botolph Lane, on February 11th 1755. Surnames became necessary when governments introduced personal taxation. In England this was sometimes known as the Poll Tax.
All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.
Tour Scotland photograph of the Archibald Ferguson gravestone in the churchyard cemetery in Rattray, Perthshire, Scotland. He died at Hatton of Rattray on June 1st, 1874, aged 73. The Ferguson name is of Gaelic origin, found in both Scotland and Ireland, and is the patronymic form of Fergus, i.e. son of Fergus. The old Gaelic name was Fearghus, comprised of the elements fear, or man, and ghus, vigor or force. It was the name of an early Irish mythical figure and an early king of the Scots. Ferguson and Fergusson are the alternative spellings in Scotland. The Fergusson spelling persists and has continued to be used by various clan leaders.
All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.
Tour Scotland photograph of the David Rattray gravestone in the graveyard in Rattray by Blairgowrie, Perthshire, Scotland. David was a Flax Spinner at Bramble Bank Mill, who died 23rd of November, 1860. From the frequent mention of linen in the history of Scotland, it is evident that the inhabitants were acquainted with the processes of making cloth from flax six hundred years ago at least. It is related that, at the battle of Bannockburn, fought in the year 1314, " the carters, wainmen, lackeys, and women put on shirts, smocks, and other white linens, aloft upon their usual garments, and bound towels and napkins on their spears and staves. Then placing themselves in battle array, and making a great show, they came down the hillside in face of the enemy with much noise and clamour. The English, supposing them to be a reinforcement coming to the Scots, turned and fled. " There is good reason for concluding that the linen so successfully displayed on this memorable occasion was home made. At first the flax was grown, dressed, spun, and woven by the people for their own use; but towards the close of the sixteenth century linen goods formed the chief part of the exports from Scotland to England and many foreign countries.
All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.
Tour Scotland photograph of the Charles Cargill gravestone in the graveyard cemetery in Rattray, Perthshire, Scotland. This Scottish locational name derives from The Lands of Cargill a parish in East Perthshire, and being first recorded in the 13th Century. The name means The Stony Stream or possibly The Stream on the Stony Hill, the name being extremely popular in certain areas, an example being Auchmithie in Angus in 1859 when 123 out of 375 adults were called Cargill. The name has been spelt Kergylle in 1283, Kergille in 1296, Kergill in 1401, Cargyl in 1497, and Carnigill in 1583, Cargill being recorded in 1681. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Walter de Kergyle. which was dated 1260 Charter Witness at Drumkerauch. during the reign of King Alexander 111 of Scotland, born 1249, died 1286. Surnames became necessary when governments introduced personal taxation. In England this was known as Poll Tax.
All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.
Tour Scotland photograph of the Whitson Family of Parkhill Mausoleum in the churchyard cemetery in Rattray, Perthshire, Scotland. Charles Hill Whitson, Esquire, born 1840, died 1881, owned 998 acres in the area. Other Whitsons in Scotland include, William Quhitsoun, bailie of Perth in 1369, known as Willelmus de Qwhithosum, burgess of the same town in 1379; John Quhytson who witnessed a charter by Robert Mersar of Innerpeffray in 1454; John Quhitsoun, burgess of Perth. In 1484 and again in 1498 the lands of le Peblis in Angus were leased to Thomas Quhitsone. James Quhitsoun was witness in Fife, 1547; Thomas Whitson was notary and writer in Kirktoun of Rattray, 1688, Janet Whitson appears in Easter Caputh in 1693, and Thomas Whitson was an important man in Dundee in 1823.
All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.
Tour Scotland photograph of the Rattray Memorial in the graveyard cemetery in Rattray, Perthshire, Scotland. The burial enclosure includes Robert Clerk Rattray of Rattray family. The name Rattray is derived from the barony of Rattray in Perthshire, Scotland. Legend has it that their land there was acquired from King Malcolm III of Scotland in the 11th century. There are various renditions of the name in early written records; Rathtreff in 1160, Rotref inb 1291, Ratref in 1296, Rothtref in 1205, there are also various other renditions of the name including Rattra. The name is composed of two parts the first part is derived from the word rath, from both Gaelic and Cymric, modern Welsh or ancient British, meaning fortification; the second part Tref or Treb, Tray, from the Cymric, meaning settlement. The first recorded Rattray was the laird Alan Rattray who is recorded as a witness on charters of King Alexander II of Scotland.
During the Wars of Scottish Independence Alan Rattray's grandson, Eustace Rattray led the clan, as chief at the Battle of Dunbar, 1296, against the English. However, he was captured there and his son Adam Rattray swore an oath to King Edward I of England during the same year on the Ragman Rolls. The captured Eustace Rattray was later acquitted.
Confirmation by Robert the Bruce of grants made to them of the lands of the two Drymeis within the tenement of Glenballach, which they have by gift of Adam of Glenballach, with the whole common of the same, which they have by gift of Eustace of Ratray and confirmation of the said Adam. 5th October 1309.
Sir Silvester Rattray succeeded his father in 1456. Silvester Rattray was appointed one of the Ambasidors extraordinair to treat with the Court of England, for which he obtained a safe conduct, dated 12 June 1463; in this document he is designated Dominus Silvester de Rattray miles. His seal is appended to a Precept of Sasine of lands of Grauiche in the Earldom of Athole in favour of John Stuart of Fethinkile 26 March 1465. In about 1473 there is a security under his seal for Robert and Thomas Fif. In 1481 he sat in the parliament and was apparently very influential at court. Sir Silvester Rattray married Alison Hepburn, daughter of Alexander Stewart, Earl of Buchan, Wolf of Badenoch, bastard son of Robert III of Scotland, and left three sons and was succeeded by the eldest, John.
Thomas Rattray, Sir Silvester Rattray's 3rd son, obtained a charter for the lands of Monidie, Louston and Kinnaird in 1509, from George, Bishop of Dunkeld and was the ancestor of the Rattrays of Rannagulzion, Perthshire. Chief John Rattray was knighted by King James IV of Scotland in 1488 but was killed leading the clan at the Battle of Flodden Field in 1513, fighting against the English, part of the Anglo-Scottish Wars. His eldest son was already dead leaving two daughters so the estate passed to his second son Patrick. Patrick was intimidated into giving up the Barony by John Stewart, Earl of Atholl. Through the marriage of Patrick’s niece into the family, the Earl took control of the Barony of Rattray and also took control of her sister. Thus Patrick was driven from his estate in 1516. He began the construction of Craighall Castle a grand building perched on a 200 feet rock above the River Ericht. The stronghold of Craighall could not protect him from John Stewart the Earl of Atholl though and he was murdered in 1533. Sir John’s son Patrick defended Craighall Castle, also known as Rattray Castle against the Clan Stuart Atholls but was forced to burn the Castle and escape in the confusion. The Rattrays then withdrew to Kynballoch, where Patrick was later murdered by the 3rd Earl of Atholl’s men whilst claiming sanctuary in his own Chapel.
In 1572 David Rattray of Craighall (d.1586) killed two men in a fight with some men from the Clan Rollo, but was relieved of responsibility on payment of a fine of 500 merks. Sir John’s third son Silvester succeeded his murdered brother, Atholl continued to intimidate the family however and Silvester petitioned the king for legal recognition as heir. He was succeeded by his son, David Rattray of Craighall. George The laird’s eldest son was also murdered in 1592 and another Silvester, his son, succeeded him.
Chief Silvester Rattray died in the year 1612, leaving three sons. The eldest David became chief and the clan fought for King Charles I during the Civil War. The youngest was captured after the defeat of Charles II in 1651 at the Battle of Worcester and was incarcerated in the Tower of London. However Patrick Rattray was successful in uniting the barony of Kinballoch with Rattray and their other associated parishes into one free barony of Craighall-Rattray. This charter also claimed back Rattray the land which was seized by the Earls of Atholl, including the Rattray's Craighall Castle. James Rattray of Rannagulzion and Corb fought at the Battle of Killiecrankie in 1689. Referred to as James, son of David Rattray of Rannagullane.
Patrick’s son, John, was physician to Charles Edward Stewart, the Jacobite leader. He was with him throughout the Forty-five and was captured after the Battle of Culloden in 1746, but was fortunately reprieved. The twenty-second and twenty-third Lairds died without issue, and the estates passed to a cousin, James Clerk Rattray, sheriff depute of Edinburgh. He was a good friend of Sir Walter Scott who modelled "Tully-Veolan" the Baron of Bradwardine's castle in "Waverley" on Craighall.
James Rattray of Rannagulzion was commissioned as a major of foot in the Atholl brigade in the 1745 uprising. See commission into Prince Charles's army as a Major of foot in Tullibardines regiment National Library of Scotland. Served in the Ogilvie regiment. He was married to Jean, daughter of Sir James Kinloch of that Ilk 2nd Kinloch of Kinloch Bart.
Col. Thomas Rattray, a Rattray of Rannagulzion, Commanded the Viceroy's cavalry and raised a police battalion in 1856, which distinguished itself throughout the Indian mutiny. The battalion maintain their battles honours and name as the 3rd battalion the Sikh regiment in the modern Indian army.
The septs of the Clan Rattray include: Rannagulzion, Dalrulzion, Brewlands and Persie. Variations in spelling include Ratray, Ratre, Ratteray, Ratteree,Ratterree, Rattray, Retrey, Rettra, Rettray and Rotray.
All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.
Tour Scotland photograph of the Parish Church, Rattray, Perthshire, Scotland. The present church was rebuilt in 1821 to the designs of William Stirling. It is a rectangular structure with four round-arched windows along its south face towards the churchyard, and a meagre Italianate bell tower at the west end.
Rattray in 1846. Rattray, a parish, in the county Perth, one from Blairgowrie; containing, with the villages of Old and New Rattray, 1918 inhabitants, of whom 447 are in the former, and 580 in the latter, village. This place lays claim to a considerable degree of antiquity, and is supposed to have derived its name, of which the etymology is uncertain, from the family of Rattray, by whom, according to records yet extant, it appears to have been possessed prior to the year 1066, and whose descendants are still the principal proprietors. Of the castle of Rattray, the original seat of that family, there are some remains on the hill of Rattray, a spacious oblong eminence to the south-east of the village, rounded at the eastern extremity, and on the summit of which the ruins form a pleasingly romantic object, conveying an adequate idea of its original grandeur. During the frequent intestine wars which subsisted between the rival factions in the reigns of some of the Scottish kings, the family, not thinking themselves secure in the castle of Rattray from the incursions of their enemies, removed to the castle of Craighall, about two miles north-west of the village, and which since that period has continued to be their residence. The inhabitants were formerly noted for the celebration of various sports, of which the most general were curling, archery, and the game called the "long ball;" and there were, till the year 1745, preserved in the parish, a silver curling-stone, a silver arrow, and a silver ball, which were severally awarded as prizes to the successful competitors in these respective games. Any parish in Scotland might contest with the people of Rattray for the prize in these games, which always took place within the parish; and the successful candidate was bound to restore the prize he had obtained, previously to the next annual celebration. The curlingstone and the arrow were lost during the time of the rebellion; but the silver ball, which has been contested for within the present century, is still in the possession of Alexander Whitson, Esq., of Parkhill.
The parish comprises a part of the vale of Strathmore, and is bounded on the west and on the south by the river Ericht, which separates it from the parish of Blairgowrie. Including a widely-detached portion of it, which lies on the confines of Forfarshire, it is about six miles and a half in extreme length and nearly two miles in mean breadth; comprising about 6500 acres, of which 4500 are arable, 450 woodland and plantations, and the remainder moor and waste. The surface towards the south, for some breadth along the banks of the river, is tolerably level; but towards the north it increases in elevation till it nearly reaches the village, beyond which it rises by steep acclivities into rugged and precipitous hills, forming part of the chain which, some miles beyond the limits of the parish, terminates in the Grampian range. The only river connected with the parish is the Ericht, which has its source in some springs issuing from the Grampian hills, and, flowing southward, receives the waters of the Ardle, a considerable mountain stream from the north-west. After this, passing the mansion of Craighall, and taking an eastern course, it bounds the parish on the south, and about two miles off falls into the Isla near Cupar-Angus, and flows in conjunction with that river into the Tay. The Ericht in the winter often overflows its banks, and after rains in the autumn, also, sometimes inundates the adjacent lands, occasioning much damage to the crops; it abounds with trout, affording good sport to the angler, and salmon are found in it during the season. In its course, which is rapid, it forms the beautiful cascade of Keith, where the water, obstructed by a rock, falls into a pool beneath, on which is a salmon-fishery belonging to Lord Wharncliffe. The general scenery, from the variety of the surface and the belts of wood and plantations scattered over it, is pleasingly diversified; and from the numerous hills are obtained some fine prospects over the fertile vale of Strathmore and the surrounding country.
The soil on the hills and uplands is thin, cold, and moorish, and in the lower parts dry and gravelly; but, though in some places encumbered with loose stones, it is generally fertile, producing favourable crops of oats, barley, and wheat, with potatoes and turnips, and the usual grasses. In the higher parts is a common of about 300 acres, called the Broad Moss, fit only for cutting turf for fuel. The system of husbandry is improved, but there is little in the parish to require agricultural notice; the majority of the farms are of very moderate extent, and those on the higher lands are employed mainly for the pasture of cattle and sheep. The cattle are of the Strathmore and Angus breeds, with a mixture of the Teeswater; they are mostly bought in at the neighbouring fairs, and when two or three years old are fed for the butcher, or sold to dealers who send them to the Glasgow market. The plantations consist chiefly of larch and Scotch fir; they are under careful management, and are regularly thinned, and the produce sold for fuel. Along the river are coppices of oak, which is cut down at a proper age, principally for the bark, which yields a profitable return. The rocks on the banks of the Ericht, near Craighall, rise perpendicularly to the height of 200 feet, and are of rugged and formidable appearance; they consist of enormous masses of whinstone, which have never been wrought for any purpose. The ascent to the summit, even where least precipitous, is difficult and dangerous; and a few trees only have been planted on the surface. Craighall, the seat of Robert Clerk Rattray, Esq., is a spacious castellated mansion, romantically situated on the summit of one of these rocks, 214 feet in height, overhanging the river, and commanding from the drawing-room windows an extensive view of the singularly impressive scenery of the adjacent country, marked with features of wild sublimity and romantic grandeur. This venerable mansion, of which the original date is not known, is accessible only from the south; it was internally remodelled by the late Baron Rattray, who added also, to the front, two turrets at the angles, corresponding in character to those which flank the entrance gateway in the centre. Parkhill is a handsome modern mansion, beautifully situated on the brow of a hill to the north of the village, and embracing a richly diversified prospect over the picturesque and fertile vale of Strathmore.
The village of Old Rattray, which is evidently a place of considerable antiquity, is irregularly built on the southern declivity of a hill, and has greatly increased within the present century, from the facilities of water-power afforded by the river, over which, some miles above the village, a bridge has been constructed by Colonel Sir W. Chalmers. This bridge, which affords communication between the portions of that gentleman's lands on both sides of the stream, consists of a horizontal platform of iron, supported by pillars of stone at each extremity, and is of sufficient breadth for a carriageroad, and a footpath on each side of it. New Rattray is neatly built, extending along the road to Blairgowrie, and is nearly contiguous to the village of Old Rattray; it was commenced in 1809, and from the pleasantness of the scenery, and the healthfulness of its situation, is a favourite resort for invalids from various parts, for whose accommodation there is an excellent inn. The linen manufacture is carried on to a very considerable extent. There are not less than eight mills for the spinning of flax, which are driven by water-wheels of from eight to twenty horse power, and afford employment to 650 persons, inhabitants of the villages. In one of these mills, called the Erichtside mill, are also sixty-seven power-looms constantly employed in the weaving of linen-cloths of various qualities; and almost all of the inhabitants of the parish, when not engaged in agricultural pursuits, are occupied in hand-loom weaving at their own dwellings for the houses of Dundee. The handicraft trades requisite for the supply of the district are also carried on in the villages, in which there are a few shops. Fairs, chiefly for the sale of cattle, are held on the last Fridays in April and August, on a common to the west of the village, and are in general numerously attended. Letters are received daily from the post-office of Blairgowrie, in the immediate vicinity; and facility of communication is maintained by the military road to Fort-George, by Braemar, which passes through the parish, and by the turnpike-road to Alyth and Kirriemuir. The rateable annual value of Rattray is £5229. The ecclesiastical affairs are under the superintendence of the presbytery of Dunkeld and synod of Perth and Stirling. The minister's stipend is £157. 9. 2., of which nearly onehalf is paid from the exchequer; with a manse, and a glebe valued at £25 per annum: patron, the Earl of Kinnoull. The church, built in 1820, to replace the ancient church, which had fallen into decay, is a substantial and handsome structure with a square tower, and contains 620 sittings. There are also places of worship for members of the Free Church and United Secession. The parochial school, situated near the church, in the village of Old Rattray, is attended by about sixty children; the master receives a salary of £34. 4. 4. per annum, with a house, and the school fees average £15. On an eminence half a mile to the east of the village, and also on another about a mile to the north of it, are the remains of a Druidical circle. Near the former were lately discovered in a field of hard gravel, two deep trenches in the form of a crescent with the horns towards the east, having the sides formed with rough stones, and covered with large flags of whinstone, and containing earth of a dark colour intermixed with fragments of burnt bones. There was also till within the last few years, to the east of the village, a large cairn of earth and stones in alternate layers, the base of which covered about half an acre; every layer of earth contained a mixture of burnt bones and wood, and in the centre of the cairn was found a stone coffin holding half-calcined bones and a warlike weapon nearly resembling a dagger.
All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.
