Alness
Principal Sources
OSA Vol 19 No 5
RMS II (1227) 1475-6, (1978) 1490
RMS III (382) 1526, (486) 1527
RMS V (148) 1580-1 (on original of 1566), (586) 1583 on original of 1566, (715) 1584 (on original of 1567), (1331) 1587
RMS VI (2111) 1608 on original of 1607
RSS II (2997) 1539
RSS VII (486) 1575-6
RSS VIII (2506) 1584
GD1/400/2/3 Section J p 4, 1678
GD1/498/4 1589
GD80/183 1686, GD80/285 1696
GD93/11 1379-82, GD93/100 1582, GD93/119 1588, GD93/120 1589, GD93/123 1590, GD93/147 1608, GD93/165 1617, GD93/296 1700, GD93/297 1701, GD93/375 1756, GD93/378 1759
GD103/1/127 1630 on original of 1623
GD176/576 1678, GD176/616 1686
GD274/93 1372 x 1382
GD297/180 1439/40, GD297/217 No 60 1609
GD305/1/29/1 1587, GD305/1/30/3 1595, GD305/1/32/4 1673, GD 305/1/51/6 1708, GD305/1/57/1 1785, GD305/1/63/2 1849
RH8/703 1709, RH8/1044 1702, RH8/1048 1704
CWMF (11) 1379, (68) 1556, (100) 1582, (109) 1586, (119) 1588, (335) 1732
Retours (Ross) (29) 1608, (62) 1622, (81) 1635, (90) 1642, (101) 1651, (105-6) 1653, (151) 1691
RS36/2/359r 1608, RS36/2/369v 1608
RS37/1/141v 1619
RS37/4/287v 1631
RS37/5/33v 1632
RS37/6/161v 1638
RS37/7/2v 1648, RS37/7/254v 1656
RS38/1/43v 1662
RS38/4/333v 1675
RS38/5/344v 1686
SC29/1/1 f40r & f40v 1558
SC39/112/9/11 1755
RHP 2923 1909, RHP 4188 1882
Sixth Report of the Royal Commission on Historical Manuscripts, London, 1877
PSAS Vol 41 1906-7 No 127 1630 on original of 1623, or GD103/1/127.
Defining early parish-boundaries is always something of a problem but we are fortunate in that CWMF (109) gives us a list of farms from which teind-sheaves were drawn in 1586. They are as below (extents, where known, in brackets):
Kildermorie (?)
2 Kanlochis (¼ davach)
Little & Meikle Boith (¾ davach)
Achcharne (Part of Culcraggie?)
Lealdy (½ davach – part of Moultavie?)
Culcragy (1 davach)
Alnes (¼ davach)
Assint (1 davach)
Inchculter (Possibly part of Assint?)
Achnagald (½ davach)
Balnacowle (¼ davach)
Canlochglas (¼ davach)
Refarquhar (⅛ davach)
Candvochtrach. (? ¼ davach)
Unfortunately this is not a complete list of the farms in Alness parish but it does help us pin down its components and extent.
RMS V (715) 1584 (on an original of 1567) refers to a parish called Kittermare which the editor thought might be Killernane. The name seems closer to Kildermorie which may have been a distinct parish in the earlier medieval period. SC39/112/9/11 is an account of Alness, made in 1755, by James Fraser, Minister, who writes: “There was, before the Reformation, a parish church in Kildermory … the walls of which are still standing; and the In(ha)bitants mark out a field, which, they say, was the Glebe”. Kildermorie may have been a very small parish and since I do not know its boundaries I have included it within Alness.
The table shows 9⅜ + davachs and since I have no valuations for Cille Mhuire and Candvochtrach the true total must have been about 10 davachs.
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