Contin – Summary Table

Contin

 

Name	Value	Date	Grid Ref	Map Sources	Other forms, comments etc
Contin	½ davach     5 pecks	1567     1651	NH 4555		Contane – ex bishopric. ½ davach 1576 in OPS II, II 844-5 quoting Flowerburn Charters. ½ davach GD128/23/1/3 1594. 1 bovate lying next to lands of Coull in RS37/5/308v 1636. RS37/7/113r 1651 & RS37/7/113v 1651 give 5 peck land of Contane.
Craigscorry	3 oxgangs	1648			RS37/7/31r 1648. Unlocated.
Kinnahaird	1 davach	1476-9	NH 4755		Ex earldom. ER rentals & bondage silver consistent with 1 davach. 1 davach in RS37/7/31r 1648 & GD1/1149/11/1 1700.
Achilty/Achillie Easter Wester	(½ davach)	1476-9	NH 4555/4556	OS 6″ Sheet LXXXVII 1876	ER rentals & bondage silver suggest Easter & Wester were ¼ davach each. See PNRC p 148. See below.
Tarvie	16 pecks	1670	NH 4258	Roy(FC)	GD1/400/2/3 Section I pp 17-18, 1670 gives 16 pecks. GD305/1/162/271 1664 refers to the ‘peck land of Tarvie called Knockdow’ (Cnoc Dubh = NH 4358). GD305/1/126/578 1666 refers to grazings called Glenivack & Pollenbuy. Also in RS38/3/69v 1666 & RS38/4/156v 1672.
Coul	1 davach	1610	NH 4656	Roy(FC)	Macgill pp 160-1 No 410 [A & C]. GD1/1149/25. See below.
Comrie	(½ davach) 8 pecks	1539   1670	NH 4155	Roy(FC)	£4 in GD305/1/102/265 1528. ER XVII p 670 1539. Bondages consistently 8s which suggests a ½ davach. GD1/400/2/3 Section I pp 17-18, 1670 gives 8 pecks. See below.
Scatwell Mekill Little	½ davach ½ davach	1539 1539	NH 3955/3956   NH 3856		Bondages consistently 8s each which suggests a ½ davach each. £4 in GD305/1/102/265 1528. See below. GD305/1/71/38 1590. Also Retours (Ross) (148) 1688.
Inverchoran	3m (¾ davach)?	1508	NH 2650		GD305/1/166/7 1508. Lands did not belong to Earls of Ross – RSS II (2697) 1538. GD305/1/20/6 1561. GD128/23/1/3 1594. Detached part of Urray parish. See below.
Eskidale	4m or 1 davach	1508-9			2 Eskidales = 4m in 1476-9. These 4m probably represent an Old Extent valuation. Lands did not belong to Earls of Ross – RSS II (2697) 1538. GD305/1/20/6 1561. GD128/23/1/3 1594. ½ davach in RS37/7/316v 1658.
Garve	4m or ½ davach	1508-9	NH 3961/3962 NH 4061	RHP 2925	In GD305/1/166/7 1463 Garve was 5m. In New Extent terms this would ½ davach. GD128/23/1/3 1594. Cf Killin. See below.
Garbat	(4m or 1 davach)?	1508-9	NH 4167		See below.
Killin	4m or ½ davach	1508-9	NH 3960		In GD46/14/1 & GD305/1/166/7 Killin was 5m in 1463. In New Extent terms this would ½ davach so I think the 4m of 1508-9 is not a true Old Extent valuation. GD305/1/20/6 1561. GD128/23/1/3 1594. Cf Garve.
Achnaclerach	(¼ davach)	1463	NH 4065		See below.
Kinloch Beannacharain	2m (½ davach)	1476-9	NH 2251/2351/2450		Possibly an Old Extent valuation of a ½ davach. Lands did not belong to Earls of Ross – RSS II (2697) 1538. GD128/23/1/3 1594.
Dalnatwa	2m (½ davach)	1463			GD305/1/166/7 of 1463. In GD46/14/1 of 1463 this is 2m Delintan. In RMS II (3313) of 1508-9 this is 1m Dailharna; in GD128/23/1/3 1594 1m Dallerna and in Retours (79) of 1633 it is 1m Dallerne.
Corriemoillie	2m (½ davach)	1463	NH 3563		See below.
Ceann Loch Luichairt	3m (¾ davach)	1463	NH 3363		See below under Corriemoillie.
Glenmeanich	3m 1 davach	1508-9	NH 2852		The 3m here may well be Old Extent. Innermany – 3m rent in ER VIII 1476-9. GD128/23/1/3 1594. Lands did not belong to Earls of Ross – RSS II (2697) 1538. ½ davach in RS37/7/316v 1658.
Meyne	4m (1 davach)	1508-9	c. NH 2852		See Strathconan (NOSAS) p 15 for possible components. Watson (PNRC p 154) mentions Leithdach Mèinn – ½ davach of Main. Meyn – 4m rent in ER VIII 1476-9. GD128/23/1/3 1594. Lands did not belong to Earls of Ross – RSS II (2697) 1538. ½ davach in RS37/7/316v 1658.
Strathmaddie or Stronmaddie or Achanalt and An Cuilinn/Chullin	(¼ davach)	1549	NH 2561 NH 2961/3061	Roy(FC) Roy(FC)	Ex bishopric. See below.   GD1/400/2/3 Section I p 2, 1669 – implies ⅜? PNRC p 160.
Culcragy					RMS III (618) 1528 & OPS II, II, 474 fn5
Strathvaich	(1 davach?)	1476-9	NH 3770/3474		With Strath Dirrie. See below. See also under Strathrannoch in Fodderty.
Strath Dirrie					See below under Strathvaich.
Toll-Muic					PNRC p 165. See below.
Nedd					See below.
Total	c. 14 davachs?

 

 

Achilty

Aucholers of ER XII 1504 may be the same but the sequence of farms does not make this obvious. ½ davach Easter + ¼ (davach) Wester in GD1/1149/11/1 1700.

 

Coul

RS37/5/308v 1636 gives a davach of Coull and an adjacent bovate of Contin. It adds half Corrivullie, half Stravaich & 2 sheilings of Stradirie called Rhecrask & Fealochrach. GD1/1149/11/3 18th C. gives a sketch map and boundaries. GD1/1149/8/1 1636, GD1/1149/8/2 1637, GD1/1149/8/3 1639, GD1/1149/8/4 1651, GD1/1149/8/5 1651.

 

Comrie

Comrie is unusual in that it appears in two different ‘quarters’ (Kynnardy & Kinnellan) in different years. RS38/3/69v 1666 gives 3 pecks of Eister & Wester Comeries (2 called Iland Cork, 1 called Clathnie). RS38/4/156v 1672 refers to Over & Neather (Nether) Comries with their grazings called Auldchonen.

 

Scatwell

Mekill appears in the ‘quarter’ of Kynnardy, Little in the ‘quarter’ of  Kynnellane. RS36/2/351r 1608 & GD1/436/3/1-2 1620 give Mekle as ½ davach. (RS36/2/351r includes grazings of Ducher/Ducheir [or Aucheir in a note by the title] & Straanchrombill/Strahancrombill). Srath Chrombaill is a long glen which runs east-west  from c. NH 1564. Retours (Ross) (139) 1681 implies it may have included lands and grazings of Auchyeir and that the lands and grazings of Strathcrumbill may have had an extra extent of ½m. If this was ½m Old Extent it may represent an ⅛ land.

 

Inverchoran

Inverchoran was technically part of Urray parish rather than Contin. I do not know what was the original reason for this but would expect it to be somethng to do with ownership. Inverchoran may have been at the edge of lands that were still being reckoned in Old Extent rather than the New Extent largely practised in Easter Ross. I think the 3m referred to in 1508 is actually 3m Old Extent and therefore ¾ of a davach rather than 3m New Extent.

 

Garve

I am suspicious of the merkland valuations for Garve. GD305/1/71/38 1590 gives ½ davach for Garron – which may be Garve.

 

Garbat

1m or ¼ of Garbat is listed as a Mackenzie of Kintail property in RMS II (3313) 1509-9, GD305/1/20/6 1561, GD128/23/1/3 1594 & Retours (Ross) (79) 1633. However our earliest references in 1463 (GD305/1/166/7 & GD46/14/1) give it as 2m. There are also frequent references to Garbat as a shieling linked to Dochnaclear in Fodderty parish. Retours (Ross) (177) 1599 gives ‘the davach lands of Davachnaclerache and the sheiling called Garbet’ an Ancient Extent of £4 (6m). Old Extent valuations are uncommon in Easter Ross and need to be treated with caution but if this is accurate we might interpret it as 4m for the davach of Dochnaclear plus 2m for half of Garbet. In this case the complete property of Garbat was probably originally a davach of 4m and half was hived off (before 1463) as a sheiling for Dochnaclear. This still leaves us with a missing 1m or quarterland which went neither to Mackenzie of Kintail nor to Dochnaclear. (There is also a Garbad in Edderton parish – PNRC p 26). However I remain a little doubtful as to whether Garbat was as much as a davach.

 

Achnaclerach

Achnaclerach is 2m in 1463, 1476-9, 1527, & 1698. It was 2½m in 1504 & 1526. It is 4m in 1583-4 and 1587. In the earlier period it seems to have been split into 2 two-merk units. (See RMS VI (1045.2) 1600 – on original of 1598 – to see detailed breakdown of the boundaries on one of the halves). The level of bondage silver from 1539 suggests it was a quarterland in total.

 

Corriemoillie & Ceann Loch Luichairt

Together these were 5m in 1463 but in RMS II (3313) of 1508-9, GD128/23/1/3 1594 and Retours (79) of 1633 they appear combined together as 3m. I cannot explain this. See also Retours (Ross) (148) 1688. Grazings of Corriemoille & Strath Vaich linked to Coul in GD1/1149/25 1600.

 

Strathmaddie or Stronmaddie

Strononamadde in HMC p 716 No 2, 1543; Stronamaddow in HMC p 716 No 3, 1543; Stronomadde in HMC p 716 No 5, 1545; Strathnamaddie/Strathmaddie (RMS V (1049) 1586 on original of 1549); Stronomaddy (GD1/1149/2 1567); Strononmadie (RSS VIII (2351) 1584); Stronmadeis (GD305/1/108/322 1619); Strathnamadie/Strathnamaddie (RMS VIII (575) 1624 on original of 1621); Stronmadie or Auchinmauld (GD305/1/127/12 1641). I do not know if it was Stron- or Strath-, or possibly both. It may be the Stronmaddie of SIG1/117/86 1743. RMS V (1049) and GD305/1/127/12 imply it was a quarterland. (Reddendo was 4m and ¼ mart which suggests ¼ davach). Linked to Little Moy (Urray) in GD305/1/108/322 1619 & RMS VIII (575) 1624. Identification confirmed by RS38/3/342r 1668 which gives ‘Cullyn and Achinald comonly called Stronamaddie’ and Retours (Ross) (141) 1682 which refers to ‘towns and lands of Stronwaddie called Cullen and Achnanald’. However GD305/1/108/322 1619 refers to Achananald and Stronmadeis so the place-names should be kept distinct. PNRC p 160.

 

Strathvaich/Strath Dirrie

Retours (Ross) (82) 1635 refers to ‘half the forest of Strathrannach viz. Straithewaith & Straintirie’. Straithewaith is Strathvaich which PNRC p164 places in Contin parish. Watson (PNRC p 162) discusses Straintirie in the context of Dirriemore (Contin). However Dirriemore is now marked on the map on the west side of the watershed leading down towards Loch Broom and Watson (p 252) lists Dirriemore a second time under Lochbroom parish. (Whatever the evolution of parish boundaries in later centuries I think that in early times the watershed would have marked the western border of Contin). Straintirie (Strath Dirrie) lies to the east of the watershed, i.e. the strath that is now Loch Glascarnoch (see OS 6″ 1st Series Ross-shire (Mainland) Sheet LXII 1875). Strathrannoch lies parallel to Strathvaich but further to the east and in Fodderty parish. Together these 3 glens cover many square miles of rough grazing which were probably always used primarily for pasture.

In ER VIII p 592 ff 1476-9 the Forest of Rannach returned grain and 2 marts. This might imply 2 davachs – in which case Strath Vaich & Strath Dirrie amounted to 1 davach between them. In RMS III (422) 1526-7 Straithvaich extended to 4 bolls victual and 1 mart in the rental which reinforces the suspicion that Strathvaich (probably including Strath Dirrie) was a davach.

Macgill pp 160-1 No 410 [A] 1610 gives 2 sheilings in Strathderie (Strath Dirrie) called Riechrosk & Feoleorach – in [C] 1642 they are Fechrose and Ffealowrach. (The latter might be Fèith Luachrach (NH 3373)).

 

Toll-Muic

OS 6″ 1st Series Ross-shire (Mainland) Sheet L 1875 shows Loch Toll a’ Mhuic in the northern section of what is now the reservoir Loch Vaich. Allt Toll nam Muc is still marked at the NW end of the glen. According to GD305/1/21/3 1654 & GD305/1/21/6 1659 it was a pendicle of Cultaleod (Fodderty).

 

Nedd

RMS III (2817) 1542 reveals an attempt to procure some revenues from areas that had never before appeared in the king’s rental. £4 (6m) p.a. was to be raised from Monar and Nedd. (See PNRC pp 167-8 & 190 for place-names). ‘Ned in Straquhonan’ appears in ER XX 1574-5 and as ‘Maner alias Ned in Strachonan’ in ER XXI 1588 – in each case rendering £4. I am doubtful these areas ever bore an assessment. GD128/23/1/3 1594.