Halkirk Text Summary

Halkirk

 

Principal Sources

 

OSA Vol 19  No 1 1797

NSA Vol XV 1845 (written in 1840)

 

RMS I (614) 1374-5

RMS II (1267) 1476, (1404) 1478 on original of 1455, (2506) 1499

RMS III (1798) 1538, (2048) 1539, (3215) 1545-6

RMS IV (1635) 1565, (1705) 1565-6 on original of 1560

RMS V (1341) 1587, (1977) 1591

RMS VI (1729, 1758) 1606

RMS VII (409.2) 1610 on original of 1583, (1508) 1616

RMS VIII (1581) 1630

RMS XI (53) 1661

 

RSS I (607) 1500

RSS II (624) 1530

RSS III (167) 1542-3, (1570) 1545-6, (2228) 1547, (2717-8) 1548

RSS IV (1374) 1551, (3060, 3067) 1555

 

GD96/5A 1476

GD96/63 c. 1554

GD96/354 1610, GD 96/542 1636 on original of 1634

GD112/58/1/7 1552, GD112/58/1/9 1553

GD112/58/14/21 1662

GD112/58/154/11 n.d.

GD112/58/200/8 1597

GD139/97/1 & 2 1628

 

RS36/2/96r 1606

RS37/1/158r 1619

RS37/1/159r 1619

RS37/3/24r 1624

RS37/3/59v 1624

RS20/1/p 26 1648

RS20/1/pp 156-7 1662

RS20/1/pp 163-4 1662

RS20/1/pp 174-5 1663

RS20/1/pp 193-4 1664

RS20/1/p 195 1664

RS20/1/p 196 1664

RS20/1/p 201 1665

RS21/1/324v 1701

RS21/1/325r 1701

RS21/1/326r 1701

RS21/1/327r 1701

RS21/1/334v 1702

 

Records of the Parliaments of Scotland (online), 19/4/1567 – NAS PA2/10, II, ff 22v-23r

 

Retours (Caithness) (2) 1565, (10) 1620, (22) 1644, (29) 1672, (33) 1680, (34) 1684

 

ADC pp 345-6 1494

 

RHP 417 1802 Estate of Scotscalder

RHP 1217 nd, Assery, Brawllbin, Lurrery and Achscrabster

RHP 1218/1 & 2 1866, Brawlbin, Lambsdale, Assery

RHP 1679 1887

RHP 1681 Dorrery & Scotscalder boundary c.1864

RHP 2776, 2777, 2780/1, 2781, 2778, 2779, 2784, 2782/1-2, 2783, Dorrery

RHP 2785 1911 Estate of Scotscalder

RHP 4418/1/28 Sale Descriptions (1919) (Forss)

 

Hay Shennan, Boundaries of Counties and Parishes in Scotland, Edinburgh, 1892 (hereafter ‘Shennan’).

 

Caithness and Sutherland Records, Vol I, Pt VI, London, 1912, p 131.

 

Bangor-Jones, M., Ouncelands and Pennylands in Sutherland and Caithness, in MacGregor & Crawford (1987), pp 13-23

MacGregor, L., & Crawford, B., (eds), Ouncelands and Pennylands, University of St Andrews, 1987

 

Henderson, J., General View of the Agriculture of the County of Caithness, London, 1815 (hereafter, ‘Henderson, Agriculture’)

Henderson, J., Caithness Family History, Edinburgh, 1884

 

Myatt, L., The Early Ecclesiastical Remains of Halkirk parish, Caithness Field Club Bulletin, April 1975. (Hereafter ‘Myatt (1975)’).

 

Old-Lore Miscellany of Orkney, Shetland, Caithness and Sutherland, Vol X, Viking Society for Northern Research, London, 1935-46. (Hereafter Miscellany Vol X).

 

Peterkin, A., Rentals of the Ancient Earldom and Bishoprick of Orkney, Edinburgh, 1820. (This book is arranged in Sections: I – VI. Hereafter ‘Peterkin’ + Section No.).

e.g.

Peterkin III p 23 ff – Demands by the Toune of Edinburgh and Answers therto, with what Instructions I can remember concerning ye Bischoprick of Orknay c. 1642

 

Sinclair, T., Caithness Events (Second edition), Wick, 1899

 

 

Dorrery was a detached part of Thurso parish which was transferred to Halkirk in 1891 (Shennan p 129). I have included it under Halkirk.

 

This parish was formerly the two parishes of Halkirk and Skinnet. OPS II, II p 756 comments on the difficulty of trying to distinguish their boundaries. RMS V (1977) 1591 refers to ‘Ulgranmoir, Ulgranbeg, Thormesdeill, Eister Daill and Wester Daill in the parishes of Halkirk and Skenane’ which does at least tell us that these farms covered some of each parish.

 

There are various units of lay and ecclesiastical organisation which occur in mediaeval documents. We find baronies, lordships, bishoprics, regalities etc. In Halkirk we also find a ‘hospitality’ – viz. that of Spittal. I am not sure what this may have entailed but it certainly had currency. See, for example, RS20/1/p 26 1648, RS21/1/327r 1701.

 

The English word ‘field’ (or its Latin equivalent campus) occurs quite frequently in the sasines. So, in RS20/1/pp 174-5 1663, Norncaldell included the ‘field’ of Framside while Leurarie included the ‘field’ of Achscrabster. The second element of the name Framside is probably from Old Norse settr or shieling. The ‘Ach’ in Achscrabster is the Gaelic achadh or field, while the Scrabster part is the same as Scrabster in Thurso whose earliest form suggests an ending in bolstadr – one of the Old Norse terms for a farm. But, whatever their toponymic origins, in 1663 they are both classed as ‘fields’. My impression is that Framside was now viewed as more important than formerly. It was not just a shieling but probably included cultivated ground. Achscrabster, in contrast, was perhaps less important than it had once been. In Norse times it would have ranked with all the other ‘bolstadr’ and ‘buster’ names in Caithness. Now it was no longer one of the primary settlements, but just a constituent of a larger farm. The use of the term ‘field’ implies cultivation and therefore relative importance.

 

Another intriguing fact is revealed in RS20/1/pp 174-5 of 1663. Information about local farm-names and land -assessment was already being lost. The document has a number of blanks left in the text. It is possible that the scribe deliberately left them blank in the hope of filling them later with information from a local source. In any event he did not know all the relevant facts. He did not know the values of Sour or Gerstane and after the two ‘fields’ of Achabrall (Achavrole ND 1059) there was apparently another ‘field’ whose name and value have both been omitted.

 

Some later documents (e.g. RMS XI (53) 1661) refer to ‘Lewsbambster’ and ‘Knockingaldin’ which I have not been able to locate but which probably lay between Halkirk and Upper Strathhalladale.

 

The table shows a minimum of 120⅝d or 20+ davachs.

 

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