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Features: Scottish Parishes » Historic Shires » Inverness-shire » Kilmonivaig

Kilmonivaig Church by N Chadwick
Kilmonivaig Church, Spean Bridge © 2021, N Chadwick

KILMONIVAIG PARISH

TABLE OF CONTENTS


ALTERNATE NAMES AND SPELLING:

Kilmanivaig


LOCATION

Location Description:

Kilmonivaig is a Highland parish a little west of the centre of Inverness-shire. It extends quite across the country, from Fortingall in Perthshire to Kintail in Ross-shire, and is elsewhere bounded by the parishes of Kilmalie, Glenelg, Boleskine, and Laggan. (1867: The Imperial Gazetteer of Scotland, by John Marius Wilson).

Shire, District, and Region Timeline:

  • Shire: Inverness-shire (Before 1707)
  • County: Inverness (After 1707)
  • District: Inverness (Before 1930)
  • Landward District: Lochaber (1930-1975)
  • Region: Highland (1975-1996)
  • District: Lochaber (1975-1996)

Cities, Towns, Villages, and Hamlets:

Achluachrach, Bohenie, Bohuntine, Brackletter, Bridge of Nevis, Bridge of Roy or Bunroy, Corrour, Inchlaggan, Invergarry, Inveroy, Laggan, Leckroy, Letterfinlay, Mandally, Murlaggan, Roybridge, Spean Bridge or Unachan, Stronenaba

Estates:

Glenfintaig, Invergarry, Keppoch or Kippoch


BOUNDARY & NAME CHANGES

Part of the parish of Kilmallie was separated from the remainder by a small intervening portion of Kilmonivaig. This intervening portion of Kilmonivaig has been transferred to Kilmallie. The part so transferred is situated on Loch Linnhe between the River Lochy and the River Nevis, and is bounded on the east by the march of Mrs. Cameron Campbell's property. See affected properties and landholders. (1892: Boundary of counties and parishes in Scotland as settled by the Boundary Commissioners under the Local Government Act, 1889, by Hay Shennan)


PARISH TIMELINE

PRE-REFORMATION GOVERNANCE:

  • Diocese: Argyll
  • Deanery: Morvern

POST-REFORMATION GOVERNANCE:

  • Synod: Argyll
  • Presbytery: Abertarff

PAROCHIAL OVERVIEW:

The church of Kilmonivaig was dedicated to St Naomhan, Abbot of Lismore. A Rood Fair was held in the parish in September. There is now a mission chapel in Brae Lochaber. No minister seems to have been settled here until 1720, when it was reported there was neither manse, land, kirk, nor competent stipend.

Disjoined Quoad Sacra Parishes:
Glengarry. The parish of Glengarry was disjoined from Kilmonivaig, Boleskine, and Glenelg, and erected 13 March 1867. There are mission chapels within the bounds at Glenquoich and Tomdoun.

CHURCH OF SCOTLAND CLERGY:

Includes ministers, licentiates, assistants, readers, and clerks.

Kilmonivaig (QO)

  • Archibald Campbell, 1720
  • John Skeldoch, 1725
  • John Stewart, 1735
  • William Grant, 1750
  • Thomas Ross, 1776
  • John MacIntyre, 1828
  • Donald Cameron, 1871
  • Duncan Cameron (son of Donald, above), 1897
  • John Walker MacIntyre, 1901

Glengarry (QS)

  • Donald MacDonald, 1819
  • Farquhar MacRae, 1827
  • James M'Intyre, 1829
  • William Lauder, 1840
  • Peter Grant, 1843
  • James Keith, 1851
  • William MacDonald, 1852
  • Donald Fraser, 1855
  • Patrick MacGregor, 1857
  • John Cameron, 1859
  • Alexander Cameron, 1871
  • Thomas Sinton, 1882
  • Farquhar MacRae, 1889
  • John M'Gilchrist, 1894
  • Norman MacLean, 1897
  • Donald MacKinnon, 1903
  • Kenneth Olaus MacLeod, 1909
  • Alexander MacDonald, 1911
  • James Robert Lee, 1914
  • Robertson M'Callum Millar, 1917
  • James Hill, 1921

(1928: Fasti Ecclesiæ Scoticanæ, by Hew Scott, D. D.)


RECORDS

Parochial Registers:

Parish registers turned over to the Registrar-General, as a result of the Registration of Births, Deaths, and Marriages (Scotland) Act of 1854. The letters B. D. and M. indicate Births (or Baptisms), Deaths (or Burials), and Marriages (or Proclamations of Banns) respectively. Numbers indicate separate volumes or books. Note: These records are by no means complete or without damage; consult the Detailed List of the Old Parochial Registers of Scotland (1872) to learn more about the condition of the records.

  • (1) B. 1730-1819; M. 1795-1819
  • (2) B. and M. 1820-54

OPR and RD Numbers
Date RangeNameNumberType
1730-1854Kilmonivaig99OPR
1855-1855Kilmonivaig99RD
1856-1970Glengarry99-1RD
1856-1970Lochaber99-2RD
2009(Lochaber) Highland Council, Fort William and Ballachulish239RD
2009(Glengarry) Highland235RD
2026(Kilmonivaig) Highland Council; Spean Bridge, Roy Bridge and Achnacarry Community Council
2026(Glengarry) Highland Council; Glengarry Community Council
2026(Lochaber) Highland Council; Lochaber Committee

(2009: Parishes and Registration Districts of Scotland - Old and New, National Records of Scotland)

Local community councils (2026) are provided as a potential source of additional information for settlements within the original boundaries of the parish. (Source)

Population:

Statistics from informal and official censuses

  • 1755: 2,995
  • 1801: 2,541
  • 1811: 2,407
  • 1821: 2,842
  • 1831: 2,869
  • 1841: 2,791
  • 1861: 2,276
  • 1881: 1,937
  • 1901: 2,052 (Glengarry: 617; Lochaber: 1,435)
  • 1911: 1,700 (Glengarry: 466; Lochaber: 1,234)

RESIDENTS


Common Surnames:

Cameron, Campbell, Fraser, Gillies, Grant, Kennedy, MacDonald, MacKintosh, Ross, Stewart

Land-owners, teachers, and other professionals:

Note: Names appearing in research materials, other than censuses. Simple names (First name, surname only) have been omitted unless they appear associated with large properties. All women's names, and men's names with occupations, military ranks, or peerage titles are included.

  • James Evan BAILLIE, Esq., of Keppoch
  • Andrew BELFORD, Esq., of Glenfintaig
  • (Lieut-Colonel) Hugh John CAMERON, of Letterfinlay
  • Edward ELLICE, Esq., of Glenquoich
  • Robert Campbell SCARLETT, of Inverlochy
  • John WALKER, Esq., of Lochtreig
  • William WARD, Earl of Dudley, of Glengarry

Other residents:

By the Reverend Mr Thomas Ross, Minister.
"The number of inhabitants amounts to about 2400, of whom about 1200 are Protestants, and 1200 Roman Catholics. The same hospitality which characterised the ancient Caledonians, of whom they may be considered the genuine descendants, continues to be practiced. Another qualification which they have derived from their ancestors, and which they possess, in a considerable degree, is courage. Civilization and industry are making daily progress; and were they set upon a proper plan, and had due encouragement they would become as flourishing as their local situation would permit. The Gaelic is the language of the natives, who speak it in as great purity as in any part of the Highlands. Many of them understand the English language, and speak it with accuracy."
(This section contains excerpts, at times restructured or paraphrased, from an article appearing in Statistical Account of Scotland, Sir John Sinclair, 1791-1799)


NOTES:

Primary Sources:
Statistical Account of Scotland (1791-1799), Volume 17, p. 543
New Statistical Account of Scotland (1834-1845), Volume 14, Section I, p. 503

See Parish Page Sources for all source information and links.


Photo credits: (Featured) Kilmonivaig Church near Spean Bridge, © 2021 N Chadwick, used under Creative Commons License CC BY-SA 2.0, (Related Resources) Inverness-shire Locator Map, © 2024, Elianfoo, used under Creative Commons License CC BY-SA 4.0.
Related Resources
Map of Scotland with Inverness-shire highlighted
Location of Inverness-shire
See more maps at Wikimedia Commons
Glossary
  • Burghs:
  • Royal - Towns on royal lands
  • Regality - Towns granted to noblemen/landowners
  • Barony - Towns granted to tenant-in-chief (laird)
  • Police - Towns with elected officials
  • Small - Population under 20,000
  • Large - Population over 20,000
  •  
  • Chapel-of-Ease: Small church for those living far from the main church
  • Collegiate church: See What is a Collegiate Church?
  • Commune kirk: Owned by a larger church
  • Court of Teinds: Controlled funds for support of clergy
  •  
  • Friars:
  • Black - Dominican
  • Grey - Franciscan
  • Red - Trinitarian
  • White - Carmelite
  •  
  • Iron chapel: Building made of corrugated galvanized iron
  •  
  • Landward District: Rural part of a district
  •  
  • Mensal: Source of income to support clergy member (Roman Catholic)
  •  
  • OPR: Old Parochial Register
  •  
  • Pre-Reformation: Before 1560
  • Prebend: Source of income to support a clergy member
  •  
  • QO: Quoad Omnia - Civil and church control
  • QS: Quoad Sacra - Church control only
  •  
  • RD: Registration District - Civil control
  •  
  • Tryst: Large-scale market or fair, particularly for livestock
  •  
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