Topographical, statistical, and historical gazetteer of Scotland > Volume 1

CUPAR- FIFE.
291
building, surmounted by a cupola and belfry. The
county-buildings in St. Catherine-street, present a
neat though plain facade. They contain the county-
haU, sheriff-court room, and offices for the public
clerks. In the county-hall there is a fine portrait of
the late John, Earl of Hopetoun, by Sir Henry Rad-
\vin ; and another of Thomas, Earl of Kellie, by Sir
David Wilkie. The jail is a neat building on the
left hand of the middle bridge crossing the Eden,
and on the south side of the river. But it has been
reported as totally unfit for its original purpose, and
as " having more the appearance of a gentleman's
seat than of a receptacle for persons who have in-
jured society."
The earliest charter of the burgh of Cupar of
Fife is granted by David II., in 1363, conferring
the privileges of trade upon the burgesses, in like
manner as upon the inhabitants of burghs gene-
rally. These privileges were confirmed, and various
grants of lands conferred upon them, by a charter
granted by Robert IT., dated Dunfermline, 28th
June, 1381 : by a charter of James I., dated at
Perth, 28th February, 1428-9 ; by another of the
same reign, dated 30th October, 1436; by a charter
of King James V., dated 13th March, 151S ; by an
act and warrant of James VI., dated at Holyrood
house, 1573, and by a charter of feu-farm by King
James VI., dated Edinburgh, 4th June, 1595. The
old sett of the burgh consisted of a provost, 3 bailies,
a dean-of-guild, a treasurer, 13 merchant-councillors,
a convener, and 7 deacons of trades : in all 27. It
is now governed by a provost, 3 bailies, and 24 coun-
cillors. The municipal constituency, in 1839, was
259. The revenue, in 1832, was £554 13s. lHd.,
of which £321 arose from land-rental, and £120
from feu-duties. The expenditure in that year was
£751 12s. 9d., of which £223 was interest of money
borrowed. The debt of the burgh at the same pe-
riod was as follows : —
£ s rf. £ ». d.
Heritably secured . . 4,022 10
Money borrowed on personal
security .... 2,944 2 1
Accounts unpaid
Value of the annuities at present £32 13s. .
Value of the bursaries per annum £30
8,171 IS 1
The whole property of the town is valued at 13,528 S 2
Free value of property £5,356 10 1
■The revenue, in 1838-9, was £221 4s. ll^d. The
property of the town consists of lands, feu-duties,
customs, and market-dues. The property in land
was at one time very extensive, stretching '3 miles to
the westward, and extending perhaps to 1,000 acres.
Compared with this its present extent is very limited.
The lands seem to have been chiefly feued out about
a century ago, at a time when they were in a state
of nature and at very low feu-duties, the highest is
believed to be Is. per acre, and without any pur-
chase-money. Although the great part of the landed
property seems to have been alienated more than a
century ago, there have been very considerable aliena-
tions of the town's property within the last 50 years.
No local tax is levied in Cupar except the petty cus-
toms. The cess, or burgh land-tax, is levied upon
property and the profits of trade within the royalty
of the burgh. It is allocated by stent-masters chosen
from among the merchants of the burgh by the coun-
cil, by whom the collector is also annually appointed.
The jurisdiction of the magistrates is confined to the
burgh and burgh-acres. The royalty of Cupar is
very narrow towards the north, being bounded on
that side by the Lady burn. Immediately to the
north of this burn, and within the parliamentary
6,966 12 l
474 14
130 12
. 600
] boundary, there have arisen of late years several
J villages where there is no police-establishment of
any kind, and which are beyond the jurisdiction of
the magistrates. These villages are called Braehead
and Newtown — both on the lands of Pittencrieff
— and Burnside, Lebanon, and Bank street. Even
more directly within the precincts of the town, and
in the principal street, called St. Catherine-street,
there are houses which are not within the royalty,
although completely surrounded by it. In the street
called the Mitigate, the west side of the street holds
burgage, and is within the royalty, and the east side
is beyond it and holds of the Earl of Rothes. Burgh-
courts are held on stated days for the despatch of
business ; but as the sheriff-courts, both ordinary
and under the small debt act, are held within the
burgh, little business is brought before the burgh-
court. The cases disposed of before the magistrates
have generally been petty assaults and other breaches
of the peace, which are decided in a summary way.
Cases of a graver nature are either reported to the
Crown-officers or taken up by the sheriff of the
county Cupar is conjoined, in the election of a
member of parliament, with St. Andrews, Crail,
Kilkenny, East and West Anstruther, and Pitten-
weem. Previous to the Reform bill, it was rather
anomalously associated with Perth, Dundee, Forfar,
and St. Andrews. Parliamentary constituency in
1839, 333. In an ancient document, styled ' A Brief
View of Scotland in the Sixteenth Century,' printed
by Pinkerton, in his ' History of Scotland,' [Vol. II.
p. 501.] from a MS. in the Cottonian library, it is
said, " Most borrows are at the devotion of some
noblemen, as Cowper in Fiffe managed by the Earl
of Rothes." Among those who represented Cupar
in the Scottish parliament, appears Sir David Lind-
say of the Mount. He repeatedly was commissioner
for the burgh.
Being the county-town, Cupar is principally in-
habited by practitioners in the legal courts, members
of banking-establishments, and persons connected
with the agricultural interest. It is chiefly distin-
guished for its trade in corn, and the mills, brewing,
and such establishments dependent on that species of
market. There are, however, several extensive spin-
ning-mills in the neighbourhood ; and there is a consi-
derable trade in the weaving of coarse linens, and in
home-manufactures, such as leather, can dles,and snuff.
Its printing-establishments, too, have been justly
celebrated for the production of some beautiful spe-
cimens of excellent typography, and the publication
of many useful works. Cupar has been long known
as a leading and important market-town. There is
a weekly corn-market, which is held on Thursday,
and is well-attended. Besides these there are ten
general fairs or markets for the sale of grain and
farm-stock, held at different fixed periods throughout
the year. At these, domestic utensils, agricultural
implements, and various other articles are exposed
to sale. Cupar is also a post-town ; and has two
sub-offices under it, those of Osnaburgh, and
Leuchars. The mail from the south was formerly
carried round by Perth and Dundee ; but by a recent
arrangement, a mail-coach carrying the bags for the
towns north of the Tay, now passes through Fife,
and brings with it the letters for Cupar direct. The
coach also carries passengers between Edinburgh,
Dundee, and Cupar. Two stage-coaches pass through
the town every lawful day, between Edinburgh and
Dundee, affording with the mail every facility for
intercourse with these important towns. Another
coach leaves Cupar for Dundee, every market-day ;
and one between Cupar and St. Andrews twice a-
week. During the summer months a coach runs to
Largo, between which place and Newhaven a steam-