Ordnance gazetteer of Scotland > Volume 1

ALMOND ALE
Almondale. See Amondell.
Alness, a river, a village, and a parish of Ross-shire.
The river rises among mountains 4 miles WNVC of Loch
Moir, and, traversing that loch, which is 1\ mileslong, and
about f mile wide, runs thence 11 miles east-south-east-
ward, along the boundary between Alness and Eosskeen
parishes, to the Cromarty Firth at Alness village. Its
vale is upland, wild, and romantic ; exhibits numerous
scenes highly attractive to painters and poets ; and at
one place, in particular, called Tollie, is impressively
grand. Both its own waters and those of Loch Moir are
well stocked with trout.
The village stands on both banks of the river, and on
the Highland railway, 10 miles NNE of Dingwall ; con-
sists of two parts, Alness proper in Alness parish, and
Alness-Bridgend in Eosskeen parish ; and has a post
office, with money order, savings' bank, and telegraph
departments, an hotel, 2 large distilleries, and fairs on
the second Tuesday of January, the first Tuesday of
March, the Wednesday of April before the first Aniulree
May market, the day in May after Kildary, the second
"Wednesday of June, and the Wednesday of July, of
August, and of September after Kyle of Sutherland. In
1S78, during the construction of a branch line from
Alness station to Dalmore distillery, which is close to
the sea-shore, 18 pre-historic graves were discovered.
All were short cists, formed of flat stones, and contained
human bones, urns, flint and bronze implements, etc.
[Procs. Soc. Ant. Scot., 1879, pp. 252-264). Pop. (1S71)
of Alness proper, 202 ; of Alness-Bridgend, 709.
The parish is bounded N by Kincardine, E by Eoss-
keen, S by Cromarty Firth, and W by Kiltearn. Its
greatest length from N to S is about 20 miles, and its
average breadth is 5. The lands along the shores of
Cromarty Firth are prevailingly flat, cultivated, and
beautiful ; those inland and northward are hilly, heathy,
and bleak. The hills, though not arranged in ridges, are
high, and in some cases mountainous, Fyrish Hill rising
1478 feet above sea-level. Springs of excellent water are
everywhere numerous ; andthe Atjltgeande river, follow-
ing the Kiltearn boundary, presents very grand features.
The rocks are Devonian and Silurian, the former occur-
ring in conglomerate, while the Silurian merge into gneiss.
Vast erratic blocks or boulders abound in many parts,
and have with great difficulty been blasted or otherwise
removed in the cultivated tracts. Great improvements
have been effected within the last forty years on the Cul-
cairn and Novar properties, in the way of reclaiming,
draining, fencing, building, etc. The rental of the lat-
ter estate increased from £2413 in 1868 to £3124 in
1877, one cause of such increase being the great extent
of waste brought under larches and Scotch firs. Three
proprietors hold each an annual value of £500 and up-
wards, 2 of between £100 and £500, and 2 of from £20
to £50. Two cairns and a ruined pre-Eeformation chapel
are the chief antiquities. Alness is in the presbytery of
Dingwall and synod of Eoss ; its minister's income is
£261. The parish church, built in 17S0, contains 800
sittings, and there is also a Free church ; whilst 2 pub-
lic schools, Alness and Glenglass, with respective ac-
commodation for 100 and 50 children, had (1879) an
average attendance of 63 and 31, and grants of £44, 14s.
and £35, 16s. 6d. Valuation (1881) £8531, 4s. 9d. Pop.
(1S31) 1437, (1S61) 1178, (1871) 1053, (1SS1) 1033.
Alnwick or Annick Lodge, a collier village in Irvine
parish, Ayrshire, 3 miles NE of Irvine town. A public
school at it, with accommodation for 124 children, had
(1879) an average attendance of 55, and a grant of £42, 9s.
Pop. (1871) 352.
Alpety, a place in Arbuthnot parish, Kincardineshire,
4 miles NW of Bervie.
Alsh, Loch. See Lochalsh.
Altachoylachan. See Alltacoileachan.
Altamarlach. See Altimarlach.
Altando, a coast hamlet in Lochbroom parish, NW
Eoss -shire, 32 miles NW of Ullapool. A public
school at it, with accommodation for 65 children, had
(1879) an average attendance of 47, and a grant of
£52, 12s. 6d.
ALTRIVE
Altavig or Altivaig, two islets off the NE coast of
Skye, 2i miles SSE of Aird Point. The larger contains
remains of a small old chapel.
Altdouran, a rivulet in Leswalt parish, Wigtownshire.
It issues from a moss of nearly 1000 acres, traverses a
romantic glen, makes a fine cascade at entering the glen,
and passes on to the Sole Burn, about a mile above that
stream's influx to Loch Eyan. Its name signifies ' the
Otters' burn.'
Altens, a coast hamlet in Nigg parish, Kincardineshire,
2£ miles SSE of Aberdeen. It was formerly a consider-
able fishing settlement ; but owing to the badness of its
harbour, and the want of suitable means for curing had-
docks, it became deserted by fishermen.
Altgrad. See Atjltgraxde.
Altimarlach, a burn in the parish of Wick, Caithness,
flows through the Loch of Winless, and falls into Wick
Water, 4 miles to the W of the town. Its banks were
the scene of a famous conflict on 13 July 16S0, between
the Campbells and the Sinclairs. Sir John Campbell
of Glenorchy, afterwards Earl of Breadalbane, claimed
the Earldom of Caithness, but was resisted in his claim
by George Sinclair of Keiss ; and, to enforce it, marched
at the head of 700 Argyll Highlanders from the banks
of the Tay to beyond the promontory of the Ord. Keiss,
on his part, was revelling with 400 followers at Wick,
when tidings reached him, ' The Campbells are coming. '
All mad with drink, his men rushed out to the fight,
were instantly routed, and fell in such numbers that
' the victors crossed the Altimarlach dry-shod on their
bodies ; ' but Keiss next year obtained the earldom by
award of Parliament.
Altin or Haltin, a glen in Snizort parish, Isle of Skye,
Inverness-shire.
Altirlie, a small headland in Petty parish, Inverness-
shire, 5 miles NE of Inverness.
Altivaig. See Altavig.
Altmore, an impetuous rivulet formed by several head-
streanis in the SE of Kathven parish, Banffshire, and
running 5J miles southward, along the mutual boundary
of Keith and Grange parishes, till it falls into the Isla 2
miles ENE of Keith.
Altnabreac, a station on the western border of Caith-
ness, on the Caithness railway, 10 miles SW of Halkirk.
Altnach. See Allnach.
Alt-na-Giuthasach, a lodge in Balmoral Forest, SW
Aberdeenshire, near the foot of Loch Muick, and 9 miles
SSE of Balmoral Castle. At this her ' humble little
bothie,' the Queen first heard of the Duke of Welling-
ton's death, 16 Sept. 1852.
Altnaharrow (Gael, allt-na-charra, 'stream of the
stone pillar'), a hamlet in Farr parish, Sutherland, near
the head of Loch Naver, on the road from Bonar-Bridge
to Tongue, 21 miles N of Lairg station, and 17 S of
Tongue. It has a post office under Lairg, an inn, a Free
church, and a fair for cattle and horses on the Friday of
September before Kyle of Sutherland.
Altnakealgach. See Assynt.
Altnalait, a burn in theE of Boss-shire, running along
the southern boundary of Kiltearn parish to Cromarty
Firth.
Altnarie, a burn in Ardclach parish, Nairnshire, ris-
ing and running among mountains, with a southerly
course, to the Findhorn. It makes a profound and very
romantic fall within a deep, wooded, sequestered glen.
Alton, a village in Loudoun parish, Ayrshire, 1£ mile
N of Galston. The name is a contraction from Auld-
town.
Altrive, a stream and a farmstead in Yarrow parish,
Selkirkshire. The former rises in the two head-streams
of Altrive Lake and Altrive Burn, on the declivities
of the Wiss (1932 feet) and Peat Law (1737), and runs
about 34 miles NNE to the Yarrow river, at a point 2
miles ENE of the foot of St Mary's Loch. The farm-
stead stands upon the stream's left bank, J mile above
its mouth, and was the home of Hogg, the Ettrick Shep-
herd, from 1S14 down to his death, 21 Nov. 1835. He
held it of the Duke of Buccleuch at a nominal rent, and
had, said Allan Cunningham, 'the finest trout in the
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