Ordnance gazetteer of Scotland > Volume 1

BRECHIN
jambs and a semicircular head, all three hewn from single
blocks, and the arch being rudely sculptured with a
crucifix, each jamb with a bishop bearing a pastoral staff,
and each corner of the sill with a nondescript crouching
animal. The 'handsome bells,' that Pennant found
here in 1772, were two most likely of the three now
hung in the neighbouring steeple. Such is this graceful
tower, dating presumably from Kenneth's reign (971-95),
and so a memorial of Brechin's early connection with
Ireland. (See Abernethy, and the authorities there
cited.) A hospital, the Maison Dieu, was founded in
1264 by William de Brechin in connection with the
Cathedral ; and its chapel is a pure First Pointed frag-
ment, consisting of the S elevation and a small portion
of the E wall, with a good doorway and three single-
light, finely -moulded lancets. No scrap remains of the
ancient city wall and ports ; and the primitive features
of the Castle have nearly all been absorbed in reconstruc-
tions, which make it appear an irregular mansion of the
17th century, with a fine square tower and two round
angle ones. Its library contains Burns' correspondence
with George Thompson, the Chartularies of Brechin, St
Andrews, etc. ; the gem of its paintings is Honhorst's
original portrait of the great Marquis of Montrose. The
Duke and. Duchess of Edinburgh stayed herein Aug. 1881.
To come to the town itself, Brechin has a post office,
with money order, savings' bank, and insurance depart-
ments, a railway telegraph office, branches of the Bank
of Scotland and the British Linen Co., Clydesdale,
National, Royal, and Union banks, the Tenements' and
a National "Security savings' bank, thirty insurance
agencies, gas-works, nine principal inns, a public washing-
house, an infir mary (1869 ; cost, £1900), bowling, curl-
ing, and quoit clubs, a Young Men's Christian Associa-
tion, temperance, Bible, musical, horticultural, and two
literary societies, and a Tuesday paper, the Advertiser
(1848). The town-hall, mainly rebuilt in 1789, is a re-
spectable edifice ; the Episcopal diocesan library, founded
by Bishop Forbes, contains an extensive and valuable
collection of books ; but the chief modern building is
the Mechanics' Institute, a Tudor pile, with a central
clock-tower SO or 90 feet high, a lecture room seating
450 persons, and a library of 4000 volumes. It was
erected in 1838 at the sole cost of Lord Panmure, who
further endowed it with £40 per annum, and gave to it
several interesting'portraits. A public park of 8J acres
was opened near the town in 1867 ; and Trinity Muir, a
mile to the N, forms a capital recreation ground. The
water supply, provided in 1S71 by the paper-mill com-
pany, for a stipulated payment of £2S0 a-year, proved
insufficient ; so, in 1874, a fresh supply was introduced
from the Grampians, at a cost of £15,000, estimated to
afford 40 gallons per head of the population per day.
This paper-mill, 2 flax-mills, and 5 linen factories em-
ploy a large number of hands, the manufacture of osna-
burgs, brown linen, and sailcloth, having long been
largely carried on. The quantity of linen stamped here
annually exceeded 500,000 yards at the beginning of
last century ; by 1818 it had reached 750,000 yards.
Now, though employing fewer persons than forty years
since, the manufacture yields a much larger produce,
thanks to improved machinery, the weaving, that lately
all was done by hand, being now mostly done by power-
looms in factories. The East Mill, large to start with,
is described to-day as ' monstrous in its magnitude ; ' there
are also 2 extensive bleachfields, 2 distilleries, a brewery,
2 saw-mills, 2 nurseries, and the Denburn machine works.
The seat of a presbytery, Brechin possesses two Esta-
blished churches — the Cathedral (1511 sittings ; stipend,
£495) and East or City Road Church (860 sittings ;
stipend, £485). The latter, a cruciform building, with
a spire 80 feet high, was erected for £1500 in 1836, and,
after belonging to the Free Church from the Disruption
to 1856, was made a quoad sacra parochial church in
1874. Other places of worship are 2 Free churches,
East and West ; 3 U. P. churches, City Road, Maisondieu
Lane, and Bank Street (1876 ; 650 sittings ; cost, £4000) ;
an Evangelical Union chapei ; and St Andrew's Episco-
pal church (300 sittings), which, founded in 1809, and
188
BRECHIN
thrice enlarged, was made by the last alteration ' as like
a Christian church as such a building can ever be. ' Five
public schools, under the burgh board, are Bank Street,
the Infants', Damacre Road, the Tenements, and the
High School, the last erected in 1876 at a cost of £2519.
With total accommodation for 1780 children, these 5 had.
(1879) an average attendance of 1374, and grants amount-
ing to £1135, Is. 6d.
Brechin, created a royal burgh by charter of Charles I.
(1641), adopted the General Police and Improvement Act
prior to 1871, and is governed by a provost, 2 bailies,
a dean of guild, a treasurer, a hospital master, and 7
councillors, and by a body of police commissioners,
whilst, with Montrose, Arbroath, Forfar, and Bervie,
it returns one member to parliament. There are 6 in-
corporated trades (hammermen, glovers, bakers, shoe-
makers, weavers, and tailors) and a guildry incorporation.
Police courts sit every Wednesday, justice of peace small
debt courts on the first Wednesday of every month, and
sheriff small debt courts on the third Tuesday of Jan.,
March, May, July, Sept. , and Nov. The police force, 7
strong, cost £531, 5s. 8d. in 1878 ; and of 254 persons
tried at the instance of the police in 1879, 5 were com-
mitted for trial and 231 convicted. Tuesday is market-
day ; and sheep, cattle, and horse fairs are held upon
Trinity Muir on the third Wednesday of April, the second
Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday of June (this being
one of the largest fairs in Scotland), the second Thursday
of August, and the Tuesday before the last Wednesday
of September. Burgh valuation (1861) £10,506, (1881)
£26,517, 7s. 4d. Corporation revenue (1880) £1838.
Parliamentary and municipal constituency (1881) 1107.
Pop. of royal burgh (1841) 3951, (1871) 5083 ; of parlia-
mentary burgh (1831) 6508, (1851) 6638, (1861) 7179,
(1871) 7959, (1881) 9031.
The parish of Brechin contains also the villages of
Trinity and Little Brechin, 1J mile N by E, and 2J
miles NNW, of the town. Rudely resembling a spread
eagle in outline, it is bounded N and NE by Stracathro,
E by Dun, SE and S by Farnell, SW by Aberlemno, W
by Careston, and NW by Menmuir. Its length from E
to W varies between 1| and 6f miles, its breadth from
N to S between 2 and 4J miles ; and its land area is
14,313 acres. The South Esk here winds 7% miles east-
ward — first 1 \ along the Careston and Aberlemno bound-
ary, next 3f through the interior, then If on the Far-
nell border — and descends in this course from about 130
to 20 feet above sea-level, flowing partly between high
rocky banks, partly through low and often flooded flats.
From it the surface rises gently northward to 419 feet at
Craigend of Careston, 370 near Killiebair Stone, 200
near Kintrockat House, 316 and 290 on Trinity Muir,
266 at Leuchland, and 330 at Leightonhill — southward,
more steeply, to 318 feet near Auldbar Castle and 407
on Burghill, opposite the town. The prevailing rock is
Old Red sandstone ; and sandstone is quarried, and lime-
stone calcined, the latter containing veins of calcareous
spar, with occasional crystals of sulphate of barytes. The
soil is fertile on most of the arable lands, these compris-
ing about three-fifths of the entire area, and plantations
covering nearly one-fifth more. The principal mansions
with owners, and the extent and yearly value of their
estates within the shire, are — Brechin Castle (Earl of
Dalhousie, 136,602acres, £55,602); Ardovie House, 3 miles
S by W of the town (Hy. Speid, 1005 acres, £1291); and
Keithock House, 3 miles N (Francis Aberdein, 645 acres,
£1304). In all, 9 proprietors hold each an annual value
of £500 and upwards, 17 of between £100 and £500, 33
of from £50 to £100, and 93 of from £20 to £50. Three
public schools, under the landward board, Little Brechin,
Auldbar, and Arrat, with respective accommodation for
100, 53, and 55 children, had (1879) an average attend-
ance of 82, 54,, and 24, and grants of £74, 18s. 3d.,
£28, 14s. 2d., and £27, Is. 6d. Valuation of landward
portion (1881) £20,854, 18s. 4d., of which £1289 was
for the railway. Pop., with burgh, (1755) 3181, (1S01)
5466, (1811) 5559, (1831) 650S, (1851) 8210, (1871)
9514, (1881) 10,499.— Ord. Sur., sh. 57, 1868.
The presbytery of Brechin comprehends Brechin and