COLMONELL, a parish, in the district of Carrick,
county of Ayr, .5 miles (N. E.) from Ballantrae; containing
2801 inhabitants. This parish, the name of
which is of very uncertain derivation, is about nineteen
miles and a half in length, and seven miles in extreme
breadth. It is bounded on the north by the Firth of
Clyde, and comprises 56,800 acres, of which 4000 are
arable, 2000 fine meadow land, 800 in woods and plantations,
and the remainder moor and rough pasture. The
surface is beautifully varied with hills of gentle elevation,
inclosing fertile valleys, and with gradually-rising grounds
and level meadows. The chief river is the Stinchar,
which has its source in the parish of Barr, and, in its
winding course of nearly nine miles through this parish,
receives the waters of the Dhuisk, or Blackwater, a river
of almost equal breadth, over which are three bridges of
stone, and several of wood. The banks of the Stinchar
and the Dhuisk are clothed with wood, chiefly oak, ash,
elm, birch, alder, and larch. There are also several
lakes; the principal are Loch Dornal and Loch Mabiery,
which both abound in romantic scenery. The
higher grounds command prospects of the surrounding
districts, but none of the hills have an elevation of more
than 700 feet above the sea, and the views, though interesting,
are not very extensive: the finest prospect is
that from the hill of Knockdolian, embracing the whole
extent of the vale of the Stinchar, from Penmore to
Knockdolian.
On the banks of the Stinchar the soil is extremely
fertile; the higher lands are chiefly a stiff clay resting
upon gravel, and a considerable portion is poor moorland
affording scanty pasturage. The chief crops are
oats, wheat, barley, potatoes, and turnips; the system
of agriculture is in a very advanced state, and all the
most recent improvements are in general practice.
Great attention is paid to the management of the dairy,
and about 4000 stone of cheese are annually produced
for the neighbouring markets; the Cunninghame breed
of cows is yearly increasing, and many of that kind
are pastured on the several dairy-farms. The cattle
reared for sale are chiefly of the Galloway breed, and
some hundreds of them are annually sold to the cattledealers
from the south. About 9000 sheep of the blackfaced
breed, and 200 of the Cheviot and Leicestershire
breeds, are on the average pastured. The annual value
of real property in the parish is £12,425. Limestone is
extensively quarried, and there are five kilns, at which
about 20,000 bolls of lime are burnt for manure every
year. A fishery on the coast is carried on with success;
the chief fish found here are cod, whitings, haddocks,
turbot, skate, and herrings, and lobsters are taken in
abundance, and sent by steam to Dublin, where they are
in great demand. Salmon is also found, in the river
Stinchar; and there are several salmon pools, the rents
of which in the aggregate amount to £30 per annum.
The chief seats of the parish are, Penmore and Dalgerrock,
which are of some antiquity; and Knockdolian,
Dhuisk Lodge, Corwar, Ballochmorie, and Drumlamford,
of recent erection. Colmontll village, formerly consisting
only of a few thatched cottages, has been almost
entirely rebuilt in a regular style; and, since the passing
of the Reform act, has been a polling-place for the election
of a member for the county. A post-office is established.
Fairs are held on the first Monday in February,
May, August, and November (O. S.); and three cattlemarkets
at Barhill, a small hamlet of recent origin, on
the river Dhuisk, on the fourth Friday in April, September,
and October (O. S.).
Ecclesiastically the parish is in the presbytery of
Stranraer, synod of Galloway, and in the patronage of
the Duchess de Coigny. The minister's stipend is £256.
18. 9., with a manse, and a glebe valued at £15 per
annum. Colmonell church, erected in 1/72, and repaired
in 1S3'2, is a neat substantial edifice, adapted
for a congregation of .500 persons. A chapel of ease
has been erected, in which the incumbent officiates every
fourth Sunday during ten months of the year; and there
are places of worship for Reformed Presbyterians, Original
Seceders, and members of the Free Church. The
parochial schoolmaster has a salary of £34, with £26
fees, a house and garden, and the half of £21. 1.5., the
rent of the farm of Little Dungart, bequeathed by Dr.
Kennedy, for the gratuitous instruction of six poor
scholars. There are some remains of the ancient castles
of Knockdaw, Carleton, Craigneil, Kirkhill, Penwherry,
and Knockdolian. The most interesting of these are
the ruins of Craigneil, supposed to have been erected in
the thirteenth century, and to have been frequently
visited by Robert Bruce; they are situated on a rock,
and the castle was anciently a prison, and a place of
execution for criminals.