FOVERAN, a parish, in the district of Ellon,
county of Aberdeen, 12 miles (N. by W.) from Aberdeen;
containing, with the village of Nevvburgh and the
barony of Knockhall, 1620 inhabitants. This place was
formerly remarkable for its castle, called Foveran, as is
supposed from a sweet and powerful spring, which still
flows with its ancient strength; but every vestige of the
fortress is gone. The parish is situated in that part of
the county called Formartine. It stretches along the
coast of the German Ocean, and is separated from the
parish of Logie-Buchan on the north by the burn of
Tarty, and from the sands of Forvie on the east by the
river Ythan. It is about seven miles in length from
east to west, and three in breadth from north to south,
and is watered by the beautiful burn of Foveran, which,
after forming in its pleasing course the chief ornament
in the scenery, falls into the Ythan at Newburgh. Agriculture
is steadily pursued, and considerable traffic is
carried on at the fishing-village and maritime port of
Newburgh, ichich see. The land is generally fertile, and
distributed into many good farms, producing fine crops;
the farm-houses are mostly built of stone and lime, and
are commodious and well finished. Within the last
twenty or thirty years large tracts of barren soil have
been improved, and drains and fences constructed on au
extensive scale. The mail-road from Aberdeen to Peterhead
intersects the parish, and has several branches, one
of which, called the Fiddes road, joins the Udny turnpike-
road, opening up important facilities of intercourse
with that part of the county: there is also a turnpikeroad
from Aberdeen to Methlick, which passes at the
western extremity of the parish; and another has been
recently completed, which is found highly beneficial, from
Old Meldrum to the village of Newburgh. About twenty
head of fat-cattle are shipped every week at the port,
for the London market; and lime, coal, timber, bones,
&c., are imported. The annual value of real property in
the parish is £5713.
Foveran is ecclesiastically in the presbytery of Ellon,
synod of Aberdeen, and in the patrt)nage of the Crown:
the minister's stipend is £193, with a manse, and a
glebe valued at £11 per annum. The church is a plain
substantial edifice, built in 1794, and accommodating
700 persons; it contains two handsome marble monuments
to the family of Robertson of Foveran, and
anotlier, of very superior character, designed by Bacon,
to the Udny family. Excellent walls have been built
round the churchyard, with funds left for that purpose
by Miss Robertson of Foveran. The parochial school
affords instruction in the usual branches; the master
has a salary of £'>8, with about £31 fees. There is also
a school at Cultercullen, in the western quarter, with an
endon-ment of £S per annum, and a free house, and
piece of land. Mr. Mather, a native of the parish, left
a sum for the establishment of four bursaries at Marischal
College, under the patronage of the minister, for
boys educated in the parochial school; also funds for
clothing and educating twenty poor fishermen's children
belonging to Newburgh, and £'20 per annum to the
minister or schoolmaster for lecturing once a week to
the people in the village. About half a mile north of
Newburgh are the ruins of the castle of Knockhall, built
in the year 1565, and accidentally burnt in 1734: it
was the seat of the family of Udny, whose ancient
burial-ground, also in the neighbourhood of th'e village,
contains the remains of an old chapel generally called
Rood Church.