LISMORE-AND-APPIN, a parish, in the district of
Lorn, county of Argyll; containing, with the quoad
sacra parish of Duror, 4193 inhabitants, of whom 1399
are in Lismore and 1102 in Appin, the former 7 miles
(N. N. W.) and the latter 10 (N. by E.) from Oban.
The name of the first of these two places, in Gaelic
Lios-Mor, " a great garden", is generally considered as
having been applied to the locality from the unusual
richness of its soil, it being situated in a part of the
country which is of comparative sterility. The etymology
of Appin is altogether uncertain. Many think
it probable that it has been corrupted from the appellation
Abb-fhon, " abbot's land", as the upper parts of the
district anciently belonged to the parish of Elean-Munde,
so called from St. Munde, who was an abbot in Argyll
in the tenth century. Some are of opinion, however,
that the name of Appin is derived from the word Appenine,
as descriptive of the mountainous features of the
surface. Lismore and Appin were formerly called the
parish of Kil-Muluag, or Kil-Maluag, from a saint who
lived in the seventh, or, as some imagine, in the
twelfth, century, and whose remains were brought to
Lismore for interment. The spot, indeed, where the
debarkation took place is still shown, and is named Port-
Maluag. Lismore was once the seat of the bishopric of
the Isles, and afterwards formed the head of that of Argyll,
this county being erected into a separate see upon
a petition presented to the pope by John the Enghshman,
Bishop of Dunkeld, on which occasion the new bishop
fixed his residence at Lismore, where the ruins of his
castle are yet to be seen. The humble cathedral now
forms the parish church.
This Highland parish is in the district of Upper
Lorn, and is of prodigious extent. It consists of the
island of Lismore, one of the Hebrides, situated in the
arm of the sea generally designated Loch Linnhe, but
sometimes Linnhe-Sheilich; the tract of Kingerloch,
belonging to the old parish of Lismore, and on the
western side of the loch; and the extensive tract called
Appin, stretching from the coast of Loch Linnhe on the
west to Perthshire on the north-east, and upon the north
having the waters of Loch Leven, by which it is separated
from Inverness-shire. Loch Creran forms the southeastern
boundary of the parish: the Lynn of Lorn, an
arm of the sea three leagues wide, runs on the south;
and on the west is the sound of Mull. Lismore is ten
miles long, and one mile and a half in average breadth,
comprising 96OO acres; while Kingerloch is sixteen miles
long and four broad, and includes 40,960 acres. The
length of Appin, from south-west to north-east, is about
forty-eight miles, and the medium breadth ten miles;
the number of acres is computed at 307,-00, making the
aggregate number in the parish 357,760, of which 4000
are cultivated, the same number occupied by wood, and
the remainder pasture and waste. The parish comprehends,
in the most attractive combinations, every
description of Highland scenery, consisting of lofty hills
and mountains; romantic glens and valleys, enlivened
and ornamented with picturesque waters and cascades;
and several fine fertile plains. The sea-coast embraces
altogether a line of about eighty miles. That of Appin
measures forty-six miles, from the extremity of Loch
Creran, on the east, to the head of Loch Leven on the
north, and is in general sandy, often bold and exceedingly
irregular, and marked with many curvatures and
indentations forming convenient bays and harbours.
From the port and village of Appin the line is tolerably
straight to Keill, or Cuil, where it makes a sudden
flexure to the west, constituting a fine expansive bay;
it then winds, with considerable irregularity, round
towards the north of the district, and assumes a pretty
uniform appearance at Loch Leven. To the south of
the village of Appin, the indentations and harbours are
very numerous. At the mouth of Loch Creran is safe
anchorage for small craft; westward is the well-sheltered
bay of Airds, where shoals of herrings are sometimes
taken; and a few miles to the north is the sound
of Shuna, formed by the island of that name and the
main land of Appin, and affording ample security for
shipping in the most stormy weather. The bay of Cuil,
already referred to, is bounded by a semicircular line
measuring a mile between its extremities, and has a fine
sandy beach: large draughts of herrings that visit the
bay are often brought to shore. To the north of this
is the bay of Kentailen, a small creek well defended by
the adjacent heights, which are crowned with wood.
The Lismore coast, twenty-four miles in extent, is also
bold, and the water deep even at the shore, except
towards the north-east, where the island is low and
sandy. At the northern extremity of the isle, on the
west coast, is Port-Ramsa, a spacious harbour with good
anchorage, protected by several small islands; and a
little to the south-west of this is Loch Oscar, or Oscar's
bay, so called, it is said, from the circumstance of a
party of Fingallans, who came hither to enjoy the pleasures
of the chase, having anchored their vessel in the
bay. The landing-place is still called Portnamurlach,
or Port-na-rnor-laoch, " the landing-place of the great
heroes;" and in the vicinity is an eminence, whence the
female part of the company beheld the sport, and which
is yet designated Druini-nam-Ban-Fionu, or "the ridge
of the Fingalian ladies." The bay affords a secure
retreat for large vessels, protected by several islands,
among which the chief is Elein-Loch-Oscair, or " island
of Oscar's bay;" but it is of dangerous entrance on the
nortli. Several smaller harbours, coraprending princi[^
lly Salen, Killcliiaran, and Aclinacroish, are only fit
for l)oats. The navigation is highly hazardous in some
parts, especially at the rock of Carraig, between the
southern end of Lismore and the island of Mull: here,
also, is a most violent current; but a lighthouse erected
about 1833, on the little island of Musdale, has proved
of great service in preventing accidents. The Kinger-
loch district embraces a coast of sixteen miles, which is
sandy, often bold and rocky, and contains a harbour
called Gerloch, or Loch Chorey, the most spacious in
the whole parish, being a mile long and half a mile
broad; it has good anchorage for vessels at all seasons.
Most kinds of fish common to the shores of the county
are caught off this parish, including cod, ling, haddock,
whiting, lythe, mackerel, and flounders, with considerable
quantities of salmon and herrings; they are all
taken principally for domestic use, except the salmon,
many of which are sent to the south. Oysters are found
in Loch Creran, and the usual sorts of shell-fish on every
part of the coast.
The loftiest elevations in the interior of the parish
are the mountains of Glencoe, celebrated by Ossian,
and in the neighbourhood of which the country is wild
in the extreme, and uninhabited, consisting for the most
part of hill, moss, moor, and glen. These sublime and
commanding masses, piled in immense bodies one upon
another, in some places attain 3000 feet above the level
of the sea. They are accessible only among their lower
portions, where tolerable pasture is afforded for sheep;
the summits, which are the resort of eagles, have never
been explored by any human being. The heights rise
almost perpendicularly, and with surpassing grandeur,
on each side of the glen, the deep narrow gorge and
solitary recesses of which are seldom warmed by the
rays even of the summer's sun. The hills of Ballichtilish,
a beautiful range covered with rich verdure nearly
to their summits, attain an elevation of about 2000 feet
above the sea, and, in a few scattered trees still remaining,
exhibit relics, and define the western boundary, of
the ancient Caledonian forest. The Kingerloch coast is
marked by hills of less height, but much more abrupt
and rocky, and broken by many ravines opening into
pleasing valleys, and by some caves of inferior extent.
Several recesses, also, of this description occur on the
Lismore coast. The chief rivers in the parish are the
Coe and the Creran: the former traverses Glencoe, and
joins Loch Leven at Invercoe; while the latter, having
passed through Glencreran, and received the Ure and
other tributaries, empties itself into Loch Creran at its
head. Kingerloch contains the smaller stream of the
Coinich; and the parish is also watered by the Duror,
the Laroch, and the Leven, all of which produce salmon
and good trout. Lismore abounds in springs of beautiful
water, which find reservoirs in the numerous fissures
and caverns penetrating the great bed of limestone rock
whereof the island consists. There are also several lochs
in Lismore, of moderate dimensions; some of them contain
fine trout, and one is well stocked with eels.
The climate of the parish is exceedingly moist, the
sleet and rain that fall here being considerable; but
the mildness of its temperature, and the genial nature
of the soil in some parts, especially in Lismore, which
is considered to a great extent a grain country, favour
the operations of husbandry; and the crojjs, though
not large, arc in general excellent. Appin, comprehending
the districts of Airds, Strath of Appm, Duror,
Glencreran, and (ilencoe, is almost entirely a pastoral
district; but there are some flat grounds adjacent to
the sea-shore, on which the soil is generally light and
gravelly, producing good crops of potatoes, barley, and
oats. The farms and houses here, which have a very
interesting and picturesque appearance, are, however,
soon succeeded by grazing tracts, stretching far into
the more hilly country, where the soil is frequently
clayey and mossy. The sheep are mostly the native
black-faced; but the Cheviots have been lately introduced,
some of which are crossed with Leicesters. A
large number are always kept, the average being about
25,000; and, like the cattle, which are chiefly the Highland
breed, they are of a very good description. Many
fine horses are kept, and Lismore is celebrated for its
beautiful grey and dappled breed. Several improvements
have been introduced on the estates of the chief
proprietors within these few years, principally consisting
of draining, inclosing, and the reclaiming of waste lands;
and the rotation system of crops is practised to a limited
extent. The arable land in Appin and Kingerloch is
always let with large uncultivated tracts, at one given
rate per acre; in Lismore, some farms, to which there
is no hill pasture, pay about £1. 10. per acre. The annual
value of real property in the parish is returned at £15,708.
The substrata in Lismore are entirely limestone. In
Appin, among the varieties of rock, slate is prominent,
and is extensively wrought on the farm of Laroch, near
South Ballichulish, at the foot of Glencoe. At the
works there, which have been in operation for about
fifty years, a fine compact and durable material is raised,
suited in every respect for roofing; of a deep-blue colour;
and having pyrites, called " diamonds " by the
quarrymen, wrought completely into its texture. The
total number of people employed, with the carpenters,
blacksmiths, and others, is about 300; they mostly live
on the estate, in neat well-built tenements with a portion
of ground attached, and are in corai'ortable circumstances.
From five to seven millions of slates are raised
yearly, and sent to numerous sea-ports in Scotland and
Northumberland, from a harbour almost close at hand,
where there is a large wharf, to which the cargoes are
conveyed by tramroads on an inclined plane from the
quarries. There is also lead in several places; but the
attempt to work it has proved unsuccessful. The wood
growing in Lismore consists of the hard species, comprising
plane, beech, and ash: that district is said to have
been at one time covered by a large deer-forest. The trees
usually grow in clusters, and, being interspersed about
the island, supply an agreeable relief to the uniformity
of its scenery arising from the continuous verdant and
arable tracts. The wood in Appin is partly natural and
partly planted: among the former are oak, ash, birch,
and hazel; and the latter comprises plane, beech, ash,
elm, and several kinds of fir, the whole interspersed with
beautiful hollies of rich green hue. The sea-shore of
Appin, and the lands immediately stretching from it,
are favourite localities for gentlemen's seats. Elegant
and pleasing mansions, mostly of modern erection, embosomed
in well-wooded valleys, and enlivened by neighbouring
rivulets and cascades, rise in various directions,
backed by lofty mountains and commanding in front
fine sea views. The chief are Kinlochlaich, Appin House,
Airds, Achnacone, Ardsheal, Ballichulish, Fasnacloich, and Minefield.
The villages in the island are Clachan and Port-
Ramsa, the latter of which, a fishing-village, has a good
harbour; those in Appin are Laroch, Port-Appin, Tayribbi,
and Portnacroish. The whole of them are small,
with the exception of Laroch, where the population,
consisting to a great extent of people engaged in the
slate-mines, amounts to about 500, and is gradually
increasing. A post-office is established at Appin, communicating
daily with Inverary; and a sub-office at Lismore
communicates twice a week with Appin. A sub-office,
also, at Kingerloch, communicates twice a week with
Strontian. The Kingerloch district is destitute of roads;
those in Lismore are in tolerable order, but far inferior
to the roads in Appin. Much traffic is carried on in
pigs, poultry, and eggs, which were formerly sold at the
market-town of Oban, distant ten miles by land from
Appin, and seven by sea from Lismore. This description
of produce, however, is now chiefly sent to Glasgow by
steam-vessels, which pass on their way from Inverness,
and touch here twice a week in summer, and once in
winter. The sheep and cattle are disposed of principally
to drovers. A fair is held at Duror, in Appin, in the
month of April, and another in October; and cattlemarkets
for receiving the stock from the various districts,
are held at the periods when the drovers are
passing through to the south-country markets. A fair of
minor importance, and only for local purposes, is held at
Lismore in October.
This parish is ecclesiastically in the presbytery
of Lorn, synod of Argyll, and in the patronage of the
Duke of Argyll. The minister's stipend is £'213, with a
manse, and a glebe of ten acres, valued at £17. 10. per
annum. There are two parochial churches. That at
Lismore, situated on the Appin side of the island, was
formerly the cathedral of the diocese, but presents no
features either of grandeur or of beauty. It is less than
sixty feet in length by thirty in breadth; there are no
aisles, and it seems to have had neither transepts nor
nave. It was newly roofed in 1749, and accommodates
540 persons with sittings. Appin church, containing
350 sittings, was built in 1749, and enlarged in 1814;
it is conveniently situated in the Strath district, in
the midst of the incumbent's charge. There is also a
quoad sacra church at Duror, about nine miles from the
parish church of Appin, and to which the districts of
Duror and Glencoe are attached. Two missionaries,
surported by the Royal Bounty, officiate in Kingerloch,
Glencoe, and Glencreran: but these places are only the
parts of their charge belonging to this parish, their services
being shared with other parishes adjacent. The
members of the Free Church have a place of worship in
Glencoe. An episcopal chapel is maintained in Glencoe,
and another at Portnacroish in Strath of Appin; they
were till lately served by the same clergymen, who officiated
alternately. A Roman Catholic chapel is situated
near the slate-quarry at South Ballichulish; and there
was formerly a Roman Catholic seminary in Lismore,
instituted in 1801, but removed from the island in 1831.
Of the six parochial schools, two are in Lismore, and
four in Appin; three of the latter, situated respectively
at Glencreran, Glencoe, and Duror, sprang from the
chief school in Appin. Gaelic and English reading, and
the usual elementary branches, are taught in all these
schools, and Latin and mathematics in some of the
schools if required. The master of the principal school
in Lismore has a salary of £17, a sum of £10 from
Queen Anne's mortification, and about £10 fees; the
master of the second school receives £19 per annum,
and £12 fees. The master of the chief school in Appin
has a salary of £20, with £10 from Queen Anne's mortification,
and about £10 fees; and the three other masters
respectively £6, with £5 fees; £18, with £8 fees; and £8, with £6 fees.
In this parish the relics of antiquity comprise the
remains of numerous castles, the chief of which is that
of Elein-an-Stalcaire, or " the island of the falconer,"
built by Duncan Stewart of Appin, who was constituted
its hereditary keeper, for the accommodation of King
James IV. when hunting. It is situated on a rock, in
the sound separating Lismore from Appin; and was
new-roofed and floored in 1631. Castle-Coeffin, in Lismore,
also a very ancient structure, covered with ivy, is
said to have been erected by a Danish prince after
whom the castle is named. Nearly opposite, on the
Kingerloch coast, is Castle-Mearnaig, sometimes called
the Castle of Glensanda, standing on a rock, and celebrated
for its fine echo. There are also the castle of
Shuna, and those of Tirefoor and Achinduin in Lismore,
at the last of which the bishop of Argyll occasionally
resided. The other antiquities consist of obelisks, cairns,
tumuli, and the remains of religious houses, none of them
of much note. See Glencoe, and Duror.