ARROCHAR, a parish, in the county of Dumbarton,
22 miles (N. N. W.) from Dumbarton, and 22
(E. S. E.) from Inverary; containing 580 inhabitants.
The name of this place, which at different times has
been variously spelt, is derived from a Gaelic term signifying
" high" or " hilly", in reference to the nature of
the ground. The parish is remarkable for the magnificence
of its scenery, and is much resorted to by tourists
on account of the peculiar and numerous attractions
which it presents, as well as from the excellence of the
inns, the good order of the roads, and other advantages.
Arrochar was disjoined from the parish of Luss in !6.58.
It is about fifteen miles long and three broad, and contains
31,000 acres; including two farms named Ardleish
and Doune, which lie on the east side of Loch Lomond,
and occupy the north-eastern extremity of the parish,
almost separated from the main portion by the lake.
The parish is bounded on the north by the parish of
Strathfillan, in Perthshire; on the south by the water
of Douglass, and part of the parish of Luss; on the east,
by Loch Lomond; and on the west, by Loch Long, and
part of Argyllshire. The surface is altogether hilly and
mountainous. It has about fourteen miles of coast
bounding Loch Lomond, and a coast of three miles extending
along Loch Long: on the Lomond side, the
shore is flat and sandy, and diversified by numerous
bays and headlands. The mountain of Ben-Vorlich,
clothed with rich pasture, is the most elevated in the
parish, rising 3000 feet above the sea; it is frequented
by white hares, ptarmigan, and various kinds of wild
fowl. There are four rivers, none of which are of large
size; viz., the Falloch, the Inveruglass, the Douglass,
and the Linnhe, the three first of them running into
Loch Lomond, and the last into Loch Long. Loch
Lomond, which is twenty-four miles long, in some parts
seven broad, and varies in depth from sixty to 100
fathoms, abounds with bold and romantic scenery, and
is considered the finest sheet of water throughout the
country. It contains salmon, trout, pike, perch, eels,
and also powans, generally called fresh-water herrings.
Loch Long is about twenty-one miles in length and one
and a half or two in breadth; its depth is from ten to
twenty fathoms. The fish found in it are halibut, soles,
flounders, whitings, skate, lythe, sethe, cod, salmon,
trout, herrings, &c. Its banks in some parts exhibit
fine picturesque breaks, especially at the opening of
Loch Goil; and towards its head the scenery is equal
to any part of Lomond. There are some beautiful cascades
in the parish.
The SOIL, except in some districts, is thin and poor,
and only about 300 or 400 acres are arable; a considerable
number of acres are under wood, and on the
shores of Loch Lomond are large plantations of oak,
which are annually thinned; the remaining land consists
of indifferent pasture. The sheep are the blackfaced,
and the cattle comprise both the native breed
and those introduced from Argyllshire. Some waste,
to the extent of about fifty acres, has been reclaimed
within these few years. The inclosures and farm-buildings
generally are in an indifferent state. The rocks
consist for the most part of mica slate; in some parts
are traces of iron-ore, and there are two whinstone
quarries near the whinstone dyke between Lochs Lomond
and Long. The annual value of real property in
the parish is £3096.
The parish contains two small villages; in addition
to which, a considerable number of houses have been
erected within the last few years for sea-bathing visiters.
Among the inns is one which ranks with the most commodious
and excellent in Scotland, and which, before
being converted to its present use, was the mansion of
the chief of the Macfarlane clan. During the summer
months, a coach runs daily from Inverary to Tarbet in
the morning, and returns in the afternoon; and vehicles
of every description may be obtained at the inns of
Tarbet and Arrochar, to which visiters come from all
parts to view the scenery in the neighbourhood of the
lakes. Steam-boats run on Loch Lomond and Loch
Long from May till October. Another plies between
Arrochar and Glasgow; and ships with coal and lime
from Glasgow and Ireland frequently come to the head
of Loch Long, whence, also, wool is often sent to the
market of Liverpool. A herring-fishery is carried on
in Loch Long, with considerable profit, during the
mouths of June and July, the boats afterwards proceeding
successively to Loch Fine and the neighbourhood of
Campbelltown, where they fish to the end of the season.
Each boat contains about three men, and produces in
the season from £30 to £60.
Ecclesiastically the parish is within the bounds of the
presbytery of Dumbarton and synod of Glasgow and
Ayr; the patronage belongs to Sir James Colquhoun,
Bart., and the minister's stipend is £241, with a glebe
worth £13 a year, and a manse erected in 183*. The
church, situated in a corner of the parish, was built in
1733, and is in indifferent repair; it contains 300
sittings. A place of worship has been erected in connexion
with the Free Church. There is a parochial
school, in which the ordinary branches of education are
taught; the master has the maximum salary of £34. 4.,
with £8 fees, and a house. Another school, privately
endowed, affords instruction in the classics, mathematics,
and the other usual subjects; the master receives
£25 from the resident proprietor of land^and about £15
or £20 fees.