DUNBLANE, a parish and town (ancient episcopal) and the seat of a presbytery, in
the county of Perth; containing, with the village of Kinbuck, 3361 inhabitants,
of whom 1911 are in the town, 5 miles (N.) from Stirling, 28 (S. W.) from Perth,
and 4li (W. N. W.) from Edinburgh. This place derives its name from an
which was an emmence on ancient convent of Culdces founded by St. Blaan in the
reign of Kenneth HI., and subsequently erected into a
bishopric by David I., who built the cathedral church
about the year 1142. The diocese comprised part of the
counties of Perth and Stirling, and continued to flourish
under a succession of twenty-five prelates till the Reformation,
when its revenues were valued at £315 in money,
exclusively of certain payments in wheat and other grain.
Among the Protestant bishops who presided over the see
after that period, was the meek and pious Leighton, who
was consecrated in 1662, and in 1669 was translated to
the arehiepiscopal see of Glasgow, in which he continued
till 1675. At his death he bequeathed his valuable
library for the use of the clergy of the diocese of Dunblane;
and he has left behind him a series of works
which display the sound learning he possessed, the
fervour of his piety, and the persuasive eloquence of his
style. In 1715, a sanguinary battle took place on the
plains of Sheriff Muir, to the north-east of the town,
between the forces under the command of the Duke of
Argyll and those of the Pretender led by the Earl of
Mar, in which both parties claimed the victory.
The TOWN is pleasantly situated on the road from
Stirling to Perth, and on the east bank of the river Allan,
over which is an old narrow bridge. It has a station of
the Scottish Central railway. There are still some slight
remains of the episcopal palace to the south of the
cathedral, on the margin of the river, and that part of the
town yet retains some faint resemblance to its ancient
character. The building erected for the library of Archbishop
Leighton was endowed under his will with £300
for keeping it in repair and as a salary for the librarian,
and has been lately fitted up by subscription as a public
reading-room; the library has at various times received
additions by bequests and donations, and the annual
subscription to it is very moderate. There are two other
libraries, chiefly of religious books, supported by subscription.
Close to the town is a neat lodge, to which
a supply of mineral water is brought during the summer
months from a spring called the Well of Dunblane, or
Cromlix, about two miles distant. It was proposed to
bring the water into the town by pipes from the spring;
but this purpose not being carried into effect, a village
has been built near the spot, called Bridge-of-Allan,
which is described under its own head. The inhabitants
are principally engaged in the woollen manufacture, of
which there are three establishments in the parish; one
of them in the town, in which 215 persons are employed;
one in the small village of Kinbuck, and the third at the
mill of Keir, each of the two latter affording occupation
to about forty persons. A considerable number in the
town, likewise, are employed in hand-loom weaving.
There is a general post-office. Fairs are held on the first
Wednesday in March, the first Tuesday after the 26th
of May, on the 21st of August, and the first Tuesday in
November. The town, being within the barony of
Cromlix, was formerly governed by a bailie, appointed
by the Earl of Kiunoull as superior, and who held courts
in a house a little eastward of the cathedral. The old
gaol has been taken down; and a new prison, containing
eight cells and a house for the gaoler, has been erected
for the western district of the county, upon the site once
occupied by the residence of Viscount Strathallan.
The PARISH, which is situated at the western extremity
of the Ochil range, is about nine miles in length,
and nearly six in breadth. A considerable part consists
of arable laud, but the greater portion is moor, heath,
and pasture. The surface is much diversified with hills
of various elevation, whose declivities slope gradually
towards Strathallan, a fertile vale through which the
river Allan flows with a rapid current, between banks in
some parts steep and richly wooded, and pursues a
winding course till it falls into the Forth near Stirling
bridge. The rivulet Ardoch intersects the western part
of the parish, and in both streams are found trout of
good quality. The soil is various; in some parts fertile,
in others affording only indifferent pasture for sheep and
black-cattle: the farms are generally of small extent,
the buildings substantial and commodious, and a considerable
portion of waste land has been brought into
cultivation. The annual value of real property in the
parish is £14,300. The substratum is mostly red sandstone;
there are pits of shell marl, and lime is obtained
with facility at the distance of a few miles, by the river
Forth, and has been plentifully applied to the improvement
of the land. Kilbryde Castle, the seat of Sir James
Campbell, of Aberuchill, Bart., is an ancient structure
finely situated; and Kippendavie a handsome building
of modern erection.
For ECCLESIASTICAL purposcs the parish is within the
hounds of the presbytery of Dunblane, synod of Perth
and Stirling. The minister's stipend is £289, with a
manse, and a glebe valued at £15 per annum; patron,
the Crown. Dunblane church is the choir of the ancient
cathedral, the remainder of which is in ruins. The whole
was originally a venerable structure combining elegant
details of the Norman, and early and decorated English
.styles, and measures '216 feet in length and fifty-eight
feet in breadth within the walls, which rise to the height
of fifty feet, and are crowned with battlements. The
tower, 1'2S feet in height, appears to be of later date
than the rest of the cathedral in the two uppermost
stories; but the three lower of the five stories of which
the tower consists seem to be older than the cathedral,
and to have been erected by the ancient Culdees. The
choir is almost entire; the lofty vaulted roof is in good
preservation, and the windows, which vvere of beautiful
design, were restored in 1819, and the whole of the interior
repaired. The prebendal stalls, several of which
are elaborately carved, are preserved in the avenues
leading into the choir, which contains about 500 sittings.
The Episcopalians, the members of the Free Church, and
the United Presbyterian Synod have places of worship.
The parochial school is conducted by a master who has
a salary of £34, with £10. 10. per annum granted by the
crown from the church lands; also a house and garden,
and fees averaging about £50, out of which he pays an
assistant. There are several other schools in the parish,
including two partly supported by subscription. Archbishop
Leighton is the most remarkable name connected
with Dunblane: he bequeathed a sum of money to the
poor of the parish; and a sequestered walk near the
town, to which the prelate frequently resorted, is still
called the Bishop's Walk. Dunblane gives the title of
Viscount to the Duke of Leeds.