DUXDOXALD, a parish, in the district of Kyle, county of Ayr,
5 miles (S. VV.) from Kdmarnock; containing,
with the former quoad sacra parishes of FuUarton
and Troon, 67 16 inhabitants, of whom 345 are in
the village of Dundonald. This place derives its name
from the situation of its ancient castle on the summit
of a hill near the village. Here Robert II., King of
Scotland, and the first of the Stuarts, occasionally resided
till his decease in 1390, and the castle was frequently
the residence also of many of his successors,
but was, with the lands attached to it, granted by
James V. to a descendant of the Wallace family, by
whom it was sold in 1638 to Sir William Cochrane,
ancestor of the present Earl of Dundonald. In 1726
the lands passed to the Montgomerie family, who are
still proprietors; but the site and the remains of the
ancient castle, from which his lordship takes his title,
are reserved by the earl. The p.\risu is bounded on
the north by the river Irvine, and on the west by the
Firth of Clyde. It is about eight miles in length, and
from five to six in breadth, comprising 11,000 acres, of
which about '2500 are waste, and the greater portion of
the rest under cultivation. The surface along the seacoast
and the banks of the river is nearly level, with
some gentle undulations towards the centre, where it
rises into hills of moderate elevation, the highest of
which, called the Clavin hills, do not exceed 400 feet in
height, commanding, however, from their summits a
prospect embracing fourteen different counties. With
the exception of the Irvine, there are no rivers of any
importance in the parish, but springs of excellent water
are found in great profusion.
The soil embraces almost every variety, and the arable
lauds are under excellent cultivation; the crops include
oats, barley, potatoes, and turnips. Wheat, for the
growth of which the soil is well adapted, was formerly
raised in large quantities; but from the moisture of the
climate, and the consequent lateness of the harvest, its
cultivation was for some years almost abandoned: of
late, however, owing to the improved state of husbandry,
its growth has been resumed. Considerable tracts of
waste land have been reclaimed by tile-draining, first
introduced into the parish by the Duke of Portland. In
general the farm-buildings are commodious and substantial;
the lands are well inclosed, partly with hedge
rows and partly with stone dykes, and the more recent
improvements in the construction of agricultural implements
have been adopted. Much attention is paid to
the management of the dairy-farms, and large quantities
of the produce are sent to Ayr and Glasgow; the cattle
are all of the Ayrshire breed. The annual value of
real property in the parish is £23,496. There are still
some remains of natural wood, consisting of birch, hazel,
and mountain-ash, but none of the trees are remarkable
for size: the plantations, though not extensive,
are generally in a thriving state. In this parish the
principal substrata are freestone and coal. The freestone
is quarried at Craiksland and Collennan: that at
the former place, which is of fine texture and durable
quality, and may be raised in masses of any size, is sent
chiefly to Ireland, and a steam-engine for sawing it into
slabs has been erected at the quarry. The coal is
svrought for the supply of the neighbourhood, and for
exportation, at Shewalton, and also at Old Rome, on
the lands of Fairlie. At the former it occurs in two
seams, of which the lower, at a depth of thirty-five
lathoms, is thirty-four inches, and the upper forty-three
inches, thick; and at the latter place are four different
seams, varying from two feet eight inches to six feet in
thickness. The mansion-houses in the parish are,
Auchan House, built by the Earl of Dundonald, and
now nearly in ruins, the property of Lady Mary Montgomerie,
by whose servants it is chiefly inhabited; and
Fullarton, Fairlie, Shewalton, Newfield, Hillhouse, and
Curreath, which are all handsome and comparatively
modern buildings. The village of Dundonald is beautivUMi/
fully situated near the remains of the ancient castle, and
(' has a pleasingly rural aspect. Letters were formerly
delivered here by a runner from the Troon office, who
passed daily through the village; but Dundonald has
now a post of its own. Facility of communication is
afforded by the lines of the Glasgow and Ayrshire railway
company, by the turnpike road to Dalmellington,
and by several other roads which branch off in various
directions. A cattle-show is held in May. The village
of Shewalton, on the bank of the river Irvine, contains
•219; and that of Old Rome, on the same river, to the
east, contains '257 inhabitants.
For ECCLESIASTICAL purposcs the parish is within
the bounds of the presbytery of Ayr, synod of Glasgow
and Ayr. The minister's stipend is about £'260, with a
manse and glebe, rated at £40 per annum; patron.
Lady Mary Montgomerie. Dundonald church, erected
in 1803, is a neat structure situated in the village, and
containing 630 sittings. Churches have been erected at
Fullarton and Troon j and there are places of worship
for members of the Free Church at Dundonald and Troon.
The parochial school is attended by about eighty children;
the master has a salary of £28. 18. 9., with a
house and garden, and the fees average £40. There are
schools also at Fullarton and Troon, and various Sabbath
schools; and a parochial library, established in
1836, and now containing 150 volumes, is supported by
subscription. Dr. James M''Adam, a native of the
parish, bequeathed £1000, of which he appropriated the
interest to be distributed in blankets and coal to the
poor; and the Misses Campbell of Curreath left £90,
to be distributed annually to six persons not receiving
parochial relief. The remains of the ancient castle of
Dundonald consist of a quadrangular range of buildings,
two stories in height, 113 feet in length and forty feet
in breadth, and in a greatly dilapidated condition: on
the western wall are the arms of the Stuarts, much obliterated.
Previously to the Reformation it contained a
chapel dedicated to St. Ninian, of which no vestiges are
now to be traced. On the farm of Barassie has been
found an urn containing calcined bones, and which appeared
to be rather of British than Roman character.
Upon the heights above the farm of Harpercroft are two
ancient camps, the larger of them defended by a circular
embankment of earth and stones, inclosing an area of
ten acres, having in the centre a similar inclosure of one
acre in extent. The construction of these camps is
popularly ascribed to the Romans; but it is not with
certainty ascertained by whom they were formed.