ELIE, a parish, and burgh of barony, in the district
of St-Andrew's, county of Fife, 3 miles (S. S. E.)
from Colinsburgh; containing 90/ inhabitants, of whom
829 are in the village. This place is supposed to have
derived its name from the marshy nature of the soil
previously to the modern improvements in agriculture,
and a portion of land bordering on the loch of Kilconquhar
still retains that character. The manor has been
for many generations in the family of Anstruther, of
whom the first baronet. Sir William Anstruther, represented
the county of Fife from the year 1681 to 1709,
and was made a lord of session in the reign of Queen
Anne: he strenuously exerted himself for the establishment
and maintenance of the Protestant religion. A
small harbour on the coast here seems to have been
formerly very much resorted to as a place of safety, in
stress of weather, by ships navigating the Firth of
Forth, as, if they missed this haven, there was no other
till they were driven on the coast of Norway. It was
easy of access, and perfectly secure; and in a petition
presented to the privy council for its repair, it is stated
that it had afforded protection to more than 300 troops
that must otherwise have perished in a storm. Elie
harbour is now in a very ruinous and dilapidated condition,
but, from a survey lately made, it appears that it
might be completely repaired, and rendered one of the
best harbours on the coast of Fife.
The parish of Elie, separated from that of Kilconquhar
about the year 1639, is two miles in length from east to
west, and one mile in breadth, and is iDounded on the
south by the sea. It comprises 1570 acres, of which
1464 are arable, fifty woodland and plantations, and the
remainder pasture and waste. The surface is generally
flat, and the sands along the shore are peculiarly convenient
for bathing. A small rivulet, issuing from the
lock of Kilconquhar, traverses the parish, and falls into
the harbour; but there is no river. The soil is mostly
dry and sandy, and the crops are wheat, barley, oats, and
beans, with potatoes and turnips: the system of agriculture
is in a highly improved state; the farm-buildings are
substantial and commodious, and the lands are chiefly
inclosed with fences of thorn, to which considerable attention
is now paid. The plantations consist of beech
and Scotch fir. The substratum is principally whinstone,
limestone, sandstone, shale, and clay, interspersed
with ironstone; the limestone is of inferior quality, and
not quarried to any extent. Coal is thought to abound
in this parish, which forms a section of the great independent
coal formation; but it is not worked at present,
though formerly several pits were open. The strata of
coal are traversed by several dykes of trapstone, one of
which, consisting of basalt, projects into the sea, and is
very compact. The shale in many places has impressions
of various plants, and stems and branches of trees
are found embedded in the sandstone. Sauchur Point,
a bold headland, consists of basalt, greenstone, clinkstone,
and trap tuffa, and abounds with a beautiful red
gem called the Elie ruby, which is of a brilliant colour,
varying in size from a garden-pea downwards, and is
found only on this part of the coast. The annual value
of real property in the parish is £3661.
Elie House, the property of Sir W. C. Anstruther, is
a noble ancient mansion, situated in grounds which have
been tastefully disposed and richly ornamented; but as
the proprietor is not resident here, it is not kept up, and
is rapidly falling into ddapidation. The village, which
is much resorted to during the summer months for seabathing.
iswell built, and has a remarkably neat and cheerful
aspect. A subscription library has been established,
which forms a tolerably extensive collection of interesting
volumes. The post is daily, and is a branch from the
office at Colinsburgh; a packet sails weekly to Leith, and
the Aberdeen, Anstruther, Montrose, and Dundee steamvessels
touch at this port twice or three times daily,
both going and returning. A small fishery is carried on
by a few of the inhabitants, for the supply of the village.
Ecclesiastically the parish is in the presbytery of
St. Andrew's, synod of Fife, and in the patronage of
Sir W. C. Anstruther; the minister's stipend is £150,
with a manse, and a glebe valued at £50 per annum.
Elie church, which was substantially repaired in 1831,
is a neat and well-arranged edifice, adapted for a con-
gregation of 600 persons, and situated in the centre of
the village. The parochial school affords a good education;
the master has a salary of about £40, and his fees
and other emoluments may amount to about £60 more,
besides a house with a small garden, for the deficiency
of which he has an allowance of £'2 per annum. There
are rents of land and other revenues, vested in the minister
and elders for the use of the poor, amounting to
£78. 10. per annum. A friendly society called the Sea
Box, consisting of masters of vessels and seamen, associated
for their mutual benefit, obtained from George III.
a charter of incorporation; the funds, which are ample,
are derived from land, houses, and other property, and
as the demands are comparatively small, the society is
rapidly increasing its capital.