KILMORIE, a parish, in the isle of Arran, county
of Bute, 24 miles (S. W. by W.) from Saltcoats; containing
3455 inhabitants. This place, which occupies
the western portion of Arran, and derives its name from
the dedication of its ancient church to the Virgin Mary,
is in all its historical details identified with the parish
of Kilbride, which occupies the eastern portion of the
island. Kilmorie is bounded on the south by the Firth
of Clyde, and on the west by the sound of Kilbrandon,
which separates it from Cantyre, and is from six to ten
miles wide. It extends from Largybeg Point, in the southeast,
to Loch Ranza in the north-west, and is thirty miles
in length and six miles in breadth, comprising an area of
nearly 93,000 acres, of which 8300 are arable, and the
remainder hill pasture and waste. The surface is generally
mountainous, and diversified with hills interspersed
with deep and narrow glens; the lands are watered by
numerous rivulets descending from the heights, and
some of the rivulets are of great rapidity, forming in
their course a variety of beautiful cascades, of which the
falls of Essmore and Esscumhan are the most prominent.
The highest of the mountains is Beinn-Bharfhionn,
or " the white-topped mountain", so called from
its summit being usually covered with snow, and which
has an elevation of more than 3000 feet above the level
of the sea. There are several lakes in the parish, the
principal of which are Loch Tanna, about two miles,
and Loch lorsa, about one mile, in length; they are
both very narrow; the former abounds with trout, and
the latter with salmon. Trout are also found in the
rivulets, all of which afford good sport to the angler.
The SEA-COAST, more than thirty miles in extent, is
generally bold and rocky. The chief headlands are
Dippen Point, Benan Head, Brown Head, and Drumidoon
i and the bays are Pladda Sound, Drumidoon,
Machray, and Loch Ranza, the last-named situated at
the north-western extremity of the parish, and affording
safe anchorage for vessels. Opposite to Kildonan, in
the sound, is the island of Pladda, on which a lighthouse
was erected in 1800, and another, of greater elevation,
in 18'26, both exhibiting fi.ved lights, visible at a
distance of five leagues. Fish of various kinds are taken
off' the coast; the chief are liaddock, whiting, mackerel,
and cod. Ling and turbot are found towards the south;
lobsters and crabs are caught in abundance near Kildonan,
for the Glasgow market; and off the northern
coast, the herring-fishery is carried on with considerable
profit by the inhabitants. The rocks arc indented with
numerous caverns, one of which, at Drumidoon, called
the King's Cave, was for some time the retreat of Robert
Bruce, during his reverse of fortune, when contending
for the throne. This cavern is 114 feet long, forty-four
feet broad, and forty-seven and a half in height; and at
the upper end is a hunting-scene rudely sketched in the
rock, said to have been done by that monarch while in
concealment.
The SOIL varies in different parts of the parish: near
the shore, it is sandy and gravelly; towards the interior,
clayey; and in the vicinity of the hills, mostly moss;
while the valleys, along the banks of the rivers, are
generally a loam. The arable lands in the vale o*' Shisken
and near the sea-coast are usindly fertile, and in
good cultivation; the crops are wheat, oats, barley,
potatoes, and the various grasses. Within the last few
years the system of husbandry has been greatly bettered;
the lands have been drained, and inclosed with hedges
of thorn; and the farm buildings and offices are now substantial
and well arranged. The cattle, formerly a mixture
of the Galloway, Ayrshire, and Argyllshire breeds,
are gradually improving under a more careful management;
and the native breed of sheep, supposed to have
been originally Norwegian, has been exchanged for the
black-faced and for Cheviots. The moors abound with
black game, and grouse are found in profusion; but
since the destruction of the ancient forests, the roe, the
wild-boar, and other animals of the chase have disappeared,
with the exception of a few red deer in Glen
lorsa. There are still some small remains of old wood;
and plantations have been formed upon a moderate
scale, which are in a thriving state. The rocks present
a great variety, and afford a deeply-interesting field for
the geological student: there are granite, mica and clay
slate, conglomerate, trap, sandstone, &c., and a number
of minerals. The annual value of real property in the
parish is £6S06. There is a shooting-lodge at Dugharidh,
about a mile below Loch lorsa. The only village
is Shisken, and this is but inconsiderable; at Shedog is
a grain-mill, and there is a mill for lint and wool at
Burican. About ninety boats are engaged in the herring-
fishery, which are of the burthen of four tons and
a half on an average, each having a crew of three men.
Fairs are held at Shedog in November and December,
and a fair, chiefly for horses, at Lag about the third
week in November. The nearest post-offices are at
Brodick and Lamlash, in the parish of Kilbride. Facility
of communication is maintained by the turnpikeroads
to Brodick and Lamlash, and by packet-boats
from Southend to Ayr, and from Blackwater to Campbelltown.
For ECCLESIASTICAL purposcs the parish is within
the bounds of the presbytery of Cantyre and synod of
Argyll. The minister's stipend is £237, with a manse
and glebe valued together at £28 per annum; patron,
the Duke of Hamilton. Kilmorie parish church, rebuilt
on the original site in 1*85, and enlarged in 1824, is a
neat structure containing 832 sittings. A church at
Shisken was rebuilt in 1805, at a cost of £"00, raised by
subscription, and contains 640 sittings: divine service
is performed every third Sunday by the minister of the
parish. The church at Loch Ranza, noticed in the
account of Kilbride, is open to the inhabitants of both
parishes. The members of the Free Church have a
place of worship at the southern extremity of the parish.
There are three parochial schools, situated respectively
at Kilmorie, Shisken, and Imachar; the masters of the
two first have salaries of £17. 10. and £15 respectively,
with a house and garden and some land, and the master
at Imachar has a salary of £5. 16.: the fees in the
aggregate do not average above £10. There is also a
school at Loch Ranza, common to both parishes. The
principal relics of antiquity are, the ruins of Danish
forts, Druidical monuments, obelisks of unhewn stone,
cairns, and tumuli, which last are scattered in jjrofusion
over the whole island. On the lands of Drumidoon are
the remains of a large fortress called the Doon, in front
of which the cliffs rise perpendicularly from the sea to a
height of 300 feet. Around the summit of the hill,
which has a steep declivity towards the land, is a wall
of dry sUnics, inclosing a k-vcl area of several acres, in
which are the ruins of various rude buildings; the walls
have been partly removed for the sake of the materials,
but the gateway is still plainly to be seen. The largest
of the cairns in the parish is Black water- Foot, originally
200 feet in diameter at the base, but of which a great
part has been used for building. To the north of it is
a tumulus where Fingal is said to have held his courts
of justice. There are also vestiges of numerous ancient
chapels; and in the burying-ground at Shisken is the
grave of St. Molios, who removed from the isle of Lamlash,
and ended his days here. The Rev. William Shaw,
author of the first Gaelic grammar and dictionary ever
published, was a native of the parish; he was favoured
in his diflicult undertaking by the patronage and advice
of Dr. Johnson and the then Earl of Eglinton.