TARBAT, a parish, in the county of Ross-and-Cromarty,
10 miles (E. by N.) from Tain; containing,
with the villages of Balnabruach, Portmahomack, and
Rockfield, 1826 inhabitants. This parish, which occupies
the eastern peninsula of the county, terminating
in the narrow point of Tarbat Ness, is bounded on the
east and south-east by the Moray Firth, and on the
north by the Firth of Dornoch. It is about seven miles
and a half in extreme length, varying from less than a
mile to four miles in breadth; and comprises about
6400 acres, of which 3.500 are arable, 200 woodland and
plantations, 1000 meadow and pasture, and the remainder
moor and waste. The surface, though varied,
is tolerably even, in no part rising to an elevation of
more than '200 feet above the level of the sea; it is,
however, diversified with some few undulations. There
are no rivers in the parish: among the springs of water
are some that have a petrifying quality. The coast,
which is upwards of fifteen miles in extent, is indented
with numerous bays and creeks, of which that of Portmahomack
forms an excellent and commodious harbour,
affording shelter for vessels in easterly gales; the others
are adapted for boats employed in the fisheries. There
are several caves in the rocks that line part of the coast;
of one, containing a spacious chamber surrounded with
a naturally- formed bench of stone, the entrance is so
low as to afford admission only to a person kneeling;
while to another the entrance is by a stately porch, projecting
considerably from the rock.
The SOIL is generally light, and a great proportion of
it sandy, but there are also large portions of rich black
loam of great depth; the crops are wheat, barley, oats,
rye, potatoes, turnips, peas, beans, &c. Husbandry has
been greatly improved under the encouragement given
by Mr. Me Leod of CadboU and other proprietors of
land. The larger farms vary from 150 to 350 acres;
the buildings are mostly substantial and well arranged,
and on all the principal farms are threshing-mills, one
at Mickle Tarrel driven by steam. Marl found under
several of the mosses, and some of which is of very fine
quality, and sea-weed, of which abundance is obtained
upon the coast, are the chief manures. The lands have
been partly inclosed, and are generally under profitable
cultivation. The best breed of cattle and sheep has
been introduced, and specimens of each have been sold
at the highest prices in the London and other markets.
The plantations consist of thci common Scotch fir, interspersed
with ash, beech, elm, oak, sycamore, hornbeam,
and hawthorn; but from want of proper attention,
the trees of the older plantations are mostly of
diminutive growth. There are several valuable quarries
of freestone of excellent quality, in active operation.
Geanies, the seat of W. H. Murray, Esq., the only
resident proprietor, is a handsome modern mansion,
beautifully situated on the shore of the Moray Firth, in
a well-planted demesne. The annual value of real property
in the parish is returned at £41 68.
For ECCLESIASTICAL purposcs this place is within the
limits of the presbytery of Tain and synod of Ross.
The minister's stipend is about £'250, with a manse,
and a glebe of six acres and a half; patrons, the Crown,
and the Mc Kenzie family of Newhall. Tarbat church,
one of the oldest fabrics in the county, was repaired
about forty or fifty years ago. The members of the
Free Church have a place of worship. The parochial
schoolmaster has a salary of £30, with a house, au
allowance of £1 in lieu of a garden, and the fees. The
first Earl of Cromartie bequeathed twelve and a half
bolls of barley annually, and the late Miss Margaret
McLeod, of Geanies, £100 to the poor of the parish.
Near the village of Portmahomack, on an eminence
called Chapel Hill, a number of human bones have been
found in rude cofhns of flagstones, and, in the vicinity,
several stone chests, each containing an entire skeleton
of unusually large size. On a small creek on the north
side of Tarbat Ness, called Port-Chaistel or Castlehaven,
are some remains of an ancient castle, from which the
first Earl of Cromartie took one of his titles; and there
are considerable remains on the shore of the Moray
Firth of the castle of Balloan, thought to have been
originally built by the Earls of Ross. Near the site of
the lighthouse on Tarbat Ness, is the foundation of a
monument said to have been built by the Romans for
a landmark.