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There are excellent local history societies in Auchterarder and Dunning. SPTA acknowledges the help and assistance given by Dunning Parish Historical Society for providing historical background for the Dunning area. Those researching their family roots may find the following contacts useful: Perth & Kinross Council Archives A K Bell Library
York Place, Perth, PH2 8EP
Tel: 01738 444949
Holds local authority records; records of former burghs of Aberfeldy, Abernethy, Alyth, Auchterarder, Blairgowrie & Rattray, Coupar Angus, Crieff, Kinross, Perth, Pitlochry; customs records for Perth & Blairgowrie; records of local businesses. Tay Valley Famly History Society
Research Centre, 179-181 Princes Street, Dundee, DD4 6DQ
Tel: Dundee 01382 461845 ROYAL BURGH OF AUCHTERARDER – A SHORT HISTORY OF THE TOWN  Auchterarder probably owes its origin to King Malcolm Ceannmor (1052-93) whose love of hunting brought him to Strathearn from Dunfermline. ‘Kingswells’ is at the north end of the town where he built a castle – part of the 9ft walls still remain - and is where his farm lay. The town remained a favourite royal seat and by 1200 Auchterarder achieved the status of Royal Burgh.
The town was isolated from the main medieval north-south routes along the coast or by sea. Yet its location between two royal bases – Stirling and Perth – meant that it played a part through centuries of Scottish history. One claim to fame was that it became a centre of the chain-mail industry in Scotland, making armour for royal armies. This gave rise to the locally familiar surname ‘Mailer’. There was wealth in the area under royal patronage. The Abbey of Ichaffray, founded by the Earl of Strathearn, was endowed by him in 1200 with the lands and church of St Mackessock in Auchterarder. In 1227 Alexander II conferred the teinds (tithes) of the town on the same Abbey. The town by this time was the chief Burgh and seat of the Sehriffdom of Strathearn, with a common Seal and Representation in Parliament. Edward I of England rested at Auchterarder Castle during one invasion of Scotland. In 1323 King Robert the Bruce conferred lands here upon one of his barons, but confirmed the liberties of the church and burgesses. During the Reformation, Mary of Lorraine and Guise, widow of James V and mother of Mary Queen of Scots, encamped here when the Lords of the Congregation came from Perth to force her to sign the Treaty of Auchterarder granting freedom of worship to her subjects. This was the first royal recognition of the reformed, or Protestant, church. By 1707 when the Union of the Scottish and English Parliaments took place, the town had gone into decline. Unable to pay its dues it lost its privileges as a Royal Burgh. Worse followed in the Jacobite Rising of 1715 when the Battle of Sheriffmuir was fought on the great moors nine miles south west of the town in November 1715 and the Jacobite leader, the Earl of Mar, was forced to fall back on Perth. In his retreat he destroyed all food and shelter for the pursuing armies and Auchterarder, like other villages on the route (Muthill, Dunning and Blackford) was burned and laid waste. In the severe winter of 1715-16 a very large proportion of the people of Auchterarder died of cold and starvation. The rebuilding of the town during the eighteenth century was slow. (Compensation was still being paid to the households 60 years later.) However, the improved state of agriculture during the period had an influence on the town which, as nowadays, reflected the prosperity of the surrounding district. Commerce benefited and local industries were mainly based on the produce of the land. It was a market place and, above all, an important weaving centre. In those days Auchterarder was known even in Europe as the ‘Town of the 100 drawbridges’. These so called ‘drawbridges’ were narrow bridges leading from the higher level of the road across wide gutters to the doorsteps of the houses. They kept feet dry and, when removed, could discourage intruders. The town figured prominently in the religious turbulence of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. The Presbytery’s Auchterarder Creed gave rise to the Succession Church of 1732 and the Church of the Disruption is still represented by a Tower built from the stones of old Kincardine Castle, the home of the Great Marquis of Montrose. The castle was held by Royalist supporters of Charles I and was besieged by General Middleton’s Convenanting army in 1646. The castle was burned during the siege and was subsequently used as a quarry for the construction of the Church. The coming of the railway and a network of good roads encouraged prosperity in the nineteenth century. But it was not until 1951 that Auchterarder again became a Royal Burgh more than 200 years after losing its privileges. Even then it was a short lived honour. In 1975 the reorganisation of local government meant that Auchterarder became part of Perth and Kinross District – while Perthshire itself came under Tayside Regional Council. After another reorganisation Auchterarder is again controlled by Perth & Kinross Council.
THE VILLAGE OF DUNNING  The village of Dunning is easy to visit either by bus or by car and a good place to stop for a break during a longer journey. There is a small café, two pubs, a hotel, and a bistro as well as grocers’ shops, so that one can obtain a meal of some kind at almost any time.
There is also plenty to interest the visitor. Crop marks show that people lived here since about 4000BC and evidence of Pictish occupation is clearly visible. Standing stones, one only 100 yards north of the village, are probably of Bronze Age origin, and there are remains of a Roman marching-camp (among the largest in the country) nearby. The most well-known attraction is of course St Serf’s church, where the Dupplin Cross is housed. This is in the care of Historic Scotland and is open daily from Easter to October. The Dupplin Cross is estimated to date from the 9th century and stood in a field on the north side of the river Earn overlooking the ancient Pictish capital of Forteviot until 1998, when it was moved under cover to prevent further erosion. It is certainly among the finest examples of Pictish stone carving in the world. St Serf’s church itself is of great interest. It dates from before 1219, when it came under the Abbey of Inchaffrey which was founded by Earl Gilbert of Strathearn and witnessed by Anechal, Thane of Dunning and founder of the surname Dunning. It has a tower of Norman architecture containing two bells, the oldest dated 1526. Many visitors come especially to see St Serf’s graveyard, which contains nearly 500 headstones. The earliest dated stone is 1623, thought to be the oldest in Scotland, and there are a few earlier, undated recumbent stones. The graveyard is an invaluable source of information about our ancestors. As well as their names, ages and relationships, many of the stones carry emblems of their trades. Although much newer, Dunning Parish church is also well worth visiting. It was completed in 1911 and is particularly attractive, with an open timber roof, a chancel and some very fine stained glass. In 1716 Dunning suffered the fate of several other Scottish villages, being burned by Jacobites retreating from the battle of Sherriffmuir. A thorn tree was planted soon afterwards to commemorate this event, and became a well-known icon of Dunning. It lasted until 1936 when it was blown down in a gale. The present tree is its third replacement. For visitors who’d like to stretch their legs a little, a walk round Rollo Park, which contains a 9 hole golf course, tennis courts, a football field and a children’s play area, is very pleasant and gives spectacular views. Or one may take anywhere between an hour and an afternoon following the Dunning Burn south on footpaths which can be rough in places. No introduction to Dunning is complete without a mention of Maggie Wall. About a mile west of the village is a crude monument topped with a cross, to this lady “burnt as a witch in 1657”. It is important to note that Maggie was not (by a long way) the last in Scotland to suffer this fate. This is a nice quiet spot to rest and speculate on why this event (which is not noted in any Parish or church records) should be marked by a Christian symbol. THE VILLAGE OF BRACO. Just north of the A9 the tourist route to Crieff has taken visitors along the 18th Century military road en route to Braco, an attractive self contained settlement with small shops, school and hotel. Across the River knaik just north of the village lies Ardoch Roman fort, the finest example of Roman earthworks still existing. Almost two thousand years old, it is open for exploration. For Roman history enthusiasts some parts of the Gask Ridge, a series of fortlets between Ardoch and Perth, can also be accessed from back roads. O>S> maps required! THE VILLAGE OF BLACKFORD The village looks towards the Ochil Hills where the Battle of Sheriffmuir was fought in 1715. Blackford was burned by the retreating Jacobite army but the settlement today has a fine wide main street with hospitable village inns. Around Tullibardine distillery a modern visitor centre houses retail outlets and restaurants. THE VILLAGE OF ABERUTHVEN Just two miles from Auchterarder lies the hamlet of Aberuthven. Its name means at the mouth of the red river. By that river stands the ruins of the church dedicated to Saint Kattan a 7th Century Christian missionary. By the end of the 17th Century the church was no longer used as a place of worship. Then the local landowners, the Grahams, adopted the site as a family burial with a Robert Adam mausoleum. Their most famous son, James Grahm, Marquis of Montrose is recorded as having had his horses shod by the village blacksmith. The village links with the A9 and the whole area is popular with people who enjoy field sports.
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