Friday 8th October 1819
Thursday Oct 8th We returned this morning before breakfast (the same road we came on Wednesday 10 miles to Moulinearn Inn where we breakfasted the then crossed a ferry 2 miles off & proceeded to Aberfeldy 7 miles. Here we visited the falls of the Moness I was peculiarly struck with the situation of these falls which fall through a narrow chasm of rocks covered with foliage rising 4 hundred feet on each side as we ascended to the top of the rocks we caught most beautiful view of the surrounding country we returned to the Inn & proceeded to Kenmore 6 miles in the way we passed some druidical remains & approaching Kenmore situated close to Lock Tay we passed the beautiful grounds & Castle of Lord Breadalpane which we intend viewing tomorrow the Inn here is good.
OBSERVATIONS & COMMENTS:
Moulinearn Inn has been located in Canmore National Record of the Historical Environment at https://canmore.org.uk/site/138568/moulinearn-inn#mycanmore-image-fragment Site Number NN95SE 64.03. This building, currently a farmhouse and situated where the military road crosses the modern road just S of Moulinearn, was formerly an inn or kingshouse. Alternative Names in its history are the Athole Arms Inn and Kingshouse. It is on the outskirts of the village of Ballinluig
Aberfeldy: Beyond its association with Burns in his poem The Birks of Aberfeldy, the town is known for "Wade's Bridge", built in 1733 and designed by architect William Adam, father of the more famous Robert Adam. General Wade considered this bridge to be his greatest accomplishment.
2004: Birks of Aberfeldy by Dave Morris from Edinburgh, UK .This file is licensed under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Birks_of_Aberfeldy.jpg
2007: Wade's Bridge, Aberfeldy, Perthshire, Scotland, by Dudesleeper at English Wikipedia. Dudesleeper grants anyone the right to use this work for any purpose, without any conditions, unless such conditions are required by law. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:2003-06-06_-_Aberfeldy_01.jpg
Aberfeldy is also mentioned in the traditional Loch Tay Boat Song. The town also includes a memorial to the Black Watch, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aberfeldy,_Perth_and_Kinross
Falls of Moness are a series of waterfalls on the Moness Burn in the Birks of Aberfeldy (Birches of Aberfeldy), which was also made famous in a poem by Scottish poet Robert Burns who was credited with pioneering the Romantic movement while also being a source of inspiration to the founders of both liberalism and socialism.
Falls of Moness . The upper fall with the footbridge above, seen from the path which makes a good circular walk from Aberfeldy. © Copyright Jim Barton and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/4358560
His writings covered a lot of political themes like Scottish patriotism and identity, anticlericalism, hypocrisies of class structures, etc. as well as the popularizing of Scottish whisky, and even the romanticism of Nature in Scotland such as the Birks of Aberfeldy. It was said the emotional highs and lows of his style plus his mastery of both the English and Scots languages made his writings more relatable and digestible to a broader public and he was influential even well after his death in 1796. https://www.world-of-waterfalls.com/europe-falls-of-moness.html
Kenmore dates from the 16th century. It and the neighbouring Castle were originally known as Balloch (from Gaelic bealach, 'pass'). The original village was sited on the north side of river approximately two miles from its present site and was known as Inchadney. In 1540 Sir Colin Campbell of Glenorchy started the construction of Balloch castle on the opposite bank of the river and the entire village was moved to a prominent headland by the shores of Loch Tay, hence the name Kenmore, which translates from Scots Gaelic to "big (or large) head".
2008: The village of Kenmore, Perth and Kinross, Scotland located on Loch Tay and by the emergence of the River Tay, taken from the Black Rock viewpoint. By Keith S Brown, the copyright holder of this work, and published under the (CC BY-SA 3.0) Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kenmore_from_Black_Rock.jpg
The village as it is seen today, in the image above, is a model village laid out by 3rd Earl of Breadalbane in 1760. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kenmore,_Perth_and_Kinross
Croft Moraig Stone Circle is situated by the side of the A827 road between Aberfeldy and Kenmore. It stands to the northeast of Loch Tay on low ground beneath steep mountainsides.The stone circle is a complex multi-phase site. The stone circle shows many features typical to the area including a recumbent stone, graded circle-stones, a south-southwest orientation, quartz pebbles and an outer stoney bank. The stones are of dark grey schist.
Croft Moraig Stone Circle © Copyright Peter Moore and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1854890
The stone circle was excavated in 1965. It was found to have three phases of construction, the first phase being fourteen timber posts arranged in a horseshoe pattern measuring 8 metres by 7 metres. The mouth of the horseshoe had a post set just inside it, and in the centre of the horseshoe there was a boulder with some burnt bone near it. In the second phase the timber posts were replaced by a horseshoe setting of 8 standing stones, about 8 metres by 6 metres. This was surrounded by a stone bank around 17 metres in diameter. On top of the bank, to the southwest was a two-metre stone with 23 cupmarks on it. In the third phase a circle of 12 standing stones about 12 metres in diameter was erected around the horseshoe. There was an entrance in the southeast marked by two external stones with two adjacent graves. Dating evidence was provided by some sherds of pottery from phase 2 of the site, dating to around 2000 BC. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Croft_Moraig_Stone_Circle
Loch Tay is a long, narrow freshwater loch. The watershed of Loch Tay traditionally formed the historic province of Breadalbane.
2006: The eastern edge of Loch Tay, at Kenmore, Scotland, by Dudesleeper. This work has been released into the public domain by its author, Dudesleeper at English Wikipedia. This applies worldwide. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Loch_Tay_at_Kenmore.jpg
It is a popular spot for salmon fishing, and many of its surroundings feature in the traditional Scottish 'Loch Tay Boat Song' https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loch_Tay
Marquess of Breadalbane, known as John Campbell until 1782 and as The Earl of Breadalbane and Holland between 1782 and 1831, was a Scottish soldier and landowner. He raised the Breadalbane Fencibles Regiment, in which he served as a lieutenant-colonel and a lieutenant-general in 1814.
John Campbell, 4th Earl and 1st Marquess of Breadalbane (1762-1834) , oil on canvas by Angelica Kauffman (1741–1807). Source/Photographer Christie's. This work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the author's life plus 100 years or fewer. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:John_Campbell,_4th_Earl_and_1st_Marquess_of_Breadalbane_(1762-1834)_by_Angelica_Kauffman_(1741-1807).jpg
In 1806 he was created Baron Breadalbane, of Taymouth Castle, which entitled him to an automatic seat in the House of Lords. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Campbell,_1st_Marquess_of_Breadalbane
The Inn: It is likely that Lucy stayed at the Kenmore Hotel, which is widely considered to be the oldest hotel in Scotland. The hotel is nestled in the middle of mountainous highland Perthshire set in the quaint, picturesque village of Kenmore. Built as a tavern in 1502, the inn offered both accommodation and refreshments. However, in 1572, Laird Colin Campbell commissioned the structure and created Kenmore Hotel. Laird Colin Campbell then reportedly granted his wife and servant a lease to the hotel, so that they could run it as an ‘honest’ hotel. The origins that date back to the 16th Century can still be seen today. The interior of the hotel maintains the history and character. However, it is the distinguished porch that utilised ancient, curved tree trunks for columns that attract attention. In the 17th Century, Kenmore Hotel added to its history as it was here that Cromwell’s army dined. Cromwell and his arm dined at Kenmore Hotel on the pursuit of Earl of Montrose. The dinner proved a success and an important one too as the army spared Kenmore Hotel from torching it to the ground, as they did with many dwellings in the area. From then on, the village and the hotel impressed many a famous face.
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The Kenmore Hotel. One of several claimants for the oldest inn in Scotland. © Copyright Richard Webb and licensed for reuse under the (CC BY-SA 2.0) Creative Commons Licence. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/2567290
Queen Victoria and Prince Albert spent some of their honeymoon in Kenmore and Kenmore Hotel. Queen Victoria also popularised the area thanks to her extensive and gushing journal notes about the beauty of the land. Another famous face that visited was the poet Robert ‘Rabbie’ Burns. In fact, in Kenmore Hotel, you can find Poet’s Bar where Robert Burns wrote a poem celebrating the beauty of Kenmore. The poem can still be read today, written in pencil by the man himself, on the chimney breast of the fireplace. The pretty village on Kenmore has stayed true to its natural beauty and heritage. Kenmore Hotel remains to be one of the largest buildings in the village, which a stunning front entrance that captures the character and history of the building and village. https://www.kenmorehotel.com/history/
Can you help us?
Old Regency Prints, Pictures an Coaching maps: Do you have access to any prints or pictures showing what town and country would have looked like when Lucy travelled through? Any illustrations of what she would have seen in 1819 will enliven our research.
New Pictures: Do you have any modern pictures of the streets, buildings, gardens and views that would enable us to see the changes that two centuries have wrought?