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Features: Scottish Parishes » Historic Shires » Argyllshire » Kilninver & Kilmelford

Loch Feochan, Kilninver by Stuart Wilding
Loch Feochan, Kilninver © 2007, Stuart Wilding

KILNINVER & KILMELFORD PARISH

TABLE OF CONTENTS


ALTERNATE NAMES AND SPELLING:

Kilmelfort (Kilmelford)


LOCATION

Location Description:

Kilninver and Kilmelford is a united parish, in the district of Lorn, Argyleshire. It is bounded by the Sound of Mull, Loch Feachan, and the parishes of Kilmore, Kilchrenan and Dalavich, Craignish, and Kilbrandon. (1867: The Imperial Gazetteer of Scotland, by John Marius Wilson).

Shire, District, and Region Timeline:

  • Shire: Argyllshire (Before 1707)
  • County: Argyll (After 1707)
  • District: Lorn (Before 1930)
  • Landward District: South Lorn (1930-1975)
  • Region: Strathclyde (1975-1996)
  • Sub-Region: Argyll (1975-1996)
  • District: Argyll and Bute (1975-1996)

Cities, Towns, Villages, and Hamlets:

Ardinsture, Crossipol, Fernoch, Glenmore, Kenmore, Kilninver, Kilmelford or Kilmelfort, Nether Kames


BOUNDARY & NAME CHANGES

The parish of Craignish had a detached part situated at Lagalochan, a short distance north of the north-east corner of the parish. This detached part has been transferred to Kilninver and Kilmelfort. See affected properties and landholders. (1892: Boundary of counties and parishes in Scotland as settled by the Boundary Commissioners under the Local Government Act, 1889, by Hay Shennan)


PARISH TIMELINE

PRE-REFORMATION GOVERNANCE:

  • Diocese: Argyll
  • Deanery: Lorn

POST-REFORMATION GOVERNANCE:

  • Synod: Argyll
  • Presbytery: Lorn, previously Kilmore

PAROCHIAL OVERVIEW:

These two parishes were united before 1550. Each of them has its own church. The name Kilninver (Cill an Inbhir = the Church of the River Mouth) well describes the position of the church there, near the place where the River Euchar falls into Loch Feochan.

CHURCH OF SCOTLAND CLERGY:

Includes ministers, licentiates, assistants, readers, and clerks.

  • Alexander Campbell, 1580
  • Archibald Campbell, 1618
  • John Reid, 1618
  • Patrick MacLachlan, 1639
  • John M'Lachlan, 1650
  • Patrick M'Lachlan (son of John, above), 1685
  • James Campbell, 1702
  • Daniel Campbell, 1729
  • Alexander MacFarlane, 1740
  • Patrick Campbell, 1757
  • Donald Campbell, 1798
  • John Fergusson, 1838
  • Colin Hunter, 1843
  • Colin Archibald M'Vean, 1849
  • Colin Campbell, 1869
  • William Duff, 1888
  • John Ashplant Nicholls, 1896
  • Duncan MacArthur, 1911
  • Alastair Campbell, 1919

(1928: Fasti Ecclesiæ Scoticanæ, by Hew Scott, D. D.)


RECORDS

Parochial Registers:

Parish registers turned over to the Registrar-General, as a result of the Registration of Births, Deaths, and Marriages (Scotland) Act of 1854. The letters B. D. and M. indicate Births (or Baptisms), Deaths (or Burials), and Marriages (or Proclamations of Banns) respectively. Numbers indicate separate volumes or books. Note: These records are by no means complete or without damage; consult the Detailed List of the Old Parochial Registers of Scotland (1872) to learn more about the condition of the records.

  • (1) B. and M. 1758-1819 (Kilninver); B. and M. 1808-19 (Kilmelford)
  • (2) B. and M. 1820-54

OPR and RD Numbers
Date RangeNameNumberType
1758-1854Kilninver and Kilmelford524OPR
1855-1969Kilninver524-1RD
1855-1969Kilmelford524-2RD
2009Argyll and Bute, Oban526RD
2026Argyll and Bute Council; Kilninver and Kilmelford Community Council

(2009: Parishes and Registration Districts of Scotland - Old and New, National Records of Scotland)

Local community councils (2026) are provided as a potential source of additional information for settlements within the original boundaries of the parish. (Source)

Population:

Statistics from informal and official censuses

  • 1755: 1,045
  • 1793: 1,178
  • 1831: 1,072
  • 1841: 896
  • 1861: 800
  • 1881: 405
  • 1901: 357 (Kilninver: 172; Kilmelford: 185)
  • 1911: 395 (Kilninver: 170; Kilmelford: 225)

RESIDENTS


Common Surnames:

Cameron, Campbell, Ferguson, Gillies, Jackson, Livingston, Miller, Morrison, Munroe, Sinclair

Land-owners, teachers, and other professionals:

Note: Names appearing in research materials, other than censuses. Simple names (First name, surname only) have been omitted unless they appear associated with large properties. All women's names, and men's names with occupations, military ranks, or peerage titles are included.

  • Mrs C. G. BOLITHO, of Laggan Lochan
  • John CAMPBELL, Esq., of Glenmore
  • John CAMPBELL, Marquis of Breadalbane
  • John Douglas Edward Henry CAMPBELL, Duke of Argyle
  • Miss A. L. MACNEILL, of Laggan Lochan

Other residents:

By the Reverend Mr Patrick Campbell.
"In 1793 the number of souls was 1178. There were 205 families, 585 males, 593 females, and 275 below 10 years of age. No family has emigrated to America from these parishes during the present minister's incumbency, being a space of thirty-five years. No person has been banished nor suffered capitally; nor has any instance of suicide nor child murder, occurred within that period."
(This section contains excerpts, at times restructured or paraphrased, from an article appearing in Statistical Account of Scotland, Sir John Sinclair, 1791-1799)


NOTES:

Primary Sources:
Statistical Account of Scotland (1791-1799), Volume 10, p. 315
New Statistical Account of Scotland (1834-1845), Volume 7, Section II, p. 61

See Parish Page Sources for all source information and links.


Photo credits: (Featured) Loch Feochan, Kilninver, © 2022 Stuart Wilding, used under Creative Commons License CC BY-SA 2.0, (Related Resources) Argyllshire Locator Map, © 2005, Owen Blacker, used under Creative Commons License CC BY-SA 4.0.
Related Resources
Map of Scotland with Argyllshire highlighted
Location of Argyllshire
See more maps at Wikimedia Commons
Glossary
  • Burghs:
  • Royal - Towns on royal lands
  • Regality - Towns granted to noblemen/landowners
  • Barony - Towns granted to tenant-in-chief (laird)
  • Police - Towns with elected officials
  • Small - Population under 20,000
  • Large - Population over 20,000
  •  
  • Chapel-of-Ease: Small church for those living far from the main church
  • Collegiate church: See What is a Collegiate Church?
  • Commune kirk: Owned by a larger church
  • Court of Teinds: Controlled funds for support of clergy
  •  
  • Friars:
  • Black - Dominican
  • Grey - Franciscan
  • Red - Trinitarian
  • White - Carmelite
  •  
  • Iron chapel: Building made of corrugated galvanized iron
  •  
  • Landward District: Rural part of a district
  •  
  • Mensal: Source of income to support clergy member (Roman Catholic)
  •  
  • OPR: Old Parochial Register
  •  
  • Pre-Reformation: Before 1560
  • Prebend: Source of income to support a clergy member
  •  
  • QO: Quoad Omnia - Civil and church control
  • QS: Quoad Sacra - Church control only
  •  
  • RD: Registration District - Civil control
  •  
  • Tryst: Large-scale market or fair, particularly for livestock
  •  
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