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Burial
ground of the distinguished
Jaffray family of Kingswells
House
If you view
behind the 5-mile garage to the
top of the hill you will see a
cluster of mature trees emanating
from a drystane dyke enclosure.
Within the enclosure is the
burial ground of the
distinguished Jaffray family of
Kingswells House and also some of
their friends. As the family were Quakers they could not be buried
in established parish graveyards.
The burial dates
span from 1673 with the last
being 1838. I do not know if they
were all Quakers. Registry
indicates there are 11 burials. I
understand the site to be under
the responsibility of the City
Council.
Having visited
the burial ground there are no
gravestones or evidence of burial
mounds. It is reputed that there
was originally gravestones, but
they have either been removed or
possibly were flat and therefore
over grown. There is a small sign
in the enclosure dyke detailing
the names of those buried there.
Because of their
Quaker beliefs many of those
buried in the graveyard suffered
harsh persecution. This adds to
the poignancy and sense of
solitude that I feel when I have
visited the graveyard.
With reference
taken from the Rural Institute
publication on the History of
Kingswells and District the
following abbreviated extracts
illustrates the notables that lie
in the graveyard and a sense of
their oppression.
Alexander Jaffray
1614 -1673
- Provost
of Aberdeen
- One of
the commissioners that went to
Holland to ask Charles II to sign
the Covenant
-
Severely wounded at the Battle of
Dunbar &endash; fought against
Cromwell Changed.
-
Religious orientation changed
around this time.
- Keeper
of the Great Seal & Director
of the Chancellory
-
Persecuted and imprisoned on
several occasions for being a
Quaker
- His
wife Sarah died the same year and
is also buried in the graveyard
Andrew Jaffray
1650 &endash;1726 [son of
Alexander]
- 1674
imprisoned in the Tolbooth,
Aberdeen , for being a Quaker;
preached from his prison window
- 1676
imprisoned again
- 1677
"sorely beaten" in Montrose and
imprisoned in a dungeon for three
days.
- 1677
back in the Aberdeen Tolbooth
- 1679
With the death of the Archbishop
Sharpe [murdered] the
persecutions came to an end.
If you do visit
the graveyard then please observe
the Countryside Code and also the
privacy of those who reside
nearby.
Regards, Keith
Penny (Posted 17.3.2003)
Hi there.
Help !!!!!!!!!
I have left a
notice on your bulletin board
endeavouring to make contact with
an old school friend, namely,
Evelyn Morrice. Would I be
correct in assuming that she no
longer resides in the Westhills
area or that she is unaware that
I have been trying to find her
for quite a few months using your
very informative website.
I hope you can
enlighten me one way or
another,
From across the
oceans, warm regards,
I wanted to add
to my correspondence that my
family owned and lived in "Romla"
across the then road from the
Four Mile House, from 1965 - 19th
June 1972. Walter & Edith
Christie and family.
Happy days and
warm regards,
Hazel Chrisite
Small www.ourhighplace.com / christiesmall@bigpond.com
(Posted 4.3.2003)
Hi Folks
I will like to
thank you all for making our stay
of 2 years at Kingsells
comfortable and warm even though
the temperature was below 8
degrees. My family and I used to
live at NO 1 Midmar Crescent
Kingswells.
My daughter is 4
years old and still think that
she is in Trinidad for a
vacation. She misses our
neighbours everyday because they
were the closest friends she had.
I was browsing for castle
pictures and was wondering if
Kingswells will come up in my
network search and was quite
successsful.
We hope to be
back in Kingswells in the future
for a vacation, to meet our
friends Allison, Alex ,Kimberly ,
Debra and Tigi. If anyone reads
this email, please tell them we
missed them very much.
from Vijai,
Viddy, Vinay, Arun,Krishan and
Vishala. subancv@bp.com
Thanks (Posted
5.2.2003)
Can anyone help!
My great x 3 grandfather was
Alexander Rough of Gillahill
(Gillowhill) Farm, 1800 - 1888
(he died at Newpark). Gillahill
was being run in 1891 by his
grandchildren - William and Mary
Stuart. Does anyone know when
Newpark and Gillahill passed out
of the Rough's family hands? Are
there still family in the area?
Alexander Rough was on the
Parochial Board (equiv of
Council) for Newhills in 1848.
William Rough, my great
grandfather, was born at
Gillahill in 1862 but married in
Edinburgh in1891 - he died there
in 1940.
Ann
Email a.landels@compbsrv.demon.co.uk
Are copies of the WRI history
still available? (Posted
23.11.2002)
Dear Claire,
Kingswells
Consumption Dyke :
Just
a point I wanted to raise about
the piece of Kingswells
Consumption Dyke which is within
the 'Concraig' area of the
Stewart Milne development at
Kingswells. I mean the very high
portion of dyke, known as Rough's
Cairn, which has just recently
been repaired by a dyker working
on behalf of Stewart
Milne.
As you may know,
all the Kingswells Consumption
dykes are scheduled ancient
monuments - ie monuments of
national importance. It is
therefore an offence to damage
them, dump stones on them, or
indeed remove stones without
permission. We are at present
completing some research work on
this particular type of dyke,
following which, interpretation
boards will be put up to tell the
public all about them. I'm
liaising with Meg Sands, whom you
may know, from the Community
Council, so that we can also
provide information for a similar
board to go up at the section of
dyke in Kingswood Drive - for
that board the Community Council
has raised come money, I
believe.
Any way, to get
to the point. I have heard that
possibly some stones (only a few)
may have been removed from the
Rough's Cairn piece of dyke, at
its lower end, near the play
park. Stewart Milne have agreed
to put up a temporary sign there
to let people know of the
important status of the dyke.
Obviously things will become
clearer once the proper
information board is up, but that
won't be until late summer.
Meanwhile, I wondered how we
could most effectively let people
know, in the nicest possible way
(apart from Stewrat Milne's
sign), that this dyke is not a
quarry for their rockeries! and
that they would be breaking the
law if they removed
stones.
Judith
Stones
Keeper of
Archaeology (Posted
3.5.2002)
Francis Edmond of Kingswells
Hello, I am
interested in the above
gentleman, he being a relative of
mine. My great great great
grandmother was Eliza Edmond,
daughter of Alexander Edmond,
Merchant in Aberdeen, and
Margaret Shewan. Eliza was born
about 1834. Her father, Alexander
Edmond, was Francis Edmond's
cousin.
I would be very
grateful if you could suggest any
avenues of research I should
pursue in reference to the
history of Kingswells in trying
to find out more about Francis
Edmond. I have been working for
some time now on the history of
the Edmond family as a whole and
would appreciate any help you
might be able to give me in
regards to uncovering information
on Francis Edmond. Is there a
local history publication which
you would recommend I should buy?
Like I say I would really
appreciate any help you could
give me.
Thanks very much
in advance for your help, Andrew
Simpson eddie@pyramids88.fsnet.co.uk
Family History : I am very
interested in Family History and
would like to know more about it.
Is anyone else in Kingswells into
this subject? We could meet at
the Community Centre and perhaps
set up a self help club. (Posted
19.11.2001) Carole Bosanquet . If
so, email: info@kingswells.com
THERE ARE
FOOTPATHS from
Hazlehead & Mastrick to
Brimmond Hill via Kingswells.
linking up with the 'Four Hill
Walk'. which is worth a visit.
i.e. Brimmond, Elrick, Tyrebagger
& Newhills.
"A History of Kingswells And
District" is
a 66 page booklet written by the
ladies of the Kingswells Rural
Institute in 1966. It has been
republished and is being sold to
raise funds for Kingswells Rural
Institute and 1st Kingswells
Guides at £4 each. If you
would like a copy, please phone
Carole Bosanquet on 01224
742838
From NEW
ZEALAND. Have
found your site while surfing,
and am so impressed, and do so
hope you may be able to help me
locate a cemetary in the region.
Our great grandfather died on the
farm of Kingsford, Kingswells,
Newhills, and his residence was
Hatton Cottage, Kingswells
Newhills. Information from death
certificate.
James Lemmon
(Lemon) died 28th November 1907
(farm servant, age
58years)
I would so
greatly appreciate to know if
there is a cemetary in the area,
as we have no further knowledge.
Have really enjoyed this site and
will be back, its so interesting
being able to see the place our
ancestors came from,we may never
get to visit, but the pictures
and all the information is so
good.
Regards, Glenis
Lemon, Invercargill. NEW ZEALAND.
If you can help email
contact:
LEMON.GRACE@xtra.co.nz
Do you know
how Gillahill got its
name? By dead of night
the 'Resurrectionists' used to
bury the dismemberedcorpses in
the wooded enclosure in Gallow
Hill field. These dismembered
corpses were all that remained
after the Resurrectionists had
learnt their Anatomy at the
College. (This information comes
from 'A History of Kingswells and
District', a wonderful little
book originally published in 1966
by the Kingswells Rural
Institute.)
Does anyone have any
more local knowlege about the
Resurrectionists?
Is that 'wooded
enclosure' the group of trees
surrounded by dyke and sheep that
is still visible on Gillahill
Farm?
Should it be saved,
blessed, remains removed or
ignored? Sonia
(Posted
17.5.2001)
Photograph
courtesy of Norman
Adams, Aberdeen City
Council Photographer
(Summer 1999)
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Saving
the dry stone
dyke
This
140-year-old dyke in
Kingswells was
deteriorating because of
people climbing over it,
and parts of it were in
danger of being
destroyed
completely.
Historic
Scotland, the government
agency with overall
responsibility for the
care of scheduled sites,
provided a grant for its
conservation.
Additional
monies for the
£11,000 rescue
scheme came from
Aberdeen Countryside
Project and Aberdeen
City Council.
Now this
280m wall is scheduled
as an ancient monument
of national
importance.
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The work, was
carried out by local dry stone
dyker, Michael Kay, who took on
two staff - Ken Armstrong and
Andy Stephens - from elsewhere in
Scotland to help. Aberdeen City
Council, which owns the wall,
over saw the project.
The dyke was
originally built on agricultural
land owned by 19th century city
advocate Francis Edmonds and was
created by workers clearing the
land for crop planting or
grazing.
It was scheduled as
an ancient monument of national
importance in 1933. Running
parallel to Kingswood Drive, just
a few yards from the road, it is
one of three such dykes in the
Kingswells area. The wall
currently conserved, and one of
the others, have paths built onto
the tops of them, and are used by
local people as walkways.
Aberdeen City
Council archaeologists consulted
with Kingswells Community
Conservation Group over the dyke
project, and members of the group
visited the site to watch the
work in progress and tried their
hand at dyking. Discussions are
also underway on the creation of
interpretive signs, explaining
the history of the wall and its
significance as a historical
monument. The Council hopes to
have signs in place later in the
year.
Statistics
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Population
(1991):
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1120
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Council
Area:
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Aberdeen
City
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Grid
Reference:
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NJ 867
071
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A commuter village
of Aberdeen City with
agricultural engineering
industries, situated to the north
of the AYE, 5 miles (8 km) west
of Aberdeen city centre. Nearby
are fine examples of immense
Consumption Dykes created in the
19th century during a period of
agricultural improvement to
'consume' rocks and boulders
littering fields. The small
Gothic Free Church was also
constructed in 1857 using
boulders gathered from local
fields.
Kingswells
Church The
Congregation of Kingswells
&endash; originally United Free
&endash; was formed in 1857. It
was the local people's reaction
to the disruption of 1843. The
members wished to be able to
appoint their own Minister by
ballot, and not have to depend
upon the choice of a
patron.
The Church
building was erected in 1858, on
a site provided by Dr. Francis
Edmond of Kingswells. It was the
first example in the Northeast of
polygonal ragwork, which is the
fitting together of irregular
stones, with raised mortaring to
give a pleasing pattern.
Members and
friends of the Congregation
gathered the stones, with which
the Church is built, from the
surrounding fields. The rafters
and wood-lined ceiling &endash;
gifted by Dr. Edmond &endash; are
almost unique and lend an
atmosphere of warmth to the
building.
The stained glass
windows, by Douglas Hamilton,
depicting "The Crucifixion" and
"The Resurrection" were installed
in 1958 to commemorate the
Church's centenary.
Original
Manse The
original manse, now a private
residence, is situated at the
north end of Fairley Road. It was
built in 1859 and was occupied by
successive Ministers until 1979,
when it was sold and the new
Manse erected in the Lang Strach
at East Husterstone Farm.
War
Memorial
Outside the Church and facing the
Skene Road, stands the War
Memorial &endash; a broken column
denoting broken lives. The
Memorial was first erected on a
site at the switchback at the end
of the First World War. It was
removed to the Church grounds in
1938. It bears the names of the
men of Kingswells, who lost their
lives in the two World Wars.
Included in the list is Captain
James Brooke of Fairley, who was
awarded the Victoria Cross for
conspicuous bravery in action.
His two brothers and his
brother-in-law, who also lost
their lives during the Great War,
are likewise named on the
Memorial.
Text taken from
Kingswells Church's Annual
Magazine &endash; permission
granted by Rev Harvey
Grainger
LOCAL historian(s)
wanted. Do you have a genuine
interest in the local history of
Kingswells? If so, you are
invited to submit information
about Kingswells historic past
for possible inclusion in the
web-site. Please send your
historical information in an
email to: info@kingswells.com.
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