Dunning is a small village in

Perth and Kinross Perth and Kinross ( sco, Pairth an Kinross; gd, Peairt agus Ceann Rois) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland and a Lieutenancy Area. It borders onto the Aberdeenshire, Angus, Argyll and Bute, Clackmannanshire, Dundee, Fife, Highland and S ...

in Scotland with a population of about 1,000. The village centres around the 12th–13th century former parish church of St. Serf, where the

Dupplin Cross The Dupplin Cross is a carved, monumental Pictish stone, which dates from around 800 AD. It was first recorded by Thomas Pennant in 1769, on a hillside in Strathearn, a little to the north of (and on the opposite bank of the River Earn from) Forte ...

is displayed (

Historic Scotland Historic Scotland ( gd, Alba Aosmhor) was an executive agency of the Scottish Office and later the Scottish Government from 1991 to 2015, responsible for safeguarding Scotland's built heritage, and promoting its understanding and enjoyment. ...

; open in summer without entrance charge). It is in

Strathearn Strathearn or Strath Earn (, from gd, Srath Èireann) is the strath of the River Earn, in Scotland, extending from Loch Earn in the West to the River Tay in the east.http://www.strathearn.com/st_where.htm Derivation of name Strathearn was one ...

, the valley of the

River Earn , name_etymology = , image = River Earn at Forteviot.jpg , image_size = 250px , image_caption = The River Earn viewed from Forteviot bridge. , map = , map_size = , map_caption ...

, north of the

Ochil Hills The Ochil Hills (; gd, Monadh Ochail is a range of hills in Scotland north of the Forth valley bordered by the towns of Stirling, Alloa, Kinross, Auchterarder and Perth. The only major roads crossing the hills pass through Glen Devon/ Gl ...

. It is just south of the A9, between

Auchterarder Auchterarder (; gd, Uachdar Àrdair, meaning Upper Highland) is a small town located north of the Ochil Hills in Perth and Kinross, Scotland, and home to the Gleneagles Hotel. The High Street of Auchterarder gave the town its popular name of "Th ...

and

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

History

There was an

Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age (Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age (Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly appl ...

fort on Dun Knock (no visible remains) and a 1st-century Roman camp at Kincladie (part of the rampart and ditch survive in Kincladie Wood). The former is the probable origin of the name Dunning, ''ex'' Old Irish ''dúnán'' 'little fort'. Legend tells that

Saint Serf Saint Serf or Serbán (''Servanus'') () is a saint of Scotland. Serf was venerated in western Fife. He is called the apostle of Orkney, with less historical plausibility. Saint Serf is connected with Saint Mungo's Church near Simonburn, Northumbe ...

(fl. 8th century?) killed a

dragon A dragon is a reptilian legendary creature that appears in the folklore of many cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but dragons in western cultures since the High Middle Ages have often been depicted as ...

here, and there is a thorn tree planted in Jacobite times. The Dunning Parish Historical Society website includes St. Serf's Church graveyard survey and Dunning parish census records, both useful for genealogy research. The village (except the church) was burned during the 1715 Jacobite Rebellion. The oldest surviving house (recently restored) dates from the 1730s. The fountain at the centre of the village dates from 1874 and was gifted by Alexander Martin, a former Dunning resident, who made his fortune in

New Brunswick New Brunswick (french: Nouveau-Brunswick, , locally ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. It is the only province with both English and ...

as a confectioner. It includes interesting stone carvings in a medieval style, including an otter eating a trout. A plaque on the outer kirkyard wall commemorates the evacuated children (mainly from

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

who stayed here during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. The Kirkstyle Inn, dating to the 19th century, is still in operation.

St. Serf's Kirk

The building has a distinctive and largely intact tower dating from around 1200. The interior was remodelled in the early 19th century to place the pulpit centrally after adding a north wing and internal galleries. Stained glass is of an excellent standard, especially for a rural kirk and is by

Ballantine and Gardiner Ballantine and Gardiner was a Scottish manufacturer of stained-glass windows, one of several names the company worked under.James Ballantine and Son (about 1828 - about 1925)
– Stained Glass in Wales The kirk was in use until 1972 but is now in the care of

. It is visible to the public at no charge but under supervision. The kirkyard includes early dated stones 1623 and 1624. The building was used in the filming of the Scottish film ''

Complicity Complicity is the participation in a completed criminal act of an accomplice, a partner in the crime who aids or encourages ( abets) other perpetrators of that crime, and who shared with them an intent to act to complete the crime.''Criminal Law ...

''.

The Dupplin Cross

The cross was placed in the church after a protest to Historic Scotland at its removal from its home in Dunning.

Maggie Wall

In a field north-west of the village stands a sombre 18th-century monument bearing the inscription "Maggie Wall was burnt here 1657 as a Witch".

Notable residents

Notable residents include decorated SAS Commander Brigadier Rory Walker OBE MC.

Golfer Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standardized playing area, and coping wi ...

Colin Montgomerie Colin Stuart Montgomerie, Order of the British Empire, OBE (born 23 June 1963) is a Scotland, Scottish professional golfer. He has won a record eight European Tour PGA European Tour#Order of Merit winners, Order of Merit titles, including a stre ...

also resided just outside Dunning for several years before moving on. Several of the Lords Rollo lie buried in the kirkyard. Rollo Park is named after the family. * Rev

Paton James Gloag Paton James Gloag (1823–1906) was a Scottish minister and theological author. He was Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1889. Life Born in Perth on 17 May 1823, he was the eldest son of William Gloag (died 1856), ...

was minister of Dunning from 1848 to 1857 and became

Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland The Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland is the ministers and elders of the Church of Scotland, minister or elder chosen to moderate (chair) the annual General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, which is held for a week i ...

in 1889. * Prof

James Robert Matthews James Robert Matthews FRSE FLS CBE LLD (1889–1978) was a 20th-century Scottish botanist. He was president of the British Ecological Society in 1934 and president of the Botanical Society of Edinburgh 1939 to 1942. Life He was born in the vil ...

FRSE FLS (1889–1978) an eminent 20th century botanist was born and raised in Dunning. * Sir John Mackay Thomson

FRSE Fellowship of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (FRSE) is an award granted to individuals that the Royal Society of Edinburgh, Scotland's national academy of science and letters, judged to be "eminently distinguished in their subject". This soci ...

(1887–1974) classicist and senior civil servant, son of Dunning's minister, Rev Peter Thomson DD. * Barbara Balmain Dougall wife of renowned

geographer A geographer is a physical scientist, social scientist or humanist whose area of study is geography, the study of Earth's natural environment and human society, including how society and nature interacts. The Greek prefix "geo" means "earth" a ...

and writer

John Francon Williams John Francon Williams (1854 – 4 September 1911) was a Welsh writer, geographer, historian, journalist, cartographer, and inventor, born in Llanllechid, Caernarvonshire. His seminal work was ''The Geography of the Oceans''. Family John Franc ...

was born in Dunning in 1851.1851 Census – page 5 – Dougall Family: http://www.dunning.uk.net/census/c51pdf.pdf Barbara was one of seven children (Aeneas, David, Margaret, Isabella, Ann, Mary and Barbara) born to John and Ann Dougall. John Dougall was a handloom weaver and his wife Ann was a cotton winder. Barbara and John Francon Williams are the parents of the

missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Tho ...

, chaplain and writer

Aeneas Francon Williams Aeneas Francon Williams, FRSGS (17 February 1886 – 9 December 1971) was a Minister of the Church of Scotland, a Missionary, Chaplain, writer and a poet. Williams was a missionary in the Eastern Himalayas and China and writer of many publishe ...

and the artist

David Dougal Williams David Dougall Williams FRSA (June 1888 – 27 September 1944) was a Cheshire-born artist and art teacher who lived and worked in Dundee. Early years David Dougall Williams was born in 1888 in Liscard, in Cheshire, the third son of four to Bar ...

Current village

Dunning Community Trust aims to help shape and improve the village of Dunning and surroundings for future generations. One of the trust's main projects is the care of Kincladie Wood. The village includes a recreation area which embraces a nine-hole golf course, a football pitch and tennis court.

References

External links

Dunning Parish Historical Society
gathers and disseminates local history and the site includes St. Serf's Church graveyard survey and Dunning parish census records, both useful for genealogy research.
Dunning Community Trust
was formed to benefit the community of Dunning and to manage community land, such as Kincladie Wood and associated assets for the benefit of the community .

includes information on the Roman camps.
Video footage of St Serf's at Dunning