Inveravon, Moray
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Inveravon is a parish in the council area of
Moray Moray ( ; or ) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland. It lies in the north-east of the country, with a coastline on the Moray Firth, and borders the council areas of Aberdeenshire and Highland. Its council is based in Elgin, the area' ...
,
Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...
. It lies in the lower reaches of the River Avon and includes the settlement of
Ballindalloch Ballindalloch () is a small village on the River Spey in Scotland. It is known for its Scotch whisky, whisky distilleries and for Ballindalloch Castle. In Ballindalloch itself, there are two distilleries, Cragganmore distillery and Ballindalloc ...
.


Geography

This thinly populated parish stretches from the confluence of the Avon (pronounced A'an) with the
River Spey The River Spey () is a river in the northeast of Scotland. At it is the ninth longest river in the United Kingdom and the third longest and fastest-flowing river in Scotland. It is an important location for the traditions of salmon fishing an ...
south to the parish of Kirkmichael. The total area of the parish is now the boundaries having been modified following the publication of the
Local Government (Scotland) Act 1889 The Local Government (Scotland) Act 1889 ( 52 & 53 Vict. c. 50) is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which was passed on 26 August 1889. The main effect of the act was to establish elected county councils in Scotland. In this it fol ...
. The current boundaries encompass Ballindalloch and
Marypark Marypark is a hamlet in the civil parish of Inveravon in Moray, Scotland. It is south-west of Charlestown of Aberlour on the A95 road in Strathspey. The Glenfarclas distillery is located to the east of the hamlet. In August 2024 it was anno ...
in Speyside, a small area of land on the north bank of the Spey adjacent to those settlements, a part of lower
Stratha'an Stratha'an or Strathavon is the valley of the River Avon, Strathspey, River Avon, (pronounced "River A'an"), in the Strathspey, Scotland, Strathspey area of Moray, Scotland. The upper reaches of the valley, which is long all told, are at Loch ...
and the whole of
Glenlivet Glenlivet () is a glen in the Highlands of Scotland through which the River Livet flows. The river rises high in the Ladder Hills and flows past several distileries and hamlets and then onto the Bridgend before joining the River Avon, one of ...
.


Demography

In 1798 the parish of Inveravon was populated by 1,394 members of the
Church of Scotland The Church of Scotland (CoS; ; ) is a Presbyterian denomination of Christianity that holds the status of the national church in Scotland. It is one of the country's largest, having 245,000 members in 2024 and 259,200 members in 2023. While mem ...
and 850
Roman Catholics The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
(described as "the only dissenters" there) making the total population 2,244. In 2011 the figure was 913 and by 2022 it had declined further to 738.


History

Stratha'an was a
provincial lordship Provincial lordships is a modern term used by historians to describe large feudal landholdings created in Scotland during the 12th and 13th centuries. These landholdings were granted by kings to their supporters to secure royal control of territori ...
first recorded between 1194 and 1198 that was coextensive with the parishes of Kirkmichael and Inveravon. The parish was part of the historic county of
Banffshire Banffshire (; ; ) is a historic county in Scotland. The county town is Banff, although the largest settlement is Buckie to the west. The historic county ceased to be used for local government purposes in 1975. Since 1996 the area has been spli ...
until it was abolished in 1974. Drumin Castle at the foot of Glenlivet may have been erected by the
Wolf of Badenoch Alexander Stewart, Earl of Buchan, called the Wolf of Badenoch (1343 – July 1394), was a Scottish royal prince, the third son of King Robert II of Scotland by his first wife Elizabeth Mure. He was Justiciar of Scotia and held large territories ...
. Two walls remain to a height of four storeys but although it was an impressive fortification it's habitable phase was fairly short-lived. After it was sold to the 3rd Earl of Huntly it became derelict in the sixteenth century. The remains of a chapel, well and burial ground exist on the west bank of the A'n just south of the junction with Glenlivet. The chapel measures about 11.5m by 4m. Although there are no surviving traces of any graves the presence of several headstones was recorded in the late 18th century. In the
early modern period The early modern period is a Periodization, historical period that is defined either as part of or as immediately preceding the modern period, with divisions based primarily on the history of Europe and the broader concept of modernity. There i ...
Ballindalloch Castle became the family home of the Macpherson-Grant family and has remained in their hands for nearly five centuries. In the late eighteenth century the "exterior of the building and the artificial embellishment of the natural beauties, bespeak it the residence of opulence united with the most correct taste". The author of the Inveravon section of the '' Old Statistical Account'' added that "by the history of Scotland in all ages, it is certain that there has been no period in which the people, high or low, of every rank, led their lives in more secure or more comfortable circumstances."
Scalan The Scalan was a Scottish Catholic seminary and one of the few places where underground education by the Catholic Church in Scotland was kept alive during the anti-Catholic persecutions of the 16th-19th century. History The island in Loch Mo ...
in Glenlivet was a Scottish Catholic seminary and one of the few places in Scotland where young men were trained to be Catholic priests during the anti-Catholic persecutions of the 18th century. The cottage is now a museum. At the head of Strath Avon near Ballindalloch is the Old Bridge of Avon which was opened in 1800 and is now only used for pedestrian traffic. A plaque marks the highest point reached by the river during the Muckle Spate of 1829, which raised the water level by 7m. The main A95 road now crosses the river via a concrete bridge constructed in the late 20th century situated just 50 m to the southwest. Ballindalloch railway station opened in 1863 and was part of the
Strathspey Railway (GNoSR) The Strathspey Railway was a railway company in Scotland that ran from Dufftown (in Moray) to Boat of Garten (in Badenoch and Strathspey). It was proposed locally but supported by the larger Great North of Scotland Railway (GNoSR), which wante ...
until its closure in 1965. The station building was used as a hostel for walkers and cyclists navigating the
Speyside Way The Speyside Way ( Doric: '; ) is a long-distance path in the Scottish Highlands. The route begins in Buckie and ends at Newtonmore, away. There is an optional spur leading off the main route to Tomintoul, adding and of ascent. The route p ...
that runs along the line of the dismantled railway but is now a private house.


Economy

Tourism, agriculture, forestry and
whisky Whisky or whiskey is a type of liquor made from Fermentation in food processing, fermented grain mashing, mash. Various grains (which may be Malting, malted) are used for different varieties, including barley, Maize, corn, rye, and wheat. Whisky ...
distilling dominate the local economy."12 Top Things to Do in Moray Speyside"
Visit Scotland. Retrieved 6 August 2024.
Glenlivet hosts the Tamnavulin distillery. Further downstream on the west bank of the river is
The Glenlivet distillery The Glenlivet distillery is a Speyside single malt Scotch whisky distillery near Ballindalloch in Moray, Scotland, that produces single malt Scotch whisky. It is the oldest legal distillery in the Highlands of Scotland. It was founded in 1824 ...
owned by the
Chivas Brothers Chivas Brothers is a Scottish company that distills Scotch whisky. It is owned by Pernod Ricard since 2001. The company was founded in 1786, with its home being in the Strathisla distillery at Keith, Moray in Speyside, Scotland, and is the o ...
that sells more than a million cases per annum. Other distilleries in the parish include
Glenfarclas Glenfarclas distillery is a Speyside whisky distillery in Ballindalloch, Scotland. The distillery is owned and run by the Grant family. History There is evidence that the distillery first started operations sometime before 1791. The distillery ...
,
Cragganmore Cragganmore distillery is a Scotch whisky distillery situated in the village of Ballindalloch in Banffshire, Scotland. History The distillery was founded in 1869 by John Smith on land leased from Sir George Macpherson-Grant. The site was ch ...
, Tormore, and
Ballindalloch Ballindalloch () is a small village on the River Spey in Scotland. It is known for its Scotch whisky, whisky distilleries and for Ballindalloch Castle. In Ballindalloch itself, there are two distilleries, Cragganmore distillery and Ballindalloc ...
, the last of which operates from the castle's estate farm.


See also

* List of listed buildings in Inveravon, Moray *
List of civil parishes in Scotland This is a list of the 871 civil parishes in Scotland. Context From 1845 to 1930, parishes formed part of the local government system of Scotland: having parochial boards from 1845 to 1894, and parish councils from 1894 until 1930. The par ...


Citations


References

* * * * * {{Coord, 57, 18, 32, N, 3, 25, 4, W, region:GB_type:landmark, display=title Parishes in Moray Strath Avon