Montgreenan is an estate in North Ayrshire, Parish of Kilwinning, Scotland. The Lugton Water runs through the policies and farmland of Montgreenan. Nearby are the hamlets of Torranyard and Auchentiber.
The Lands of Montgreenan
The name 'Grenane' is recorded in 1480,Johnston, James B. (1903), Place-Names of Scotland. Pub. David Douglas, Edinburgh. p. 10. however the first detailed reference to Montgreenan is contained in the description of the ancient county of Cuninghame by Timothy PontPont, Timothy (1604). Cuninghamia. Pub. Blaeu in 1654. p. 50 in the period 1604–1608. In it he describes 'Mongrynen Castle' as "…ane old strong Dunijon veil and pleasantly planted ye inheritance of Cuninghame Laird thereof sone to the abott of Kilwinin quho wes brother to James Earle of Glencairne". The 10 merkLocal History Dictionary land of Montgreenan was held in the 15th century by the Ross family, who had many lands in Ayrshire, such as those of Dunlop and its castle. The Rosses held their lands as vassals of the De Morvilles. EtymologyMontgreenan means 'Mound of the Sun' / 'Sunny Mound'.Smith, John (1895). Prehistoric Man in Ayrshire. Pub. London : Elliot Stock. p. 57 or 'Hill of the Hall or Palace.'Johnston, James B. (1903), Place-Names of Scotland. Pub. Edinburgh : David Douglas. p. 10. Following the murder of James III of Scotland, Sir John Ross de Montgreenan lost all his lands, only to rapidly return to royal favour under the rule of James IV and regain the Manor or Barony of Montgreenan. The manor or barony is said to have passed to the Monastery of Kilwinning and then to Alexander Cunninghame and his wife Jean Blair in 1582 – 83 following the reformation, of which, Alexander had been a prominent supporter.Dobie, James D. (ed Dobie, J.S.) (1876). Cunninghame, Topographized by Timothy Pont 1604–1608, with continuations and illustrative notices. Glasgow : John Tweed. pp. 333–338. Alexander Cunninghame, the Commendator of Kilwinning Abbey, was shot and killed at his gate at Montgreenan by Sir Robert Montgomerie of Skelmorlie (better known for building the Skelmorlie Aisle as his burial place) on 1 August 1586, as a direct result of the assassination of Hugh Montgomerie, 4th Earl of Eglinton at Stewarton in April of that year.Kilwinning Past & Present, Section 3.19 Lady Jean Cunninghame died in 1621, leaving the lands to her son William, and by 1632 Alexander Cunninghame, a grandson of Lady Jean was the owner, succeeded by his son Thomas in 1656. Thomas's son, of the same name, fought at the Battle of Bothwell Bridge and was sentenced to death for his actions. His life was spared, however his lands were forfeited and given to Lieutenant-General Douglas who sold it on to High Stevenson, clerk to the Privy Council. In 1691 the Hearth Tax records show the mansion house with seven and five other dwellings associated with the 'Lands of Montgreenan'.Urquhart, Robert H. et al. (1998). The Hearth Tax for Ayrshire 1691. Ayrshire Records Series V.1. Ayr : Ayr Fed Hist Soc . p. 103
The estate remained with the Stevensons until 1778, when they sold it to John Bowman of Ashinyards, who in turn sold it to Dr. Robert Glasgow. The doctor married a daughter, Rachel, of John Dunlop of that Ilk, but they had no offspring; he died in 1827. The funeral was famous for the generosity shown to 616 poor people of the parish.
Mrs. Rachel Glasgow was an artist and an author with great literary taste and she died at Pau, in the Pyrenees, on 19 July 1828. She is mentioned by Robert Burns in relation to a painting or sketch she made of Coila, the poet's muse. Mrs Glasgow was commemorated by the erection of a well in Kilwinning's Howgate; she had given £200 to the poor of the town.The Inquirer (1969). Hughes, C. Journal of the Abbey Soc of Kilwinning. V.1, No.5. Robert Robertson of Prenderguest, a son-in-law, inherited the estate, changing his surname to 'Glasgow'. Robert Robertson Glasgow, his son, inherited in 1845 and in 1860 his son, Robert Bruce Robertson Glasgow inherited Montgreenan in his turn. In 1873 R. B. Robertson-Glasgow was Lieutenant-Colonel commanding the 1st Volunteer Battalion, Royal Scots Fusiliers and in 1896, R. P. Robertson-Glasgow was likewise Lieutenant-Colonel commanding the 2nd Volunteer Battalion, Royal Scots Fusiliers.Shaw, James Edward (1953). Ayrshire 1745–1950. A Social and Industrial History. Edinburgh : Oliver & Boyd. p. 159
Sir James Bell, shipowner and former Lord Provost of Glasgow bought the estate in 1895. He was Chairman of the G&SWR from 1915 to 1920.Hawksworth, Chris, Montgreenan Station. Sou' West Journal. 2008–2009. No. 40, p. 15. He died at Montgreenan in 1929.
The Castle or Bishop's Palace
The ruins of the old Montgreenan Castle or Bishop's Palace lie in a loop of the Lugton Water at its confluence with the Cowlinn Burn. The name Dunach Brae for the strip of woodlands nearby, suggests that a hill fort or 'Dun'Warrack, Alexander (1982)."Chambers Scots Dictionary". Chambers. . may have been in the vicinity at a much earlier date. Alexander Cunninghame, the Commendator of Kilwinning Abbey, was shot at his gate at Montgreenan by Sir Robert Montgomerie of Skelmorlie (better known for building the Skelmorlie Aisle as his burial place) on 1 August 1586, as a direct result of the assassination of the Fourth Earl of Eglinton at Stewarton in April of that year.
John SmithSmith, John (1895). Prehistoric Man in Ayrshire. London : Elliot Stock. in 1895 recorded that in the Montgreenan Woods are the remains of a Bishop's Palace, sometimes called a castle, of which little appears to be known. Not far away is part of an ancient gateway, and just South of the house there are the remains of a mound which once contained an ice-house. All that remains at this site is a small piece of wall at the side of the stream, and a slight hollow, partly surrounded by a bank formed by the rubbish of the old walls. Mr R. Glasgow, the proprietor, stated in the 1856 Name Book of the Ordnance Survey that the dwelling probably became disused in 1680, when the last Cunninghame of Montgreenan was forfeited. Much of its remains were removed about 1765 by the previous proprietor, Mr Stevenson, to build a house at Kilwinning.
A visit in 1956 recorded that in the thick vegetation were traces of buildings, enclosed by a wall on the West and South sides. The details were unclear, but the castle plan seemed to be that of a courtyard with internal buildings on all sides except perhaps the East, where there is a wall running along the edge of the Lugton Water. Such a building design with a central courtyard was called a 'Place' or 'Palace' due to its construction, not its size.McKean, Charles (2001). The Scottish Chateau. Sutton Publishing. . p. 53. All the walls were merely heaps of rubble, and the drystone "courtyard" wall seemed to be of later construction than the internal remains, acting as a revetment to the mass of rubble inside. This wall was 1.4m high. No clear evidence was encountered for this being a "Bishop's Palace". About 65.0m to the South was a mound, 1.5m high, which had been cut through by a track, and may be the ice-house referred to by Smith, although no stone-work exists. No trace of a gateway was found, although the possible entrance shown on OS plan may be the gateway referred to.
Views of Montgreenan Castle or Bishop's Palace in 2007
The Mansion House and estate
The present Georgian mansion with architectural features by Alexander 'Greek' ThompsonAlexander (Grek) Thompson was built by Sir Robert Glasgow in 1817. Sir Robert, in common with other entrepreneurs from the Glasgow area, made his fortune through a shipping company based in St Vincent in the West Indies, undoubtedly trading between Britain, Africa and the sugar plantations of the West Indies. Montgreenan was the home of the Viscounts Weir until 1982, when it was sold and became a hotel.– Montgreenan Hotel The building is Category A listed by Historic Scotland.
Alexander Craufurd of Fergushill inherited Fergushill from his father and it next passed by inheritance to the Kincaid family who alienated the lands to Neil Macvicar and his wife Elizabeth Montgomerie in 1728. The Macvicars retained the lands until 1802 when they were acquired by Robert Glasgow of Montgreenan.Paterson, James (1899) History of the County of Ayr with a Genealogical account of the families of Ayrshire. Vol. 2. Pub. Thomas George Stevenson, Edinburgh. p. 504. Archibald Stevenson acquired Montgreenan in 1755 and sold it to Mr. Bowman in 1778, a Provost of Glasgow and builder of Ashgrove House at Ashinyards near Kilwinning.McClure, David (2002). Ayrshire in the Age of Improvement. Ayrshire Monographs 27. Ayr Arch & Nat Hist Soc. . Page 166
The estate had a curling pond, a fine stable block, offices, a mains farm and a walled garden. The buildings still survive as private dwellings (2008). Caven Mill is likely to have been the barony mill to which the tenants were thirled; this building is now a ruin.
Corporal John Smith
An unusual memorial is located next to the ruins of the Bishop's Palace or Castle of Montgreenan. The memorial is formed from glazed fireclay much like that used for wall coping stones and pipes and has the appearance of a corbel laid horizontally. The oblong structure has crossed canons at one end and bunches of olive or laurel leaves at the other end. The scroll on the upper surface reads "3219 – John Smith – Corporal – Co. B. 10th Ohio Vol – Died 25th Novr – 1863 – Chattanooga – Tenn". It appears therefore that John died whilst fighting in the Chattanooga campaign of November 1863 and being in the Ohio Volunteers he was on the Union side and not a Confederate soldier. It can be surmised that John Smith had a close link with the Montgreenan estate.
The Montgreenan milestones
Beside the driveways running to the Montgreenan mansion house from the Lodges are a number of red sandstone pillars, these are milestones. They look like gatepost-like and were 'rescued' after they became redundant or 'in the way' as a result of road widening works, etc. They have been brought from various places in Ayrshire. Sir James Bell of Montgreenan had a hobby of collecting milestones and other stones.Houston, John (1922), Montgreenan and Lylestone Quarry, 23 September 1922. Annals of the Kilmarnock Glenfield Ramblers Society. 1919–1930. p. 85. Many Ayrshire milestones were buried during the Second World War as an invasion precaution. Two are near the West Lodge and three of these milestones are near the East Lodge at Montgreenan Mains.
The Montgreenan to Auchentiber carriageway
The 1858 OS map shows a carriage or driveway running from close to the surviving Auchentiber schoolhouse on the Lochlibo road, passed the old Murchland farm site (Murghland in 1747; Murchen is the Scots for a hare) through the Montgreenan plantations, crossing the road near Cavan Mill and finally running on down to Montgreenan house. A track and later a road ran from Auchenharvie Castle across the Lochlibo toll road and up to Megswells (Meggs Walls in 1747), crossing the Lugton Water by stepping stones and later by a ford. This route ran under the aforementioned Montgreenan carriageway via a bridge which has an embankment leading up to it. The area near the old Mosside farm has been the site of several limestone quarries and limekilns in 1858 (OS), but by 1897 these had closed.
Mosside bridge is of a very high quality of workmanship and ornamentation. It has false windows, diamond / lozenge-shaped embellishments, a thistle on the keystones and raised random patterns and other designs which represent leaves.
The Ness Papers state that the false windows were for the insertion of a coat of arms and that the old coach road ran across this bridge on its way to Cavan Mill and beyond.The James Ness papers. North Ayrshire Local and family history centre, Irvine. p. 53.
Views of the Mosside bridge and carriageway
Montgreenan railway station