The Havens of Fetteresso Parish
Bob Mathewson (A&NESFHS)

(1) Fishing Villages of Muchalls


The Seatown of Muchalls was situated near what is still called Muchalls Shore, a small haven with a pebble beach about four miles North of Cowie just South of the Mill of Muchalls, or East Muchalls Farm as it is now called.
  
The first known record of this village is in 1606 when Alexander Burnet of Leys bought the lands of Muchalls including the fishertoun, fisherlands and fisher boats from Francis Hay, Earl of Errol and Baron of  Cowie, the lands of Muchalls until then being part of the Barony of Cowie. In the OPR for Fetteresso the trades of the parishioners were not recorded until the eighteenth century but people with the same names as fishermen living in the Seatown of Muchalls were recorded as far back as 1620 living in Muchalls. 
 
 On Friday 14th June 1639, Viscount Aboyne with an army of 2,500 men, Higlanders and Lowlanders crossed the Dee at Aberdeen in order to impose an oath of allegiance to King Charles on the men of the Mearns, this army camped all night at Muchalls, which they plundered as was their practice in those days, before proceeding on their way to Stonehaven. Before arriving at Stonehaven they were opposed by the Covenanting forces of the Earl Marischal and the Marquis of Montrose, at Cowie and defeated.  
   
On the 31st August 1663 the Crown confirmed Robert Burnet of Culney in possession of the "manor place of Muchels with the Sea-town of Muchaells with fishings, fishing boats and roods of land pertaining to it", as granted to him by the deceased Alexander Burnet of Leys. 
   
According to the Rev. Mr. John Hutcheon writing in the Statistical Account in 1790 the Seatown of Muchalls was abandoned soon after the loss of two fishing boats thirty years previous, round about 1760 in his reckoning. However the Seatown of Muchalls was inhabited as late as 1766 its demise being a more gradual affair brought about by a series of  events and not quite so suddenly as the brief account of the Rev. Hutcheon implies. I will illustrate some of the events that led up to the demise of this village.
  
The fishermen of Muchalls, as well as those in Cowie to the South and Sketraw to the North were staunch Episcopalians. Those of Muchalls and Sketraw attended a chapel situated in the grounds of Muchall's Castle. In the year 1746 after the Jacobite defeat at Culloden all Episcopalian Churches were to be burned to the ground unless this would cause danger to nearby property. The Chapel at Muchals suffered the fate of being burned to the ground along with the Registers and Records of the Church, some of which were fortunately rescued from the blaze. And no doubt Cumberland's men helped themselves to anything that took their fancy especially from those they suspected of supporting the Stewart cause. Two years later, in the winter of 1748 - 1749 their Priest, the Rev. John Troupe along with the priests of Stonehaven and Drumlithie were imprisoned in the Tollbooth at Stonehaven for a period of six months. 

That same year the villagers suffered further tragedy for the Kirk Session minutes of Fetteresso records that a fishing boat was lost at sea on 5th February 1749, when the crew from the Seaton of Muchalls all perished and according to tradition this boat was cast up on the Skatie shore about two miles south of Muchalls and allowed to eventually fall apart, since superstition dictated that no one would dare reclaim it. 
   
Despite these religious persecutions and despite having lost six of their breadwinners in 1749 they continued to live for another 16 years in the Seaton of Muchalls. Nearly ten years later another tragedy occurred which was reported in the Aberdeen Journal of 19th December 1758 "That same day (i.e. Wednesday 13th December 1758) a fishing boat belonging to Muchals, was overset in taking said harbour, and the crew consisting of six men, unfortunately perished." This brief report was all that such a tragedy was deemed to merit, since the lives of fishermen in those days were not nearly so important as news of wars in foreign parts. Indeed it was the opinion of some at that time that the families of fishermen lost at sea should not receive Parish charity, as they should know the risks involved and take steps to look after their own families and not burden the charitable people of the parish. I believe that an M.I. in Cowie Churchyard relates to one of the seamen killed that day "In memory of John Napier late seaman in Muchals who died 12 Dec. 1758 aged 36." 

Further evidence of this event can be found in the Fetteresso O.P.R.s, for on January 11th 1759 the following entry occurs, "a posthumous daughter of Andrew Leiper in Seatown of Muchals was baptised, named Isabel," and on August 15th 1759 " A posthumous son of John Leiper late in Seatown of Muchals was baptized named Alexander". One of the orphans from Muchalls,  Alexander or Sandy Taylor who was born in 1753 appears in the Fetteresso OPR living in Skateraw on 9th October 1785. He lived there for some time and on the 6th June 1806 moved to Cowie along with his sons David, John and James, David then moved to Catterline and later to Gourdon. Others from Muchalls abandoned the fishing and took up other occupations, such as crofting or farming. A John Leiper, born in 1856 became a smith at nearby Bridge of Muchalls, William Kilgour born in 1751 became a weaver at Glithnow and died aged 86 in 1837, Alexander Cadenhead became tenant of Auchlee on the Kingassie estate and John Taylor became grieve of the Home Farm on Mr. Silver's estate and then became tenant of Mountgatehead.
   
These boats were lost in 1749 and 1758 and there does not appear to have been any other fishing tragedy occurring after that time. Indeed the Seatown of Muchalls was inhabited for at least seven years after the last fishing boat tragedy, and I believe that at least one new family came to live and work in Muchalls after 1758. The family name of Beg living in the Seatown of Muchalls appears in the OPRs for the first time in 1761 and again in 1763 living alongside families named Caddenhead, Taylor, Cormack, Watt, Leiper, Napier, Kilgour and Bremner. However there were other events which caused equal hardship to the fishermen of Muchalls as indeed to all fisherfolk of that period and added to the other events already quoted was a further factor to cause the folk of Muchalls to abandon their village. This was the not widely publicized threat of the Royal Navy press gangs, which operated on shore, and the Royal Navy tenders who intercepted fishing boats at sea. Although bad enough before this, activity increased around 1756 at the onset of the Seven Years War. Fishing boats were frequently overtaken at sea and members of the crew pressed into naval service. It is recorded in the statistical account for Nigg parish that between 1778 and 1790, 24 men had been impressed into the Navy and in the Parish of Benholm three fishing boats were intercepted in 1756 and of course the strongest men were taken. Soon after this the government demanded that every fifth fisherman had to serve on board a naval ship. Some got round this by bribing others to take their place, but this practice greatly reduced the fisherman's income, probably inducing them to skimp on repair and maintenance of their boats. By the end of the Seven Years War in 1763 the population of the fishing ports and havens were much depleted. Indeed it was not until the 1830's that a limit of five years was made on the time served as an impressed man, and even at this present day it is still legal to be impressed in this Country. 
  
Another possible factor was that the estate of Muchalls was sold in 1760 by Mr. Fullerton of Gallery to Aberdeen Town Council who may not have been so understanding or so benevolent as Mr. Fullerton. The Council later sold the estate to Mr. Silver of Netherley in 1801. The Seatown of Muchalls was eventually abandoned about the mid 1760's.
   
It wasn't until about 1818 that another fishing village was established in the Estate of Muchalls called Stranathro consisting of three rows of cottages "the Front Raw", "The Middle Raw" and "The Back Raw" populated by families with the names Christy, Main and Leiper. Those with the name Christy came from Skaterow and the Mains and Leipers came from Portlethen. In the early 1830's another row of houses was added for the use of the Coastguard Service. The location of this fishing village did not make the lives of the fishermen any easier for the site of the village was quite a distance from the top of steep cliffs with the shores at their foot extremely rocky. Later in 1850 the village was further separated from the seashore by the new Railway line. 
   
In 1841 census out of the seventeen families living in Stranathro nine were Episcopalians, all with the name Christie being descended from William Christie and his wife Jane Reith and Alexander Christie and his wife Isabella Christie who came from Skateraw with their families, attending St. Ternan's Church at Muchalls and being buried in Cowie Church Yard. The majority of villagers who were not Episcopalians came from the parish of Banchory Devenick  (The villages of Downies, Portlethen and Findon) their names being Leiper and Main. 
   
A new Episcopalian Chapel was built at Muchalls by the side of the Cowie Mounth road in 1831. The majority of the fishermen of Skateraw and Stranathro contributed about £1 each. Stranathro contributing £8 11/-. In 1841 there were 14 whitefishermen in Stranathro and by 1851 there were 26 fishermen. In January 1856 a boat from Stranathro overturned at sea and Joseph Main and Moses Leiper both perished. About 1860 Andrew and Mary Christie moved to Stonehaven (Albert Lane). The fishing population of Stranathro peaked about 1871 with 33 fishermen. However in 1879 the majority of fishermen moved to Stonehaven leaving only six whitefishers in Stranathro according to the 1881 census. The people who moved were John Christie and his sister Jane, the families of Alexander Christie, James Christie, Joseph Christie, Andrew Law, James Main, Alexander Christie yr, William Christie, William Christie elder, Andrew Main, Alexander Leiper, William Christie, Alexander Christie and George Christie. The last named William Christie son of Alexander was lost at sea in 1885. Joseph the son of James Christie, moved from Stonehaven to Torry by 1891, to become a fishcurer. By 1891 there were no fishermen recorded living in Stranathro.