Kilchrenan, a post-office hamlet and a parish in Lorn district, Argyllshire. The hamlet, lying 218 feet above sea-level at the NE boundary, is 1 3/8 mile NNW of North Port-Sonachan pier and ferry on Loch Awe, 14 ½ WSW of Dalmally, 14 ½ NNW of Inveraray, and 8 SSE of Taynuilt station; and has fairs on the Friday in May and the Thursday in October before Oban.
The present parish, comprising the ancient parishes of Kilchrenan to the N and Dalavich to the S, and extending along both sides of the middle reaches of Loch Awe, is bounded NE by Glenorchy-Inishail, SE by Inveraray, SW by Kilmichael-Glassary and Kilmartin, and NW by Kilninver n Kilmelfort and Ardchattan-Muckairn. Its utmost length, from NE to SW, is 13 ¼ miles; its width, from NW to SE, varies between 2 1/8 and 8 ½ miles; and its area is 23, 439 ½ acres, of which 2208 4/5 are water. From a point 4 ¼ miles below its head, Loch Awe (22 ¾ x 3 furl. to 3 ¼ miles; 118 feet) stretches 12 ½ miles north-north-eastward, its width here ranging between 3 and 9 1/3 furlongs. Loch Avich (3 ¼ miles x 5 ½ furl.; 311 feet) sends off a stream 1 ½ mile east-by-southward to Loch Awe; Loch Nant (7 ½ x 2 ¾ furl.; 605 feet) lies on the Muckairn boundary; and forty-five smaller lochs and tarns are dotted over the interior and along the confines of the parish. The surface, hilly everywhere but hardly mountainous, culminatcs at 1777 feet on the south-eastern, and 1407 on the south-western, boundary. Lesser heights are Cruach Achadh na Craoibhe (907 feet), Bealach Mor (846), Maol Mor (1202), and Meall Odhar (1255) to the NW, Tom Barra (1052) and Creag Ghranda (1406) to the SE, of Loch awe. Slate is the principal rock. Some excellent arable land and natural pasturage, with not a little valuable wood, arc on the shores of the lake; and the heather that once clothed all the hills has, since the introduction of sheep-farming, often given place to grass. Mansions, noticed separately, are Eredine and Sonachan; and 2 proprietors hold each an annual value of more, 8 of less, than £500. Kilchrenan and Dalavich is in the presbytery of Lorn and synod of Argyll; the living is worth £217. The parish church, at Kilchrenan hamlet, and Dalavich chapel of ease, near the W shore of Loch Awe, 9 miles S3, were both built about 1771. Three new public schools - Ardchonnel, Dalavich, and Kilchrenan - with respective accommodation for 40, 40, and 60 children, had (1881) an average attendance of 32, 8, and 33, and grants of £35, 10s., £16, 19s. 6d., and £41, 16s. 6d. Valuation (1860) 4816, (1883) £6045, 11s. 4d. Pop. (1801) 1052, (1831) 1096, (1861) 615, (1871) 484, (1881) 504, of whom 444 were Gaelic-speaking.—Ord. Sur., shs. 45, 47, 1876.
Note: This text has been made available using a process of scanning and
optical character recognition. Despite manual checking, some typographical
errors may remain. Please remember this description dates from
the 1880s; names may have changed, administrative divisions will certainly be
different and there are known to be occasional errors of fact in the original
text, which we have not corrected because we wish to maintain its integrity.
This information is provided subject to our standard disclaimer
