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Kincardine O'Neil

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A New History of Aberdeenshire, Alexander Smith (Ed), 1875

Etymology
Kincardine is derived from the Gaelic Ceann-na-cearn, which signifies either "the head of the hill," or the head of the quarter, region, or district. O'Neil is said to have been derived from the barony of Oneil, viz., the lands of Coule, Kincragy and le Corss, which in 1234 belonged to Colin Durward, Lord of Oneil, and that Kincarden, as the name is uniformly written in old deeds, was appointed to be "the head place of the district of Onele, in all time coming."

Boundaries
The parish is bounded on the north by Tough and Cluny; on the east by Midmar and Banchory-Ternan; on the south by thc river Dee and the parish of Birse, and part of Aboyne; and on the west by Aboyne and Lumphanan.

Extent
The greatest length of the parish from north to south, and in a direct line from the haugh of Sluie on the Dee, to the boundary with Tough on the hills of Corrennie, is nearly eight miles; and the greatest breadth, also a direct line, from Corfedly on the east, to the Slock of Dess on the west, is seven miles; and the whole area is computcd to be 18,260 acres, 417 decs.

Topography
The parish extends down the north or left bank of the Dee, from Sluie to Mil1 of Dess; and along this portion of the river the valley is narrow, except at the haughs of Sluie, below the bridge of Potarch, and at the haughs and village of Kincardine. The hills of Dalhakie, Craiglash, Tillydrine, Ordfundlie, and Wester Kincardine, run parallel to the Dee, and in many places rise abruptly almost from the edge of the river. The central valley of the parish is formed by the burn of Beltic, from the eastern boundary of the parish at Glassel, in Banchory-Ternan, to the source of the stream, in the braes of Tolmaads, on the wstern slopes of Corrennie. Along the lower parts of its course, there are the broad haughs of Easter Beltie, Craigmyle, and Torphins, while in its upper course the valley is narrowed by the lower irregular slopes of the Learney hills on the east, Stranduff on the west, and by the higher lying slopes of the Broomhill and of Tolmaads, on the Cluny boundary. The lowest point in the parish, at the haughs of Sluie, is 240 feet above sea level; the rocks of Inchbare, at the bridge of Potarch, is 270 feet; the church of Kincardine O'Neil is 324 feet; and the bridge on the water of Dess, at Mill of Dess, is 363 feet. The lowermost point on the burn of Beltie, at Glassel, is 341 feet above sea level; the junction of the Raemoir road with the Learney road, at Mid Beltie, is 490 feet; and the bridge of Dubbs, on the Tarland road, near Tornaveen, is 613 feet. The ridge of hills running west from Fare, and north-west of the house of Learney, may be considered a continuation of that hill. The ridge of the hill above Tillenturk is 1,091 feet above sea level; the house of Learney is 830 feet; and highest point of the ridge, west of the house, is 1,150 feet. The top of Ben-na-cailliche, i.e., "the old woman's mountain," forms the western termination of the Corrennie Hills, and is 1,621 feet above sea level, and the highest mountain in the parish.

[A New History of Aberdeenshire, Alexander Smith (Ed), 1875]