Oathlaw Parish Church
Burial Ground (Medieval), Church (19th Century), Churchyard (Medieval)
Site Name Oathlaw Parish Church
Classification Burial Ground (Medieval), Church (19th Century), Churchyard (Medieval)
Alternative Name(s) Aikenhalt; Aikenhatt; Aitkenhauld; Aikenhauld
Canmore ID 33710
Site Number NO45NE 9
NGR NO 47600 56172
Datum OSGB36 - NGR
Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/site/33710
- Council Angus
- Parish Oathlaw
- Former Region Tayside
- Former District Angus
- Former County Angus
NO45NE 9.00 47600 56172
NO45NE 9.01 47571 56164 Churchyard walls
(NO 4759 5617) The parish church, built in 1815, has a 1703 mort-bell (Hay 1957) and inset stones dated 1673 and 1758 (HBD No. 1).
A 15th century tombstone (HBD No. 1) is presumably the 'incised medieval stone' brought here from the old church of Aikenhalt (NO55NW 7) (information from F A Ferguson January 1954). Cromar (New Statistical Account [NSA] 1845) suggests that Aikenhalt was the site of the original parish church with possibly only a chaplainry at Oathlaw until the old church fell into decay and the parish church was transferred to the more central site.
New Statistical Account (NSA) 1845; G Hay 1957.
(The fact that some of the stones from Aikenhalt are early might support this suggestion but there is no documentary proof.)
EXTERNAL REFERENCE:
Scottish Record Office.
Oathlaw. Building of a stair at the Church.
Letter to John Kinloch of Kilry at Logie from the minister and elders of the
Kirk Session requesting permission to take staones from his quarry at Newmills
for building the stair.
1761 GD1/931/70
Note (1984)
Oathlaw, Parish Church and Burial-ground NO 475 561 NO45NE 9
The present parish church of Oathlaw was erected in 1815. The previous church on the site may have been built in the early 17th century to replace the former parish church (NO55NW 7), although it is possible that there was already a chapel here at that date.
RCAHMS 1984.
(NSA, xi, Forfar, 291, 306-7; Jervise 1875-9, i, 335-6; Jervise 1882, 165-7; Warden 1880-85, v, 45-6; Hay 1957, 246; Cowan 1967, 66).
