Bridgend Of Livet, Chapel And Graveyard

No visible traces survive of the Chapel of Dounan, a pre-Reformation chapel that stood within its burial ground on the banks of the River Livet.

Sources suggest that the walls of the chapel were still upstanding in the late eighteenth century, but a century later, only the foundations could be identified. When an Ordnance Survey team visited the site in 1966, nothing could be seen of the chapel. Its burial ground remained in use, though, and it had been extended by 1966.

Local tradition held that a cross-incised stone, which lay near the chapel, marked the resting-place of some of those killed in the Battle of Glenlivet, which was fought nearby in 1594. This stone was described in the late nineteenth century, but more recent accounts fail to mention it, which suggests that its whereabouts are unknown.

Text prepared by RCAHMS as part of the Accessing Scotland's Past project

NJ12NE 1 1948 2995.

(NJ 1948 2995) Chapel (NR) (Site of) Graveyard (NR)

OS 25" map, Banffshire, (1905)

Remains of the chapel of Dounan and burial ground on the east side of the Livet visible in 1794. The building had been destroyed by 1869.

Statistical Account (OSA) 1794; Name Book 1869.

No trace of a chapel remains. The graveyard has been enlarged and is still in use.

Visited by OS (R L) 15 August 1966.

INVENTORY OF GRAVEYARD AND CEMETERY SITES IN SCOTLAND REFERENCE:

Address: Downan/Dounan Cemetery, Bridgend of Glenlivet, Glenlivet, Moray

Postcode: AB37 9BT

Status: In current use for burials (limited)

Size: 0.28 hectares, 0.68 acres

Polygon: Yes

TOIDs: 1000000172509053

Number of gravestones: Not known

Earliest gravestone: Not known

Most recent gravestone: Not known

Description: Graveyard associated with a chapel (demolished), extended to form public cemetery

Data Sources: OS MasterMap checked 22 June 2005; Bereavement Services Portal checked 22 June 2005