| Notes |
- James Stewart was the last of all the Stewarts to reside in Glenfinglas. His extensive obituary is shown further below. It provides not only a wonderful portrait of James' life, but also a fascinating look at life in Glen Finglas.
James was ordained as an elder in the Trossachs Parish Kirk on Sunday 12 Jan 1865, a position he would have held for the remainder of his life.
James left the following will: Testament of James Stewart, formerly farmer, Glenfinglass now residing at Duart House, Callander, d. 18 Jun 1895.
Reverend William Nelson, Minister of the Parish of Trossacks, Daniel McEwen, merchant in Callander, and Peter McIntyre, wine and spirit merchant, Bridgeton, Glasgow were named as trustees and executors.
1. Pay just debts
2. Catherine Grant McIntyre, housekeeper residing at Duart House, in consideration of her faithful service to me for the last 32 years, all property at the west end of the town of Callander acquired by me from David Bryson L ? uisden, teacher, Callander, occupied by myself and known as Duart House and its furnishings.
3. To Mary McIntyre residing in Ancaster Square, Callander, sister of said Catherine McIntyre, L 1,000.
4. To Mary Stewart, my cousin, wife of Duncan Stewart, farmer, Monachyle, Parish of Balquhidder, L 300.
5. To Mrs. Agnes Stewart residing at Millon (?), Parish of Callander, my cousin, widow of the late John Stewart, farmer, L 200.
6. To John Stewart, residing at Millon(?), son of the said Agnes Stewart, L300.
7. To each: Mary Stewart, Maggie Stewart, and Agnes Stewart all residing at Milton(?) aforesaid daughters of the said Agnes Stewart, L 100 each.
8. To each Robert McLaren and Janet McLaren residing at Lubnaig Villa, Callander L 300.
9. To each Annie Buchanan McMichael, Marion McMichael and Janet Tait McMichael, daughters of William McMichael, solicitor, Callander L 100.
10. To Jennie McLaren, daughter of Robert McLaren, flesher, Callander L 100.
11. To Gilbert MacEwan McEwen, son of said Daniel McEwen L100.
12. To each of the three trustees L 300.
13. To Alexander McIntyre, brother of said Catherine Grant McIntyre in consideration of long and faithful service all the money he has on deposit at the New English Bank of the Rover Plate Limited.
14. Trustees to set aside for his cousin, Duncan Stewart, Lorachan House, Callander L500 and to pay him L25 yearly. If he dies before the sum is entirely paid out, to pay the remainder to his widow for the children.
15. Cousin Catherine Stewart or Nary residing in Stirling, exclusive of her husband’s “jus manich” and right of administration: L 10 yearly from a sum of L 200 deposited and managed by the trustees, if she dies before it is exhausted the trustees are to pay the children yearly.
16. Minister and Kirk Session of Quad Saera Parish of Trussacks, L 1000.
17. A number of other sums to the Schemes of the Church of Scotland for foreign parts, especially India, the poor, the aged, etc.
18. To establish the “James Stewart, Duart Bursary” for L1200 for one young man’s education.
This was written 13 Dec 1893. A codicil of 22 Jun 1894 revoked the legacy of L 100 to Jennie McLaren, daughter of Robert McLaren, flesher, Callander.
James died 18 Jun 1895. The inventory itemized a total estate value of L 14,643-7-4.
Registered: At Dunblane, 3 Oct 1895, Register of Inventories of Personal Estates, County of Perth, pages 353-382.
Obituary:
THE LATE MR. JAMES STEWART; DUART
Publication: The Scotsman; Date: Jun 25, 1895; Section: None; Page: 6
On Friday last, in the romantic churchyard of Kilmahog, near the Pass of Leny, the grave closed over the mortal remains of Mr. James Stewart, Duart House, Callander, whose death, which will be heard of with regret by a large number of friends and acquaintances over the whole country, requires more than a passing notice, not only on account of his own marked individuality, but because of his long connection with an interesting part of Perthshire, and of a mode of farming which, although once quite common, is now fast dying out of the country. He was the last of the old ?sept? of Stewarts who, almost from time immemorial, tenanted, under Earls of Moray, the extensive grazing farm of Glenfinglass, near the Trossachs, and was probably, as he used himself to boast, a tenant farmer for a longer period than any other man in Scotland, he having on his father?s death, seventy-six years ago, succeeded to his share of the holding when he was only six years of age. Glenfinglass was the last, or one of the last, holdings in West Perthshire which was worked on the ancient village community system, a system which had its rise and growth in, and has been perpetuated from, remote antiquity; and, would space allow, a detailed account of the mode of its management and its primitive customs would form an exceedingly interesting article. A very few particulars regarding same may not be inappropriate here. Glenfinglass was held jointly by six tenants---all Stewarts of course---each of them having his own farmhouse and steading, with a separate allotment of arable ground, on which he grazed his own cows and raised his own crops; while the hill pasture , the most important part of the holding, was held by the whole six in common, the stock of sheep thereon, numbering 8000 or more, being mutual property. Two of the tenants were annually elected managers to attend to the sales of sheep and the buying in of fresh breeding stock for the year; and while it might have been supposed that disagreements would have occurred occasionally, this was not the case, for the system had, through generations of practice, been brought to perfection, and the utmost harmony and good-fellowship prevailed among the tenants from the earliest recorded time. When any question arose as to which tenant was to do any particular piece of work for the general good, or on any other point, the matter was invariably settled, and satisfactorily, by ?casting lots.? For a period of certainly more than two hundred years this little colony, or community, of Stewarts quietly pursued the even tenor of their ways----a shrewd, industrious, exemplary set of people, little troubled with the tumults and ongoings in the outside world. The ?risings? of 1715 and 1745 passed by without affecting them in any way, as, true and staunch to their chief and landlord, the Earl of Moray, they obeyed his wishes and took no part in these events. The only recorded outstanding event which seems to have agitated the tenants of the glen to any extent was when, about the year 1770, the then Dowager Countess of Moray tried to evict them from their holding on the ground that a new lease agreed to be granted to them by her husband, Earl James, two years before his death, had never been signed by him, and, farther, that he had no right to grant that lease, as the life-rent of the glen had been conveyed to her in her marriage contract in security of her jointure. The Court of Session decided in favour of the Countess, and loud were the lamentations of the Stewarts at having to leave the land they and their forebears had occupied so long. Fortunately, however, they found a friend in the new Earl (Francis, eighth Earl), between whom and the Dowager, his stepmother, there seems to have been little love lost. He advised them to appeal their case to the House of Lords, and found them part, if not the whole , of the means to do so; and the result was that on 24th March 1773 their appeal was sustained, and the decision of the Court of Session reversed. With one exception, the Stewarts were all adherents of the Established Church, although in the early part of last century all the inhabitants of Glenfinglass were Episcopalian; and they were, without exception, Conservative in politics.
In consequence of the deaths of three of the last generation of tenants, all at very advanced ages, only three of them were left latterly---viz. James, Charles, and John; and their last lease expiring at Whitsunday 1891, they resolved, notwithstanding the earnest wish of the late Earl of Moray to the contrary, to quit the glen. This resolution they carried out, to the universal regret of the country- side. The facts are suggestive, as showing the very different aspect sheep farming has now from what it had ten or twelve years ago, that then Messrs Stewart paid [pounds] 1040 of rent for the farm; and that now their successors pay as rent only [pounds] 566, besides having got large sums expended by the landlord on the farm in new fences, buildings, and other improvements; but this is by no means an isolated instance of such large reductions in hill farm rents in West Perthshire.
On the Messrs Stewart?s retirement from Glenfinglas, two of them went to reside in Callander, and one of them went to reside in Strathyre. By a strange fatality, the whole three have died since the beginning of the present year, within about five months of each other. Charles died on 8th January at the age of 70; John died on 5th May at the age of 77; and James died on 18th June current at the age of 82. The whole three were widely known and respected for their sterling integrity, straightforward ways, kind-heartedness, and open hospitality. Of the three, however, James, generally known as ?Duart? from the name of his farmhouse, had the most outstanding individuality. He was a notable man, not only throughout his own district, but to many from all parts of the country who have made their holiday at the Trossachs. Handsome in figure, courteous and genial in manner, keen of eye, vigorous of speech, he never failed to attract the interest of all who made his acquaintance. His mind was full to overflowing of old-world reminiscences, and his remarkably retentive memory bringing to the fore not only what he himself had seen during his long life, but also of what he had heard from his forbears, made his conversation deeply interesting to everyone caring for the traditions, old customs, and history of the Highlands. He was never married. He was an elder in Trossachs Church; and to show how much he had the Church of Scotland at heart, it may be mentioned that under his will he has bequeathed [pounds] 2000 to its schemes, viz.:---To the Foreign Mission Scheme, [pounds] 200; to the Home Mission Scheme, [pounds] 600; to the Endowment of Chapels of Ease Scheme [pounds] 600; to the Small Livings Scheme, [pounds] 150; to the Aged and Infirm Ministers Fund, [pounds] 150; and to the Highlands and Islands Scheme, [pounds] 900; He has also bequeathed [pounds] 1000 to the managers of the Trossachs Church for the supplement of the minister?s stipend; also [pounds] 1200 for the establishment of a bursary to be called ?The James Stewart Duart Bursary? to be conferred on one young man of merit, a native of the parishes of Callander or Trossachs, to be tenable for three years, to enable the holder to attend the Arts classes in any of the Scottish Universities with the view of his taking the degree of Master of Arts.
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Dundee Courier, 20 June 1895 - Stewart - At Duart House, Callander, on the 18th inst., suddenly, James Stewart, formerly farmer, Duart, Glenfinglass, aged 82. Friends will please accept this intimation.
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Morning Post, London, England, 9 Nov 1895 - The will has been proved of Mr. James Stewart of Glenfinglass, and late of Duart House, Callander, the value of the personal estate in England and Scotland amounting to 14,643 pounds.
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The Scotch confirmation, under seal of the Commissariot of Perthshire, of the trust, disposition, and settlement and codicil of Mr. James Stewart of Glenfinglass, and late of Duart House, Callander, who died June 18, granted to the Rev. William Wilson, Daniel McEwan, and Peter McIntyre, the exectors nominate, was resealed in London, October 22 the value of the personal estate in England and Scotland amounting to 14,643 pounds.
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1813 - 1895 (82 years)
