Description
This collection contains a listing of entries in the 1841 Argyll census, originally compiled by Edna Stark, contains surnames, forenames, ages, parish numbers, enumeration book numbers, and page and address at the census. It is a search aid to help locate original records.
Volume 4 contains the Census Indexes for Kilmartin, North Knapdale, South Knapdale and Cragnish.
The Parish of Kilmartin (Parish 521), population 1217, features Kilmartin Glen, Crinan Moss and Experiment Farm. Much of the ground is hilly but Kilmartin Glen forms a large flat area. Some of the flat land is Crinan Moss, drained by the Malcolm lairds, hence the name Experiment Farm. Landowners in the early days were mostly Campbells, but the MacCallums or Malcolms of Poltalloch had made themselves rich through West Indian trade by the late 18th century and become the main landowners.
North Knapdale (Parish 530) population 2128, borders the Crinan Canal and Sound of Jura. It separated from South Knapdale (Parish 533), population 1550, in 1734. In the 1841 census the enumerators comment several times that certain families are about to emigrate. The landowners were in early days Macneils, Macilvernocks, Mactavishes, and Macmillans, later Campbells and Malcolms of Poltalloch.
Craignish (Parish 508), population 859, the mainland’s smallest parish, contains Loch Craignish, Ardfern and Craobh Haven. It lies on the West coast, some 24 miles south of Oban, West of Kilmartin parish, facing the Sound of Jura and Corrievreckan whirlpool. Loch Craignish, studded with small islands, turns half of the parish into a peninsula. Landowners included the MacDougalls of Lunga and Malcolms of Poltalloch.
