Stones are all that is left of tycoon’s house
This rather unassuming rickle of stones, which sits high above Sheriffmuir, is all that remains of James Menteith’s house and sits in the middle of his former farm, Glentye.
While it’s on a south-facing slope, it’s a good 30-minute hike from the road, over some very rough grazing, not made any easier to walk through by swearing.
At first glance this appears to be completely uneconomic. I never even spotted any sheep, which perhaps explains why it was abandoned around 1800.
However, the farm was leased from James Stirling of Keir for £67 a year and when James Menteith died in 1719 he left a small fortune of £26,500 and was one of the richest men in Dunblane
Parish. We know so much about him as he left a very detailed will.
James was a very successful businessman and owned five horses, fourteen cows, four yeld quoys (either barren heifers, or heifers not yielding milk because in calf ), a branded bull and 400 sheep. He also owned land which he rented out, sold milk and cheese, rented rooms to students at
Dunblane Burgh School and even sold guns and books on occasion. He traded with people from all over Scotland, all of whom came to Dunblane and Stirling for markets and fairs. His business took an upturn following the Union of the Parliaments and indeed it was so successful that his landlord raised the rent.
However, the Jacobite Rising of 1715 was a bad year and he virtually stopped trading. The Jacobites burnt six local settlements and the economic effect was felt for two more years. It was even worse for our hero as his landlord’s estate was confiscated for his role in the 1715 rebellion and he owed James over £3000. A salutary lesson on the impact of war and invasion, even if you survive.