Bid to buy part of Dull graveyard sparks search of records

Books being checked for burials at site before land can be sold

Records relating to an ancient burial site are being scoured for clues in an attempt to prevent part of the land being sold.

A bid is being made to buy a strip of land bordering the church at Dull, which was sold off by the Church of Scotland and has since been converted into a home.

It is understood the homeowner wants to acquire the land to give their property additional privacy. The rest of the graveyard would remain in public hands.

While there are no gravestones on the area in question, locals say there is no guarantee the area is free from burials and are trawling through parish records to find out.

Tom Pringle, secretary of Dull and Weem Community Council, said the section of land is at the west end of the building. He said: “There’s nothing in the council record that states that piece of ground has any burials in it.

“The church records are hard to get but in Castle Menzies there’s a book that records graves that go back to the 1800s.

“If we found anything in that then the land won’t be sold.

“I feel it would set a precedent because up until now, selling pieces of graveyards in Scotland has been rare. When the church was originally sold, it was only the bit of land that it sits on that was sold.

“There’s a strip along the back with dykes which was then used to separate the building from the rest of the graveyard.

“I think Perth and Kinross Council hoped that the proposed purchaser would realise what a complicated process they would have to go through and drop it.”

He added if there was enough opposition in the community then the prospective buyer would not go ahead.

He said: “The ball’s in the community’s court. If the community insists on it then it won’t go ahead.”

A spokeswoman for Perth and Kinross Council said: “We are aware of this request, and the matter will be put to the next community council meeting for discussion with the local community.

“There are no gravestones, and no recorded graves in council records, for the strip of land in question.”

There is to be a public discussion of the issue at the community council meeting on Wednesday at 8pm in Camserney Hall.

The church dates to the 17th Century, but the site is believed to have hosted religious activity as far back as the 8th Century.

I feel it would set a precedent because up until now, selling pieces of graveyards in Scotland has been rare. TOM PRINGLE

Picture: Barrie Marshall. Church and graveyard at Dull, Perthshire.