| Administrative History | Brigadier-General James Ferguson of Bomakellie (Kincardinshire) acquired the estate of Kirktonhill and Balmakelly (Bomakellie) in 1695. His son James Ferguson (James Ferguson, first laird of Kinmundy) b. 1696, died 1777, sold the estate of Kirktonhill and Balmakelly and purchased the lands of Kinmundy and Coynach in 1723. |
| Custodial History | Removed from Kinmundy House, Mintlaw, Aberdeenshire to Milne's Auction House, North Silver Street, Aberdeen, sometime before 1982. Parts of the collection were subsequently sold while other parts were damaged and destroyed in storage. The parts of the collection in reasonable condition were purchased from Milne's by Professor Nigel Trewin around the above date and have been in his possession until now (2008).
See file for more information on this deposit. Please note that this is not the complete collection of papers from Kinmundy House, as some parts have been sold, destroyed or are still in the possession of the depositor. |
| Description | The collection contains a substantial number of legal documents illustrating the ownership of the family's estates from an early period. There are sasines and other deeds to the lands of Kinmundy and Coynach from 1541, including transactions involving the lands forfeited by the Earl Marischal, as well as private legal papers between members of the Ferguson family, and also documents of their relatives by marriage such as Alexander Deans's property interests in a saltpan at Prestonpans. There are also documents concerning Brigadier-General James Ferguson's second marriage in the Low Countries and his daughter's estate.
While there are gaps in the estate papers at some periods, the coverage of this area is relatively full for the early 18th century, the period at which James Ferguson of Pitfour was acting as tutor to his cousin both for the Kirktonhill estate and at Kinmundy. Rentals from this period are present for both estates, and there is a varying amount of material covering estate matters from the later 18th century to the first years of the 20th century.
The correspondence present in the collection is largely between family members and relatives, but also includes outside material such as the legal papers of Thomas Ferguson, who had a legal practice in Edinburgh in the second half of the 18th century.
The papers of William Ferguson LLD (1823 - 1904) reflect his business and charitable activities. The business papers relate to the textile trade with India and the development of railways in the north of Scotland, and Ferguson's close involvement with Presbyterianism is reflected in the material on Sabbath Schools and other church matters, including a school for Muslim girls in Beirut. William Ferguson's other charitable activities represented in the collection include the organisation of the Admiral Fitzroy Testimonial Fund. He also carried out lecture tours in the United States, and the collection includes his unpublished "Journal of my work in America" of 1857. |