Marytown

   1) MARYTOWN, a village, in the parish of Forgan, district of St. Andrew's, county of Fife; containing 232 inhabitants. This is a small place, which has latterly increased in population owing to its becoming the resort of strangers from its contiguity to Dundee.

   2) MARYTOWN, a parish, in the county of Forfar, 2¼ miles (W. S. W.) from Montrose; containing 452 inhabitants. This place is supposed to have derived its name from the dedication of its church to the Virgin Mary, or from the existence here, at some ancient period, of a religious establishment in honour of that saint: on the confines of the parish is a spring which still retains the appellation of Marywell. The parish consists of the estates of Old Montrose and Dysart, distant from each other about half a mile, and divided by an intervening portion of the parish of Craig; and is three miles in length from north to south, and one mile and a half in average breadth. It is bounded on the north by the river South Esk and the basin of Montrose commonly designated the Back Sands, and on the south-east by the sea; and comprises 2180 acres, of which 2080 are arable, about seventy woodland and plantations, and thirty in natural pasture. The surface is broken by a small ridge of hills, of which the highest point, Marytown Law, has an elevation of nearly 400 feet above the sea; the summit is of artificial structure, and is supposed to have been raised as a beacon, or to have been the spot where the great family of Montrose in feudal times dispensed justice to their vassals. The eminence commands one of the most extensive and beautiful views in this part of the kingdom, embracing to the north the richly-fertile vale extending from Montrose to Brechin, enlivened by the picturesque windings of the South Esk, and thickly studded with elegant seats and pleasing villas. The basin and harbour of Montrose, with the town, are seen at one extremity of the vale, and to the west the town of Brechin; while in the back ground appear the Grampian hills, with part of the county of Kincardine, and to the east the view terminates with a prospect of the sea. The South Esk abounds with salmon and sea-trout; and in the month of May great numbers of smaller trout, called smouts, are found in its stream. Vast numbers of aquatic fowl frequent the Back Sands of Montrose during the winter; among these are wild geese, ducks, sea-gulls, curlews, and herons; and in the parish generally are partridges and hares in abundance, and pheasants in moderate numbers.

   The soil on the lands of Old Montrose is a strong loamy clay, of great depth, and admirably adapted for the growth of wheat; on the lands of Dysart the soil is of much thinner and lighter quality, but rendered fertile by the improvements that have been made within the last few years. The system of agriculture is in the most advanced state, and the six-shift course of husbandry generally prevalent; the crops are, oats, barley, wheat, peas, beans, potatoes, and turnips. The lands are well drained, and inclosed in the higher grounds with stone dykes, and in the lower with hedges of thorn; the farm-buildings are substantial and commodious; a considerable portion of land has been recovered from the Back Sands, and brought into profitable cultivation; and all the more recent improvements in implements are in use. A great number of cattle are fed during the winter, and sold to the butcher; and a tolerable number of horses are reared, chiefly for agricultural purposes, on the several farms, the breed of which, and also of the cattle that are reared, has been much improved through the encouragement afforded by the Agricultural Association in the county. The principal substratum is trap-rock of a coarse quality; and several quarries are worked, mostly for dykes for inclosures, or to furnish materials for the roads. A fishery is carried on in the South Esk, where are salmon and other fish, the produce of which is estimated at about £100 a year. The rateable annual value of Marytown is £4438. The nearest market-town is Montrose, in which a ready sale is found for the agricultural and other produce of the parish, and from which place every requisite supply of articles necessary either for the farm or for domestic use can be procured. Facility of communication with the neighbouring towns is maintained by the turnpike-road from Montrose to Forfar; and by the river lime and coal may be easily obtained. The parish is in the presbytery of Brechin and synod of Angus and Mearns, and patronage of the Crown. The minister's stipend is £198. 6. 9., with a manse, and a glebe valued at £18 per annum. The church, erected in 1791, and repaired within the last twenty years, is a neat plain structure adapted for a congregation of 300 persons. The members of the Free Church have a place of worship. The parochial school affords a good course of instruction, but is thinly attended; the master has a salary of £30 per annum, with £10 fees, and a house and garden. There are also two Sabbath schools, and a parochial library in which are more than 200 volumes of standard works, chiefly on religious subjects, and about 100 pamphlets. Bonnytown, now forming part of the estate of Old Montrose, was formerly the property of the family of Wood; and the foundations of the ancient castle where they resided, and of the moat by which it was surrounded, are still to be distinctly traced.

   3) MARYTOWN, a village, in that part of the parish of Kirriemuir which formed the late quoad sacra parish of Logie, county of Forfar; containing 202 inhabitants. The village is chiefly inhabited by persons employed in the linen manufacture, and in agriculture.