[2][3] The name Dunninald is derived from the Gaelic expressions "Dun" (fortification, castle) and "Ard" (high, towering).

Scott entrusted James Playfair with the design of a new mansion and a planned settlement however Scott's numerous obligations and poor health, as well as Playfair's death in 1794, meant that the plans were not implemented.

In 1811, the estate was acquired by Peter Arkley and he hired the Scottish architect James Gillespie Graham to build a new house.

The gardens and parks were developed around the turn of the twentieth century and the present building has remained largely unchanged to this day.

[2][3][4] Dunninald Castle is a large two-storey Gothic Revival castellated mansion house was completed in 1824 by the architect James Gillespie Graham.