Pitfour estate

The Pitfour Estate, in the Buchan area of North-East Scotland, was an ancient barony encompassing most of the extensive Longside Parish, stretching from St Fergus to New Pitsligo.

At the height of its development in the 18th and 19th centuries the 50-square-mile (130 km2) property had several extravagant features including a two-mile racecourse, an artificial lake and an observatory.

The surrounding parklands were landscaped, major renovations were undertaken, and follies such as a small replica Temple of Theseus were constructed, in which George Ferguson, the fifth laird, was thought to keep alligators in a cold bath.

Pitfour's son, James Ferguson, who became the third laird, continued to improve and expand the estate by adding the lake and bridges, and establishing planned villages.

The third laird died a bachelor with no children, so the estate passed to the elderly George Ferguson, who was only in possession of the property for a few months.

George was already a wealthy man, owning lands in Trinidad and Tobago, but despite not directly improving the Pitfour estate he added considerable value to the inheritance passed to his illegitimate son.

In more recent times some of the remaining buildings, including the temple, the bridges and the stables, have been classified as at high risk by Historic Scotland because their condition has become poor.

The Pitfour estate in Mintlaw extended from St Fergus to New Pitsligo and encompassed most of the extensive Longside Parish.

[15] 1st laird James Ferguson—known as the Sheriff, reflecting the post he held, recognised by the Society of Advocates—bought the Pitfour estate after selling the lands of Badifurrow.

Robert, nicknamed the Plotter, was in hiding to avoid charges of treachery,[17] and after his non-appearance in court James Ferguson's inheritance was confirmed in mid-June 1700.

This addition made the Pitfour estate the largest in the area, with more than 30,000 acres (120 square kilometres) stretching from Buchanhaven to Maud along the course of the River Ugie.

The Governor returned to Britain, although the terms of the surrender meant he still owned the Castara estate and all the slaves who worked on it.

[29] 5th laird The estate started to deteriorate after it was inherited by the Governor's illegitimate son George Ferguson, known as the Admiral because of his naval career.

He was already heavily in debt when he became the fifth laird in 1821, but he still enjoyed a lavish lifestyle and undertook much extravagant construction on the estate, including the erection of follies.

[31][32] Later that year Captain Ferguson was posted to Canada, where he was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel and where his first two sons, Arthur and Francis William, were born.

[36] Following its 20th-century decline, the estate changed hands several times until local farmer Hamish Watson purchased it in December 2010.

[41] The house fell into disrepair under the ownership of George Arthur, the sixth and final laird, who had inherited his father's lifestyle.

[47] The Fergusons were Episcopalian, and in 1766, the second laird, Lord Pitfour had a small Qualified Chapel built on the estate at Waulkmill.

[48] Saplinbrae, a house that was initially used as a coaching inn after it was built under instruction from Lord Pitfour in 1756, was used as the minister's manse for the first chapel.

[53][54] In 1990 Historic Scotland said that Kinloch Farmhouse, in St Fergus featured a bench and chair salvaged from the Pitfour Chapel.

[56] The stables were built in 1820, during the early part of the Admiral's ownership of the estate, based on a design by John Smith;[citation needed] the buildings are sited to the rear of the mansion house.

[44] They provided accommodation for ten horses and included four loose boxes, a harness room and a coachman's house; six bedrooms above were for servants.

More than two hundred local farmers and other landowners celebrated the wedding of George Arthur, the sixth laird, in the riding school in 1861.

The hospital applied for an interdict four months later, however, when two miles (3.2 km) of the canal had been dug to the point where the north and south Ugie joined; it was granted in July 1797.

[61] A few years after starting work on the canal, Ferguson had a lake built on flat land to the front of the mansion house.

[64] The neighbouring Russell family of Aden were concerned their land would be flooded when the lake was built, and their animosity was fully demonstrated when a bridge had to be jointly constructed by the two landowners over the River Ugie.

It had a flat roof with an ornate wooden entablature and contained a cold-water bath in which George, the fifth laird was believed to have kept alligators.

[67] George Ferguson (the Admiral) had a racecourse about 2.2 miles (3.5 kilometres) long and 52 feet (16 metres) wide built near White Cow Woods, an area which is quite flat.

Pitfour was no exception and the dispersal of the estate continued piecemeal after the sequestration of George Arthur, the sixth laird.

[72] The main estate policies[b] including the lake and other land were purchased by Bernard Drake in November 1926 when he bought Saplinbrae, the former minister's house.