Secluded from social intercourse with the inhabitants of the surrounding district; shut up in a narrow yet pleasant valley, on every side, by hills, which, till within the last fifty years, rendered it almost inaccessible, the inhabitants of Fintry formed a little community by themselves. They were content to follow the occupations of their fathers, regardless of the changes and improvements taking place in other parts of the country. Father and son, through many successive generations, occupied the same farms, or inhabited the same cottages; and, if they did not retrograde in their circumstances and comforts, they were abundantly satisfied. There are instances of families occupying the same farms for several centuries. In such a primitive and simple mode of life, there is little worthy of recording. The same mode of farming and grazing, till lately, was universally observed. Yet Fintry is not without its honours. It gives a Baron's title to the principal proprietor of the parish; and there are still the remains of an old castle, which had evidently been a place or great strength, with its fosse and mound. It was the residence of the Grahams of Fintry in other times. It stood on the south side of the Fintry Hill, in full view of Sir John. de Graham's Castle, in the parish of St Ninians, with which, no doubt, in less happy times, intercourse was kept up by signal. Sir John de Graham's Castle was burnt down by Edward I after the battle of Falkirk. Both these castles have long been in ruins; and many of the stones have been removed, for the purposes of building dikes and farm-houses in the neighbourhood. The dilapidation, of late years, has been so great, that it seems probable, in a short time, nothing will remain, to mark out the place where such monuments of feudal pomp and pride stood.

Two heritors, we have said, the Duke of Montrose and Mr Speirs of Culcreuch, possess the whole lands in the parish. Mr Speirs is the only residing beritor. Culcreuch House is situate at the west extremity of the Fintry Hill, and embosomed in wood, a great part of which is fine old timber; notwithstanding its bartizans and thick walls, it is commodious, and yields to no other residence in the country, for the venerableness of its appearance, and the beauty of its situation. The father of the present proprietor, the late Peter Speirs, Esq., a gentleman whose memory will long be cherished with much affection, not only by the parish of Fintry, but by all who had the happiness to live under him or near him, added much to the value of the property and the beauty of the place, by extensive plantations, all of which are now in a very thriving condition. Were His Grace to follow so good an example, by planting clumps and belts in the upper part of the parish, its appearance would not only be greatly improved, but the farms would be greatly benefited by the shelter for their cattle, which such plantations would afford. The Duke is the principal heritor.

Parochial Registers. -Parochial registers belonging to the session have been kept from a remote date. The oldest is dated 1632. Some of them have fallen into careless hands, and been much injured: some altogether lost. Marriages and baptisms have been registered for upwards of a century. A registry of deaths has been kept, only since 1826.
 
 

Birth registered during the last seven years are	149	average	21
Marriages	65		9
Deaths	138		19

 
 

In the obituary of the above years, 39 are recorded to have died under twenty years of age; 23 above seventy - of the latter, two were seventy-eight, two eighty, one eighty-two, one eighty-three, three eighty-four, one ninety-one.