Agricultural History Review, Volume 57 Part 2 (2009), p. 290

This book is a history of the parish and community of Abernyte, one of the smallest parishes in Perthshire, in the first half of the twentieth century. At that time, the parish was primarily an agricultural one, dependant on agricultural employment from the farms and estates; it was well served by local tradesmen such as the blacksmith and sawmill. It had a declining population (from 241 persons in 1901 to 192 in 1951), as the inhabitants were attracted by the better employment opportunities, higher wages and better prospects that Dundee could offer.

The focus of the book is an exploration of ‘what made this small rural community, and how it faced population loss, economic depression, two world wars, massive social change and, in the abolition of parish councils, the removal of the immediate level of local government’ (p.1). Its chapters focus on the place, the people, the landowners, the community at work, at play and in need as well as at church during the significant period of change. All are themes that are vital to the understanding of a community and its development.

The book has the community at heart. Mary Young, the author, ‘has long lived in the district, and has a familiarity with farming’ (p.iii), while the Abernyte Heritage Group, which has collected extensive oral testimony from members of the community who lived in the area between 1900 and 1950, is the driving force behind the book. It ‘has been written in the first instance for the people of Abernyte, past as well as present’ (p.v). It has helped to shape the community: ‘not least, it has fashioned links between those whose roots are in this beautiful corner of Perthshire and those who might be classed as “incomers”’. The community has gained a better understanding of itself: ‘it is a glimpse of from whence we came and, in this fast changing world, we hope that it will help in the understanding of where we are’ (p.v). It is a community venture by members of the community for the benefit and well-being of the community.

The book displays a sound understanding of the methodologies of local history. It draws on a wide range of sources of evidence, including the official records that would be normally used for a parish study. It also makes extensive use of personal testimonies from members of the community who lived in the area between 1900 and 1950; this is so important in bringing the parish and its inhabitants to life, which this book does so well. The book recognizes the need to place the parish within its broader regional, social and economic contexts (whether of the neighbouring parishes, eastern Perthshire, Perthshire or even Lowland Scotland as a whole) and its wider historical context, to understand how the community came to appear in 1901.

The book is an intimate and personal history of the parish of Abernyte at a significant period that has generally received little attention from rural and agricultural historians in Scotland. The parish is also located within an area that has rarely been discussed even within surveys of Lowland Scotland. It shows that, even within a small parish located some distance from the nearest town, there is much valuable evidence to be found of the everyday lives of ordinary folk.

Mary Young and the Abernyte Heritage Group have written and published a gem of a parish and community history. The book is well written (and very readable) and the research is expertly undertaken, displaying a sound understanding of research methodologies. It is illustrated with numerous illustrations of the people and their activities in the parish. The book is beautifully produced and attractive. It makes a valuable addition to our knowledge on rural Scotland in the first half of the twentieth century.