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[edit] The Village
Avoch (Scottish Gaelic: Abhach – meaning mouth of the stream) is a harbour-village located on the south-east coast of the Black Isle, on the Moray Firth. Ormond Castle or Avoch Castle was a stronghold built on the site and served as a royal castle to William the Lion; passed on to the Morays of Petty then Archibald the Grim, Lord of Galloway, upon his marriage to Joanna de Moravia in 1362. Descendants of Archibald, were to take the title of Earl of Ormonde from the castle. Legend has it that the village was founded by survivors of the Spanish Armada. Intrepid Scottish-Canadian explorer Sir Alexander Mackenzie, the first European to explore the great Canadian river now known as the [[wikipedia:Mackenzie River, crossing North America twice, to the Arctic Ocean in 1789 and Pacific Ocean in 1793, retired to Avoch in 1812 where he died in 1820 and was buried in the old Avoch Parish churchyard. [edit] The ParishAvoch is a parish on the Black Isle and located in the Highland Council Area, some 7 miles (12 km) north of Inverness and 8 miles (13 km) south of Alness. Prior to 1975 the parish was located in the old county of Ross and Cromarty, which was replaced by the Highland Region and in 1996 by the unitary authority named the Highland Council Area. The parish has an area of 32.5 sq. km (12.5 sq. miles). Avoch is the only settlement to be found in the parish. This is one of the detached Cromarty areas of the county of Ross and Cromarty. [edit] Notes for the Highland Council Area and the Western Isles Council AreaThe local archives are held by The Highland Archive Service which is based in Inverness with branches in Stornoway, Fort William and Caithness. It is "responsible for locating, preserving and making accessible archives relating to all aspects of the history of the geographical area of the Highlands." Family history societies and historical associations covering the Highland Council Area and the Western Isles Council Area are:
These associations publish their aims on their websites as well as a list of publications. In many cases the publications are also available through the Scottish Genealogy Society (see below).
[edit] Transcriptions of Gravestone Inscriptions
[edit] Sources for Emigration Records
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