Book will tell stories of Dallas churchyard stones

A MORAY group which brushes away the grime of centuries to discover who lies buried at a Moray churchyard have published a new book on their findings.

The Moray Burial Ground Research Group has uncovered and recorded the inscriptions of buried tombstones at Dallas Churchyard, which date back to the 17th century.

Their 76-page book, released tomorrow, is complete with an index of gravestone inscriptions and includes a brief church history and colour photographs.

It is the second book on Dallas churchyard and contains details of more than 20 tombstones, which were previously overgrown.

The group’s genealogist, Bruce Bishop, said: “A lot of things that are typical of 17th-century tombstones are the actual carvings. They would have the skull and crossbones, the hour glass and, often, a coffin inscribed on the stone. Often the deid bell is there too, which was the bell that they rang as they carried the dead person to the churchyard.”

The book reveals that the oldest known stone in Dallas Churchyard is dedicated to “ane honest man called Robert Harralld” and his spouse Issobell Innes, which dates back to 1681.

The second oldest tombstone pays tribute to Janet Grant, and is dated 1694.

Mr Bishop said it was the well-off in the community that were buried with headstones. He estimated that only around 12% of burials before 1850 actually resulted in a tombstone.

The book, called Monumental Inscriptions including Buried Tombstones in Dallas Churchyard, is available from Yeadons of Elgin, Commerce Street, from tomorrow.

It is priced at £6.