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Auchinleck House
Auchinleck House is an 18th Century house described as "amongst the most important in Scotland" and "an outstanding architectural composition" and has an association with James Boswell. James Boswell (1740-1795) the eldest son of Lord Auchinleck, is best known as the author of the greatest biography written in English: The Life of Samuel Johnson, LL.D. (1791). The eldest child of Alexander and Euphemia Boswell, he was heir to Auchinleck Estate. While his profession was as Barrister, working at both Scots and English bars, he was an outgoing man who loved to keep company with famous people of the age, while constantly writing about his life. In 1782 the death of his father (a member of the Scottish supreme court), Boswell became the ninth Laird of Auchinleck. He left a treasure of manuscript materials that give accounts of life and writing in Britain during the the eighteenth century. Auchinleck Estate has even had some strange sightings - in 1985 angler Adrian Carson, on the River Lugar (in Auchinleck Estate) came face to face with what he called a 'Black Panther.' He said, "as I stalked along the river in pursuit of salmon I came round a bend and there in front of me, as plain as day was a large black cat. It stood there looking at me with a glare that unnerved me. I was rooted to the spot with fear and could not move. Then I slowly started to walk backwards back the way I came. I stumbled on a log and took my eyes off the animal for a spilt-second, when I looked up it had gone." Adrian describes the animal as being about 2 and a half foot high and six foot in length including its tail. He also says that he has often found strange prints on the riverbank that he could not identify, some quite recently. As well as an animal making a sound, "like a woman screaming"!! The house itself has recently been acquired by the Landmark Trust, who are an independent preservation charity acting to rescue and restore historic buildings, securing their future by letting them out for holidays. The Trust has been
carrying out major work to restore the interior, additional work on the
exterior and other important structures on the Estate which has only recently
been completed. This work was completed last year, and you can see structures
including the pavilions, obelisks and bridges surrounding the house. The work was completed in September 2001 allowing anyone who wishes to come and stay at the house the opportunity to come and experience the atmosphere first hand - and watch out for the house at next year's Horse Trials. If you would like
further information on Landmark and its work visit their
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