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Remains of a chapel, surviving as turf covered foundations, built in 1367-8 and last mentioned in 1649. It is shown on the OS 1st and 2nd edition as a graveyard and site of chapel. There is square grave marker at the east end of the chapel, and a mausoleum against the west graveyard wall. In the southwest corner are the remains of a well (NJ81SE0581). Work on the Chapel at Stoneywood was probably begun in late 1367 or early 1368. It was erected through the auspices of Michael Cock of Moray and furnished by a number of contributors. These may have been the local lairds and residents and possibly also the bishop of Aberdeen. Although Cock died before the Chapel was finished David II made its completion a condition of a grant of the lands of Meikle and Little Clinterty and Auchriny to his physician Donald Bannerman. The condition stipulated that Bannerman was to: ' Complete the chapel of the blessed Virgin Mary, situated in these lands and cause a mass to be celebrated weekly for the soul of the King's most venerable father, Lord Robert the Bruce, King of Scotland, and for the souls of all those contributing to the said chapel in the incomplete condition which it was in when the late Michael Cock of Moray died'. From this it is clear that it was known as the chapel of the Blessed Virgin from the start. According to Cruickshank it took its name of Stoneywood from the adjacent Stany wood. Writing in the 19th century Logan speculated that this foundation was made as a chapel of ease for the people of the area. The lands that the chapel was built upon were part of the parish of Old Machar, which required the locals to travel some twenty miles to the Cathedral of St Machar to attend the celebration of mass. Logan wrote: 'Here some poor curate has supplied the spiritual wants of the surrounding inhabitants, and performed the services of the church to those who could not, or were not disposed to attend in the Cathedral' . The siting of the chapel, at the side of the Inverurie road, rendered it accessible and may be significant in this regard. Little is known about the appearance of the chapel. However, after St Mary's passed out of use its foundations and parts of the lower walls could (and still can) be traced on the ground. Logan noted: 'The vestigia are scarcely visible but serve to shew the dimensions to have been about 30 feet, by 17'. Nevertheless it would seem to have been a stone church, served by a chaplain. It may not have been a splendid edifice but may have been a solid and handsome rural chapel of ease serving the needs of the estate that would become known as Stoneywood. Perhaps the 'arch of a window and grooved lintel stone.' described as having been recently found in 1930 were remains of the pre reformation Chapel. The next notice of the chapel dates to 1454 when the following entry occurs in the Exchequer Rolls: ' Et per solucinem factam capellano perpetuo de Stanewod, celebranti in capella ejusdem, ut patet per literas domini regis patentes osterisas super comptum, de anno comptoi, xls'. Also at that time, indeed entered in the same returns in the Exchequer Rolls, a special levy of £10 was laid upon the lands of Stoneywood (the estate formerly pertaining to the Bannermans, now of Elsick) however 'excepta capelania. It is possible that the chapel as built in 1367-8 survived until the reformation. Iit may also have been the case that at some point the chapel may have been if not rebuilt, at least altered or enlarged. Perhaps as the work of a new family in possession of the lands within which the chapel was situated. The chaplain of the chapel must also have had a house and possibly a glebe field. However no trace of these now remain, either on the ground or in any place names. With the one possible exception of Cappel Hills nearby. The adjoining the site of the chapel and yard immediately to the south and still bearing the name Chapel Cottage, may once have been the chaplains' dwelling. The chapel probably went out of use at the time of the reformation. Cruickshank comments that after the reformation 'owing to the shortage of ministers and the loss of most of the endowments all such chapels had to be abandoned' Possibly the church's endowments were appropriated by the local landowners and some of the church fabric (if not the bulk) dispersed by way of reuse. However the chapel, if not merely just the site, continued to attract interest from those sympathetic if not exactly to the old faith then at least to customs and traditions which pre- dated the reformation. In 1649 a prohibition was laid down by the kirk session of St Machar's to the effect that 'None shall burie in the chapell of Stiniwood under payne of church censure' . If the chapel, or at least parts of its walls, were still standing in 1649 then the chapel must have fared very poorly for the next 76 years. In 1725, it was described as 'the ruines of an old popish chappell' . Macfarlane goes on to comment that 'there are still persons buried.' there. If we assume that the chapel was used as burying ground from 1368 then by 1725 there must have been a substantial number interred over this period. Moreover perhaps this still indicates the existence of a strong adherence to the old faith in this out of the way corner. In 1834 two stately pillars and a new wrought iron gate were erected at the entrance to the churchyard. One pillar is marked with an escutcheon with a cross in the centre whist the other is dated 1834 with the initials JB. It has been suggested that JB was John Brown, son of Dr John Brown (then minister of Newhills). John Brown was a wine merchant in London who left £200 for his parish in his will when he died in 1818. The road on the side of the chapel, next to the pillars, was made in a time of distress in order to provide work for the unemployed. The walls around the churchyard were erected in 1870 'by voluntary labour supplied by the immediate neighbours, led by William Thomson, Inspector of Poor, Thomas Clark, Millwright, and Joseph Coutts' . Burials also continued here until the 19th century. In 1925 the Parish Council of Newhills took custody of the site, according to 'C'and then ownership was transferred to Aberdeen County Council in 1930. The then County Council duly erected a plaque on what may have been an old grave stone which still stands at the side of the entrance to the chapel and its yard. The plaque was found by a member of the public in January 2020 lying partially buried under a tree at the site. It was removed and returned to Aberdeen City Council for re-erecting in February 2020.
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Historic Environment Records (HER) 
Aberdeen City
HER -
NJ81SE0555 - ST MARY'S CHAPEL, STONEYWOOD