This delightful small fortalice, dating
apparenltly from the early 17th century, stand about
three miles west of OldMeldrum. It conforms to the T-Plan, with a
long main block of three storeys running north and south, and a
circular stair-tower projecting westwards midway along the west
front. This is corbelled out to the square at the top to house a
watch-chamber, reached by a turret-stair in the south-west
re-entrant angle. The corbelling here is quite elaborate. The
waling is otherwise plain and roughcast, and the gables are
crow-stepped. A more modern wing for domestics has been added to
the south-west.
The entrance is in the foot of the stair-tower,
but two or more modern doorways have been opened on either side of
this wets front. The basement contains two vaulted chambers, that
to the south being the kitchen, with a wide arched fireplace and a
stone basin nearby. The Hall on the first floor has been
subdivided by later partitions, and there have been other
alterations at this level; the small turret-stair, for instance,
is now inaccessible.
Mounie was a possession of the Seton Family,
cadets of Alexander Seton, the famous Earl of Dunfermline and
Chancellor of Scotland in the 17th century. Pitmedden
nearby was an important Seton seat, and George Seton of Mounie was
second son of Lord Pitmedden. There are many Seton portraits and
mementos in the house including a picture of John Seton of
Auquhorthies, Chamberlain to the Earl of Dunfermline.
The Seton's of Mounie, both the 1st and 2nd
families, were lineal cadets of the Seton's of Meldrum. The
second family was a direct cadet of the Seton's of Pitmedden. The lands of Mounie came into the possession of
John Seton, of Lumphard, Broomhill and Mounie, 2nd son
of William Seton 5th of Meldrum by his first wife Janet
Gordon of Lesmoir. John Seton married Marjory Patton of Pitmedden
during the early 16th century, and which connection
later brought that house into family, to John’s half-brother, from
his father’s second marriage to Margaret Innes of Leuchars, James
Seton of Bourtie and Pitmedden. John’s other half-brother (from
Margaret Innes), was George Seton, the noted Chancellor of the
Cathedral Church of Aberdeen and builder of Barra Castle.
It was John who enlarged and built the main
house at Mounie during the mid-1500’s. Though within a short time
the family was obliged to sell Mounie, to Robert Farqhuar in the
mid-1600’s, it was re-acquired by George Seton, 2nd son
of Lord Pitmedden.
The Seeton's of Nova Scotia
are descended from the 1st Seton's of Mounie, and from John Seton of Auquhorthies, Chamberlain to the Earls of Dunfermline
at Fyvie Castle. John Seton, goldsmith in Edinburgh of the
family of Meldrum who also had a son Thomas Seaton (or Seton) who
died and was buried on the Ilse of Man, and a son Alexander Seaton
(or Seton) who attended the University of Aberdeen and who was
later a prominent Quaker Minister in Co. Down, Ireland circa 1689
- 1723 along with the Rev'd Anthony Sharp there in Hillsborough,
as well as other issue, was descended likewise from these Seton's
of Mounie and were cousins of James Seton of Menie. The
Seeton's of Nova Scotia also married into the old Aberdeenshire
family of Dumbreck, Dunbrack in Nova Scotia and were active
mason's there as well as involved in the trans-continental
shipping industry at Halifax.
