Strathleven House

The Strathleven estate, then known as Kirkmichael, was owned in the 14th century by the Fleming family, passing to the Semples of Fulwood in the 17th century. In 1677 it was bought by the royalist William Cochrane, 1st Earl of Dundonald (1605–1685), who settled the estates of Strathleven and neighbouring Kilmaronock on his grandson William. This William married a daughter of James Graham, 2nd Marquess of Montrose, and sat in the Parliament of Scotland and the Parliament of Great Britain following the union of 1707. A tower house may have existed on the estate at this time, but in 1700 William built the present house which he named Levenside. His initials and coat of arms are inscribed on…