Mylnefield Mylnes in Scotland and Australia

The Master Mason Mylne Family

There is an enduring myth that seven (or in come accounts more) generations of Mylnes served as master masons to the Crown of Scotland. In many accounts this office is held to have been hereditary to the Mylne family. The purpose of this essay is to examine three questions. (i) How many Mylnes served as king’s master mason in Scotland? (ii) Was the office hereditary? (iii) What is really known about the ancestors of the Mason Mylnes and their relationship to other Mylne families?

The answers are that three Mylnes served successively as king's master mason (from 1631 to 1710), the office was not hereditary, and there is no evidence that this family was related to the Mylnes of Mylnefield.