The history of Kirriemuir extends to the early historical period and it appears to have been a centre of some ecclesiastical importance. The Kirriemuir Sculptured Stones, a series of late Pictish cross slabs, are now on display at the Meffan Institute in Forfar.
Kirriemuir has a history of accused witches back in the 16th century. Many of the older buildings have a witches stane built in to ward off evil. This is a hard grey stone set into the local red sandstone which the buildings were built from. A pond on the outskirts of town, known as the Witch Pool, was where the supposed witches were meant to have been drowned[citation needed] but the alleged pool was in fact the mill pond of the 19th Century Meikle Mill. Local amateur historians tend to think this referred to a small mill but the reference is to the fact that the mill contained one of John Meikle's patented chaff separating machines which was based on ideas he picked up in Holland. The adjacent "Court Hillock" was shown, on excavation to make way for a housing development, to be nothing more than the spoil heap left from the excavation and cleaning of the pond.
Though its importance as a market town has diminished, its former jute factories (now manufacturing synthetics) echo its past importance in the 19th century as the centre of a home weaving industry.
Historic features near Kirriemuir include a carved Pictish stone known as the Eassie Stone, found in the bed of a burn near the village of Eassie.
Kirriemuir claims the narrowest public footpath in Western Europe; Cat's Close, situated between Grant's Pend and Kirkwynd, is a mere 40 centimetres (15.75 inches) wide.
The family estate of Sir Hugh Munro, who created Munro's Tables of Scottish mountains over 3000 ft in elevation (and which are now called "munros") is also located near the town, as is Kinnordy House, the seat of the Lyells. The current Lord Lyell is a member of the House of Lords.
