Geography

This article is based on a bundle of papers forming part of a case at the Court of Session in Edinburgh between William Kirkpatrick of Conheath and Thomas Chisholm formerly of Kirkbean, both near Dumfries, discovered during research into the life and times of David Currie of Newlaw (one of Kirkpatrick’s partners) in 2011. These papers provide new information about Lot 52 on St John’s Island and the voyages of the Lovely Nelly of Whitehaven, carrying settlers there in 1774 and 1775.

Lot 52 had been drawn by three people, all by the name of Douglas. The settlement was neglected until 1775, when it was taken over by people named Tead [sic], Dodd, Curry [sic] and Fontenalle. They, too, did not bring out settlers (part of the requirements for ownership of lots), so the land reverted back to the Crown for dispersal.

Because there were so many St John’s in Canada, including in Labrador, Newfoundland and New Brunswick, in 1799 St John’s Island in the Gulf of St Lawrence was renamed Prince Edward Island, after George III’s fourth son Edward, Duke of Kent.

This essay sets out to trace the development of Sanquhar from the earliest times to the close of the nineteenth century, with a glance at its more recent expansion, a section on its outlying dependency of Crawick and a look at the roads which may have been the main reason for the town’s existence. Conclusions are drawn from maps, observation on the ground, the historical record — mainly the comprehensive 1891 work of local historian James Brown — and information from local residents.

This report has arisen from the production of a management plan for Cally designed landscape for the Gatehouse Development Initiative in 2007. That plan is a practical tool to inform management and maintenance of the landscape and interpretation and enjoy

Set against the broader background of the Neolithic in south-west Scotland, this paper considers the two well-known Neolithic monuments of cairnholy I and II in Dumfries and Galloway, with a particular focus on the types of experiences that these monument

This paper, in a series of toponyms in south-west Scotland, discusses Ptolemy's Vindogara, Elvan Water near Wanlockhead, Tarelgin near Ayr and Troquhain near New Galloway, which have Brittonic names explicable as 'white ridge', 'salt stream', 'willow home

This paper reviews the archaeological evidence for the organisation of the later prehistoric landscape that has emerged from work in the Border Counties over the last twenty years. It challenges any assumption that prehistoric farms and territories were d

A history of the development of cannon-netting as a procedure to capture and ring birds as a part of migration studies on the Solway Firth. The equipment developed is described in in detail and the the paper is supplemented by statistics of birds captured

Brief explanation of the indexing protocols applied to A.E.Truckell's transcript of microfilm records relating to 17th century Dumfries and Kirkcudbright Custom and Excise Records - see article III/75/173. Examples of the extracts available are cited.

Summary article describing the contents of a series of microfilmed records relating to Dumfries and Kirkcudbright recently transcribed by A.E.Truckell - the records relate principally to the shipping, textile and droving trades. The transcripts have been

The Celtic place-names of south-west Scotland are a subject repaying investigation. This paper discusses five such names: Ptolemy's Abravannus, meaning 'very feeble one' and referring to Pilanton Burn, near Stranraer. A possible link between the Ravena Co