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Galloway Hills
The Galloway Hills are part of the Southern Uplands of Scotland, and form the northern boundary of western Galloway. They lie within the bounds of the Galloway Forest Park, an area of some of largely uninhabited wild land, managed by Forestry and Land Scotland. The unusual place names reflect a mixture of the Old Norse and Scottish Gaelic languages and hint at the range of influences which have acted on society within the area over the centuries. Location The location of Galloway has been described as follows, "Galloway is contained by sea to the west ( North Channel) and south (Solway Firth), the "Galloway Hills" to the north, and the River Nith to the east". So if we were to say "The hills of Galloway" we would be including all the hills within this area; but as the first sentence implies, the "Galloway Hills" is usually taken to mean a collection of ranges which lie mainly south of Loch Doon and which are not constrained by political boundaries. The boundary between Dumfri ...
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Southern Uplands
The Southern Uplands ( gd, Na Monaidhean a Deas) are the southernmost and least populous of mainland Scotland's three major geographic areas (the other two being the Central Lowlands and the Grampian Mountains and the Highlands, as illustrated in the accompanying map). The term is used both to describe the geographical region and to collectively denote the various ranges of hills and mountains within this region. An overwhelmingly rural and agricultural region, the Southern Uplands are partly forested and contain many areas of open moorland - the hill names in the area are congruent with these characteristics. Geology The Southern Uplands consist mainly of Silurian sedimentary deposits deposited in the Iapetus Ocean 420 million years ago. These rocks were pushed up from the sea bed into an accretionary wedge during the Caledonian orogeny, roughly 400 million years ago ( Ma), when the continents and terranes of Laurentia, Baltica and Avalonia collided. The Caledonian orog ...
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Dalmellington
Dalmellington ( sco, Dawmellinton, gd, Dail M'Fhaolain) is a market town and civil parish in East Ayrshire, Scotland. In 2001 the village had a population of 1,407. The town owes its origins to the fault line separating the Southern Uplands of Scotland from the Central Lowlands. Dalmellington sits at the issue of a river from the uplands into Dalmellington Moss plain. The town has a history as a rest area, market town, weaving centre and mining village. The Chalmerston open cast coal mine to the north of the village covered some 742 hectares, but the operations have now ceased and the first phase of the site restoration has been completed. The town used to have a working museum to record the history of the area, but it was closed in January 2017. There are many Sites of Special Scientific Interest around Dalmellington, the most notable being the nearby Loch Doon. Selection of local views The Scottish Dark Sky Observatory was located near Dalmellington and is within the north ...
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New Galloway
New Galloway ( gd, Gall-Ghàidhealaibh Nuadh) is a town in the historical county of Kirkcudbrightshire in Dumfries and Galloway. It lies on the west side of the valley of the Water of Ken, north of the end of Loch Ken. Before the local government reform of 1975, it was the smallest Royal Burgh in Scotland. History There were scattered settlements in the area from at least the 13th century (when the nearby Kenmure Castle was first built), but the village was formally founded in the 17th century by the Viscount of Kenmure and granted Royal Burgh status in 1630 – this was to enable it to serve as a market town. However, Kirkcudbright, only to the south, was larger and drew more traders. New Galloway thus grew very slowly and is the smallest Royal Burgh in Scotland. New Galloway today is a rural town. It has a Town Hall, the CatStrand Arts and Visitor Centre, two churches, three pubs, and a golf club. A popular holiday destination, standing on the edge of the scenic Galloway ...
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Water Of Ken
The Water of Ken is a river in the historical county of Kirkcudbrightshire in Galloway, south-west Scotland. It rises on Blacklorg Hill, north-east of Cairnsmore of Carsphairn in the Carsphairn hills, and flows south-westward into The Glenkens, passing through Kendoon, Carsfad and Earlstoun lochs, all of which are dammed to supply the Galloway Hydro Electric Scheme. At Kendoon Dam the Ken is joined by a major tributary the Water of Deugh. From there, the river flows south, passing St. John's Town of Dalry and New Galloway, before widening to form the 9-mile long Loch Ken. The Black Water of Dee also enters halfway down the loch, and from Glenlochar, at the south end of the loch, the river continues as the Dee towards Kirkcudbright and the coast. There are a number of interesting bridges over the Water of Ken. Smeaton's Bridge (Sometimes Smitton's Bridge) carries the B729 road which runs between Carsphairn and Moniaive. It crosses the Ken a half mile above the confluence of the St ...
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St John's Town Of Dalry
St John's Town of Dalry ( gd, Clachan Eòin), usually referred to simply as Dalry ( / 'dal-RYE'), is a village in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, in the historic county of Kirkcudbrightshire. Location St Johns Town is located close to the Southern Upland Way, and the nearby Galloway Hills, including the peaks of Corserine and Cairnsmore of Carsphairn. It is also sited on a bend of the Water of Ken, about from the northern edge of Loch Ken. The village is from Castle Douglas along the A713 road, at the southern terminus of the A702 road (to Edinburgh). It's also located on an old pilgrimage route to Whithorn and St Ninian's Cave and named after the Knights of St John. History The village was the centre of the 1666 Pentland Rising The Church of Scotland, Parish Church built in 1831 by William McCandlish is approached via an avenue of lime trees said to have been planted in 1828. Detached, at side of the Kirk is the Gordon Aisle of 1546, the burial place of the Gord ...
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Carsphairn
Carsphairn ( gd, An Còrsa Feàrna) is a village in the historic county of Kirkcudbrightshire in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. It is located about halfway between Dalmellington and St John's Town of Dalry, on the A713 road. Carsphairn annual sheep show is held in the village. Cairnsmore of Carsphairn is to the north east of the village in the Carsphairn and Scaur Hills. To the west is the ridge of the Rhinns of Kells in the Galloway Hills. The village has many features ranging from an ancient stone circle to a nuclear listening post (now disused), and includes local amenities such as a shop, tearoom, a primary school and a village hall. Carsphairn Church, Church of Scotland was built in 1815 on site of an earlier church. Additions and alterations in the 1930s include the apse and porch. The Knockengorroch World Ceilidh takes place here annuall History Carsphairn was made an independent parish around 1627, prior to which it had been a part of the Parish of St John's Tow ...
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Kirkcudbright
Kirkcudbright ( ; sco, Kirkcoubrie; gd, Cille Chùithbeirt) is a town, parish and a Royal Burgh from 1455 in Kirkcudbrightshire, of which it is traditionally the county town, within Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. The town lies southwest of Castle Douglas and Dalbeattie at the mouth of the River Dee, around from the Irish Sea. History An early rendition of the name of the town was Kilcudbrit; this derives from the Gaelic ''Cille Chuithbeirt'' meaning "chapel of Cuthbert", the saint whose mortal remains were kept at the town between their exhumation at Lindisfarne and reinterment at Chester-le-Street. John Spottiswoode, in his account of religious houses in Scotland, mentions that the Franciscans, or Grey Friars, had been established at Kirkcudbright from the 12th century. John Balliol was in possession of the ancient castle at Castledykes in the late 13th century and Edward I of England is said to have stayed here in 1300 during his war against Scotland. In 1455 Kirkcudb ...
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Galloway Hydro-electric Power Scheme
The Galloway hydro-electric power scheme is a network of dams and hydro-electric power stations in Galloway, south west Scotland. It was built between 1930 and 1936. The generating stations draw water from the River Ken, River Dee and River Doon through reservoirs at Loch Doon, Kendoon, Carsfad, Clatteringshaws, and Tongland. The unusual modernist stations were designed by Scottish civil engineer, Sir Alexander Gibb. The scheme, which is today operated by Drax, can produce a total peak power of around 106 megawatts. History The scheme was authorized by the Galloway Water Power Act on 10 May 1929, by which the Galloway Water Power Company was incorporated. Chairman of the board was former colonial administrator Lord Meston. Also on the board was Robert Brand, managing director of the project's underwriter, Lazard Brothers and Company. Design was carried out by civil engineers Sir Alexander Gibb and Partners along with electrical engineer, William McLellan of Merz & Mc ...
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Carsphairn And Scaur Hills
The Carsphairn and Scaur Hills are the western and eastern hills respectively of a hill range in the Southern Uplands of Scotland. Ordnance Survey maps don't have a general name for the hill area as a whole. Also, Ordnance Survey use "Scar" rather than the local spelling of "Scaur" - the word is pronounced as "Scar" however. In their Landranger Series of maps, it requires four separate sheets to cover the area. Location The range lies between two other ranges, the Galloway Hills to the west and the Lowther Hills to the east. The overall shape of this hill area is oval with the longer curved sides to top and bottom. From the north western point of the oval at Dalmellington to the south eastern one at Thornhill is around 39 kilometres (as the crow flies), though Dalmellington lies some 10 kilometres further north than Thornhill. So the axis of the oval runs from north west to south east. Taking a section across the west end of the oval, from New Cumnock in the north to Carsphair ...
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Castle Douglas
Castle Douglas ( gd, Caisteal Dhùghlais) is a town in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. It lies in the lieutenancy area of Kirkcudbrightshire, in the eastern part of Galloway, between the towns of Dalbeattie and Gatehouse of Fleet. It is in the ecclesiastical parish of Kelton. History Castle Douglas is built next to Carlingwark Loch in which traces of prehistoric crannogs can be found, evidence of early inhabitation of the area. A large bronze cauldron containing about 100 metal objects was found in Carlingwark Loch near Fir Island about 1866. The hoard of tools of iron and bronze is probably Romano-Belgic of the late first or early second centuries AD and is likely to have been a votive offering. It is now in the National Museums of Scotland in Edinburgh. To the North of the town Glenlochar is the site of two successive Roman forts, the first being erected during the invasion of Agricola and the second during the Antonine period. They appear to have been for cavalry units an ...
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Maybole
Maybole is a town and former burgh of barony and police burgh in South Ayrshire, Scotland. It had an estimated population of in . It is situated south of Ayr and southwest of Glasgow by the Glasgow and South Western Railway. The town is bypassed by the A77 road, A77. History Maybole has Middle Ages roots, receiving a charter from Donnchadh, Earl of Carrick in 1193. In 1516 it was made a burgh of regality, although for generations it remained under the suzerainty of the Kennedy clan, Kennedys, afterwards Earl of Cassillis, Earls of Cassillis and (later) Marquess of Ailsa, Marquesses of Ailsa, the most powerful family in Ayrshire. The Archibald Angus Charles Kennedy, 8th Marquess of Ailsa, Marquess of Ailsa lived at Cassillis House, just outside Maybole until its sale in 2007. In the late seventeenth century, a census recorded Maybole was home to 28 "lords and landowners with estates in Carrick and beyond." In former times, Maybole was the capital of the district of Carr ...
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Glentrool
Glentrool is a collection of mountain biking routes through the heart of Galloway in southwest Scotland. The mountain bike routes are part of the 7Stanes project by Forestry and Land Scotland throughout the Scottish Borders and Dumfries and Galloway. The most famous route at Glentrool is the 'Big Country' trail, based entirely on minor public roads and forest roads. The trail follows of road in a loop, starting and finishing at the Glentrool visitor centre. There are areas of off-road biking allowing riders of all experiences and age ranges to have a good time. In early 2007 the Forestry Commission built a blue graded route which is long and follows purpose built singletrack in a loop from the visitor centre to Loch Trool Loch Trool is a narrow, freshwater loch in Galloway, in the Southern Uplands in south-west Scotland. It lies in an elevated position in Glen Trool in the Galloway Forest Park and is approximately north of the town of Newton Stewart. The loch ... and fi ...
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