HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Eskdalemuir is a civil parish and small village in
Dumfries and Galloway Dumfries and Galloway ( sco, Dumfries an Gallowa; gd, Dùn Phrìs is Gall-Ghaidhealaibh) is one of 32 unitary council areas of Scotland and is located in the western Southern Uplands. It covers the historic counties of Dumfriesshire, Kirkc ...
, Scotland, with a population of 265.General Register Office for Scotland : ''Census 2001 : Usual Resident Population : Eskdalemuir Civil Parish''
Retrieved 2009-11-21
It is around north-west of Langholm and north-east of Lockerbie. The area comprises high wet moorlands, chiefly used for sheep grazing and
forestry plantation A tree plantation, forest plantation, plantation forest, timber plantation or tree farm is a forest planted for high volume production of wood, usually by planting one type of tree as a monoculture forest. The term ''tree farm'' also is used to ...
(
Eskdalemuir Forest Eskdalemuir Forest is a forest north of Eskdalemuir, Dumfries and Galloway, in southern Scotland. It was created as a private enterprise by the Economic Forestry Group during the 1970s. Eskdalemuir Forest is adjoined by Craik Forest Craik Forest i ...
). The main settlement is near the White Esk river. Eskdalemuir is probably best known for the
Eskdalemuir Observatory The Eskdalemuir Observatory is a UK national environmental observatory located near Eskdalemuir, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. Built in 1904, its remote location was chosen to minimise electrical interference with geomagnetic instruments, whic ...
and for the Samye Ling Tibetan Buddhist monastery.


Upper Eskdale Development Group

In 2006 th
Upper Eskdale Development Group
was formed with the aim to reconnect the local community, after the local pub, school, and post office closed, by the development of a Community Hub based in the former school building. They have now transformed the old school into a multi-purpose community building where social activities and community support are delivered. The building houses a shop and café.
UEDG
members are committed to helping the isolated community at Eskdalemuir become more self-reliant and to reverse the decline that has led to the closure of local services. This in turn is expected to make the area more attractive to investors and families. Th
UEDG
vision is to create a dynamic hub of activity, where community support, social enterprise, businesses and training can be delivered, and cultural activities can flourish, in a place that will inspire residents and visitors alike. Th
UEDG
mission is to facilitate the development of a community-led regeneration of rural life by increasing access to regular, high quality services and social activities, as well as opportunities for learning through participation in cultural events and community education. UEDG would like to see services becoming increasingly localised, provided where possible by the community through social enterprise. It is considered that this is particularly important in the context of the ageing population. As people get older and the cost of available travel increases, living in our remote rural communities can mean missing out on things others take for granted. The Community Hub will become a "green" state of the art location for the delivery of a range of basic, but highly valued, services; community and family events; courses and seminars; arts and cultural events; tourist information and resources for visitors, and a focal point for the growth of new ventures and social enterprise.


Samye Ling Tibetan Buddhist monastery

In the community is the Samye Ling Tibetan Buddhist monastery, which incorporates a former hunting lodge called Johnstone House. Listed as a
tourist attraction A tourist attraction is a place of interest that tourists visit, typically for its inherent or an exhibited natural or cultural value, historical significance, natural or built beauty, offering leisure and amusement. Types Places of natural b ...
b
VisitScotland
the centre attracts visitors who come simply to see a spectacular gilded temple, stupas and gardens with
statue A statue is a free-standing sculpture in which the realistic, full-length figures of persons or animals are carved or cast in a durable material such as wood, metal or stone. Typical statues are life-sized or close to life-size; a sculpture t ...
s of
Bodhisattva In Buddhism, a bodhisattva ( ; sa, 𑀩𑁄𑀥𑀺𑀲𑀢𑁆𑀢𑁆𑀯 (Brahmī), translit=bodhisattva, label=Sanskrit) or bodhisatva is a person who is on the path towards bodhi ('awakening') or Buddhahood. In the Early Buddhist schools ...
s and
Buddhas In Buddhism, Buddha (; Pali, Sanskrit: 𑀩𑀼𑀤𑁆𑀥, बुद्ध), "awakened one", is a title for those who are awake, and have attained nirvana and Buddhahood through their own efforts and insight, without a teacher to point out ...
.


Archaeology

Eskdalemuir is rich in archaeological remains, including two neolithic stone circles, the
Loupin Stanes The Loupin Stanes () is a stone circle near Eskdalemuir, Dumfries and Galloway. Oval in shape, it consists of twelve stones set on an artificial platform. At the WSW of the circle are two large pillars, which are typical of the 'entrance circles' ...
and the
Girdle Stanes The Girdle Stanes () is a stone circle near Eskdalemuir, Dumfries and Galloway. The western portion of the circle has been washed away by the White Esk, leaving 26 of an original 40 to 45 stones in a crescent. Unlike the majority of such sites in ...
, and bank barrow, Castle O'er, a possible ritual centre for the
Selgovae The Selgovae (Common Brittonic: *''Selgowī'') were a Celtic tribe of the late 2nd century AD who lived in what is now the Stewartry of Kirkcudbright and Dumfriesshire, on the southern coast of Scotland. They are mentioned briefly in Ptolemy's ' ...
, Raeburnfoot, a Roman fort and later dark age fortifications and settlements.


Climate

Due to the establishment of the Eskdalemuir Observatory here in 1908, Eskdalemuir has one of the longest climatological records in the UK, with data stretching back over 100 years. The data shows Eskdalemuir to be a very wet, often cloudy place. Eskdalemuir holds the UK weather record for the highest rainfall in a 30-minute period: , recorded on 26 June 1953. It also holds the record for the dullest summer month; 43.9 hours were recorded in August 1912, and subsequently just 41 hours were measured in August 2008. However, these values are not directly comparable due to a change in recording technique – the earlier having been made using a Campbell–Stokes recorder and the later using an electronic recorder. Other recent low sunshine records for the site include 30 hours during October 2011, 46 hours during September 2008, and 69 hours during July 2010. Its dullest month was December 2015 with only 9.2 hours recorded. Eskdalemuir experienced its wettest year on record in 2011. In spite of it being located inland, the dull and wet nature of the climate due to the elevation leads to chilly summers that are colder than more northerly locations such as Glasgow and Edinburgh. The inland nature of the climate is more manifest during winter months with frosts being common, and the average lows between December and February are below the freezing point. The highest recorded temperature was in July 2022 and the lowest is in January 2010.


References


External links


Basic statistics about Eskdalemuir
{{Authority control Villages in Dumfries and Galloway Parishes in Dumfries and Galloway