COCKBURNSPATH, a parish, with Old-Cambus,
in the county of Berwick, 8 miles (S. E.) from Dunbar;
containing 1149 inhabitants, of whom about 230 are in
the village. This place was anciently called Colbrandspath,
from Colbrand, a Danish chieftain who is said to
have established himself in this part of the country, and
subsequently Cockhurnspath, from its having at a very
early period been the baronial seat of the family of
Cockburn. It comprises the united parishes whose
names it bears, and of which the latter. Old Cambus,
was annexed to tlie former at a period not distinctly
known. The castle, whether founded by Colbrand or
by Cockburn, appears to have formed part of the possessions
of Patrick Dunbar, afterwards Earl of Dunbar
and March, who, when this district was infested by a
daring band of robbers, mustered his retainers, and,
* attacking them in a body, killed 600 of their number.
For this service, the king created him Earl of March,
and conferred upon him the lands of Colbrandspath, together
with the castle, which, and that of Dunbar, were
the most important fortresses in this part of the kingdom.
The lands appear to have subsequently been included
in the demesnes of many successive kings, and
to have been given as part of the dowry of several of
their daughters. They afterwards became the property
of the Earl of Home, from whom, about '200 years since,
they passed to the Halls. Little more of historical importance
is recorded in connexion with the place than the
passage through the parish of the English army, under
the Earl of Hertford, on his invasion of Scotland in the
year 1544, and of that under the Earl of Somerset, in
the year 154S.
The PARISH is bounded on the north-east by the
German Ocean, and on the north-west by the county of
Haddington, and comprises 9800 acres, of which 5200
are arable, 600 in woods and plantations, and the remainder
hilly pasture and waste. Its surface is greatly
diversified with hill and dale, and, in many parts, with
narrow deep glens through which small rivulets flo\v in
rugged channels into the sea; the hills are generally of
spherical form, and the highest of them are not more
than from 500 to 600 feet above the sea. The scenery
is in some parts highly romantic; the glens are distinguished
by a great variety of features, combining rocks
and woods, and streams which, frequently obstructed in
their progress, form some beautiful cascades. On the
precipitous ridge that incloses the Tower glen, are the
remains of the ancient castle. The coast is bold and
precipitous, and is indented with several small bays, of
which the most important and the most picturesque is
that named the Cove; it is completely inclosed, except
at the entrance, by precipitous rocks rising to the height
of 100 feet, and, by the recent construction of a breakwater,
has been formed into a very commodious harbour
for fishing-boats. Numerous excavations formed
by nature in the rocky shores of the bay, have been appropriated
as warehouses; and one of them has been
wrought into a tunnel, sixty yards in length, serving as
a means of communication with the shore, and affording
a facility for landing goods on the quay.
The SOIL is various; extremely rich in the immediate
vicinity of the sea, and becoming lighter at a greater
distance from the coast, till It degenerates into hilly pasture.
The chief crops are grain of all kinds, potatoes,
and turnips; the system of agriculture is in an advanced
state, and the rotation plan of husbandry generally practised.
Considerable attention is paid to the management
of live stock: the sheep are, nearly in equal numbers, of
the Leicestershire and Cheviot breeds, the former on the
lower lands, and the latter on the higher; some are of
a cross between the two. The annual value of real property
in the parish is £8648. The woods and plantations
are mostly of oak, for which the soil appears to
be peculiarly favourable, beech, Spanish chesnut, ash,
Scotch fir, larch, and sycamore. The substrata are greywacke,
greywacke-slate, and sandstone, the last of which
is quarried; it is of a coarse quality, and of the old red
formation, being chiefly valuable for its property of withstanding
the action of heat.
The VILLAGE, which had fallen into a state of neglect,
was some time ago greatly improved under the patronage
of Lady Helen Hall; it is partly inhabited by persons
employed in the fishery, and contains a subscription library
of considerable size. Great facility of communication
is afforded by the road from Edinburgh to London,
and by the North-British railway, which both pass
through the parish. There are several handsome and
picturesque bridges over the deep ravines. The Pease
bridge, of four arches, about a mile and a half from the
village, is strikingly romantic in its appearance; it is
300 feet in length, and nearly 130 feet above the bottom
of the ravine. Another bridge, over the Dunglass glen,
of modern construction and of great beauty, has one spacious
arch, spanning the ravine at an elevation of ninety
feet above the stream that flows beneath it: from the
battlements of the bridge is obtained a prospect almost
unrivalled for extent and beauty. A few hundred feet
further down the glen, another bridge, of great elegance,
having one magnificent arch, with five land arches, and exceeding
the Pease bridge in height, carries the line of the
North-British railway over the ravine. A fair, chiefly for
toys, is held on the second Tuesday in August. A considerable
fishery is carried on at Cove, the fish taken being
cod, haddocks, whiting, ling, skate, halibut, and turbot.
Lobsters and crabs are taken in abundance in the season,
and are sent, by shipping from the port of Dunbar, to
London. Herrings, also, were formerly caught in profusion,
but of late years few have appeared on this part
of the coast. A convenient harbour was constructed in
1831, for the accommodation of the fishing-boats, and
capable also of affording shelter to vessels of larger burthen,
several of which, laden with coal, and bone-dust
for manure, frequently put in here, and deliver their
cargoes. The expense of completing the harbour, which
was very considerable, was defrayed partly by government,
and partly by Sir John Hall, Bart.
Ecclesiastically the parish is in the presbytery of
Dunbar, synod of Lothian and Tweeddale, and in the
patronage of the Crown; the minister's stipend is £245.
13. 3., with a manse, offices, and garden, and the glebe
is valued at £27 per annum. The church, a very ancient
structure with a round tower, and apparently built
in the twelfth century, was fully repaired in 180*, and
reseated in 1826. There is a place of worship in the parish
for the United Presbyterian Synod. The parochial
school affords instruction to about ninety scholars; the
master has a salary of £30, with £45 fees, and a house
and garden. Here are several vestiges of ancient fortifications,
the chief of which are on Ervieside hill, and
on the ridge of Dunglass Den. Many urns also, of Roman
pottery, have been at various times discovered by
the plough. In the centre of the parish are the ruins of
the castle of Cockburnspath, apparently erected to defend
the pass of the ravine at the entrance of which it is
situated; and in the Old Cambus district are the ruins
of an ancient church formerly connected with the priory
of Coldingham, seated on a lofty precipice overlooking
the sea. It was dedicated to St. Helen, and is said to
have been erected, in gratitude for their preservation, by
three Northumbrian princesses, who, fleeing into Scotland
for refuge, were wrecked on this part of the coast.