KELSO, a parish and market-town and burgh of barony, in the district of Kelso, county of Roxburgh, '^3
miles (S. \V.) from Berwick-upon-Tweed, and 41 (S. E.) from Edinburgh; containing,
with the village of Maxwellheugh, 5328 inhabitants, of whom 4594 are in the burgh.
This place is said to have derived its name, anciently written Calchow, or Calkow, from
the chalky cliff on which the original village was situated.
The district now occupied by the town and
parish appears to have formerly included the parishes
of Kelso on the north, and of Maxwell and St. James
on the south, side of the river Tweed: of these the two
first had separate churches, and the last was part of the
ancient burgh of Roxburgh. The churches of Kelso and
Maxwell were both destroyed during the earlier period
of the border warfare; that of St. James seems to have
been burnt down at a later date. These several parishes
were all granted to the abbey of Kelso by David I., the
founder of that institution, which he endowed for brethren
of the order of Benedictines, of the class called
Tyronenses, whom he placed in the abbey on its completion,
about the year 1130. Under the munificent
endowment of that monarch's successors, the establishment
became one of the most wealthy in the kingdom.
From its situation, however, so near the border, the monastery
was frequently exposed to violence and plunder;
and after suffering repeated injuries, from which in process
of time it always recovered, it was, finally, almost
destroyed in 15'23 by a party of the English under Lord
Dacre. Having plundered the town, and laid waste the
adjacent country, they burnt the conventual buildings,
and removed the roof from the church, which they otherwise
defaced; compelling the monks to retire to a village
in the neighbourhood, to celebrate the offices of religion.
In 1545, the town again sustained devastation from the
Enghsh forces, who also destroyed the greater portion
of what was left of the abbey, which never afterwards
recovered; the north and south aisles and the choir were
battered down by artillery, and the venerable and stately
structure was reduced to a mere ruin. The monks, however,
still maintained a religious establishment here, and
inhabited the remains of the conventual buildings till
the Reformation, after which the site and revenues were
granted, in 1587, to Sir John Maitland, lord high chancellor,
and subsequently to the Earl of Bothwell, on
whose attainder, reverting to the crown, they were bestowed
on Sir Robert Ker of Cessford, warden of the
East marches, and ancestor of the Duke of Roxburghe,
the present proprietor.
The foundation of the abbey naturally led to the increase
and importance of the town, which previously
was only an inconsiderable village, and a comparatively
insignificant appendage to the burgh of Roxburgh, at
that time a place of great note. In the reign of Robert
I., the town had so augmented in extent as to be divided
into the two portions of Easter and Wester Kelso; and
on the demolition of Roxburgh, it became the residence
of many of the inhabitants of that burgh. Its increase
was now still more rapid, and it had attained a high degree
of prosperity in 1545, when, participating in the
disastrous fate of its abbey, it was so reduced by the
English under the Earl of Hertford, that the markets
could no longer be held in it, and were consequently
transferred to the neighbouring village of Hume. On
the accession of the Ker family to the revenues and jurisdiction
of the abbots, the town recovered; the abbey
was erected into a temporal lordship in I607, by charter
of James VI. to the Earl of Roxburghe, and the earl
subsequently granted to the inhabitants all the privileges
of a free burgh of barony. But the place was arrested
in its career of prosperity by a destructive fire, which in
1686 burnt down more than one-half of the houses; it
was again partly destroyed by fire in 1738, and subsequently
sustained considerable damage by similar calamities
till within a comparatively recent period. These
losses, however, did not impede the progress of the town
so much as might have been expected; and it is now in
a prosperous state.
Kelso is finely situated on the north bank of the river
Tweed, near its confluence with the Teviot, and consists
chiefly of a principal street, irregularly built, several
smaller streets, and a handsome square of considerable
extent, comprising ranges of buildings in a very pleasing
style. In general the houses are of light-coloured stone,
and roofed with slate; and the whole has a cheerful and
prepossessing appearance. The streets are paved, and
lighted with gas 5 the inhabitants are amply supplied
with water, and a good approach from the opposite shore
is formed by a well-built bridge over the river. The
surrounding scenery, remarkable for many peculiarities
of feature, is agreeably varied, and when viewed in combination
with the ruins of the ancient abbey is deeply
interesting. Kelso bridge is an elegant structure of
stone, erected in 1803, to replace a bridge which had
been swept away by an inundation of the river in 1797.
It consists of five elliptical arches, seventy-two feet in
span, and about fifty feet in height above the surface of
the stream; the structure is nearly 500 feet in length,
and was completed by the late Mr. Rennie, at an expense
of £18,000. This bridge forms a conspicuous feature in
the landscape of the town, and derives additional interest
from the beauty of the scenery on both banks of the
Tweed. The Kelso library, supported by a proprietary
of shareholders, contains a well-assorted collection of
more than 5000 volumes in all departments of literature,
and is held in a commodious building. The " New Library"
and the " Modern Library" are also well supported,
in a similar manner; the former has 'ZOOO and
the latter 1500 volumes, chiefly modern works. There
is likewise a book club, maintained by subscribers, for
the purchase and circulation amongst its members of
standard and periodical publications; and a readingroom,
chiefly frequented as a billiard-room, is established.
A Physical and Antiquarian Society has collected a valuable
museum of natural history and antiquities.
The chief trade here is in corn, and in the various
articles of merchandise that are requisite for the supply
of the neighbouring district. There are no manufactures
carried on to any considerable extent; the principal are
those of leather and tobacco, and the weaving of linen
and stockings, all of which together scarcely afford employment
to 150 persons. On the river Tweed are several
valuable salmon-fisheries, one of which, of very small
extent, was let to some gentlemen at the high rent of
£210 per annum; the season commences in February,
and terminates in November. Kelso contains branches
of the four principal banking establishments in Scotland,
namely, the Bank of Scotland, the British Linen Company,
the Commercial Bank, and the National Bank;
and has three newspapers, one of them published twice,
and the others once, a week. The chief market is on
Friday, and is amply supplied with corn, and well attended:
there is a daily market for butchers' meat, fish,
and vegetables. Markets, also, for cattle are held on the
second Friday in every month. Fairs occur on the four
Fridays in March, for horses, and on the second Friday
for cattle also; and a very ancient fair is held on the
5th of August, on St. James' Green, the site of the ancient
church of that name. This fair is numerously attended;
and the magistrates of the town have a cumulative right
of jurisdiction with the magistrates of the burgh of Jedburgh,
and divide the tolls with the lord of the barony.
The lands belonging to the abbey of Kelso were, as
already stated, granted, under the title of the lordship
and barony of Hallydean, to the Kers of Cessford, ancestors
of the Dukes of Roxburghe, in 160*; and in 1634
that portion of the lands which constitutes the town and
parish of Kelso was separated and erected into a burgh
of BARONY by James VI., who conferred upon the superior,
Robert, Earl of Roxburghe, the right of holding a
weekly market and fairs, and of creating burgesses, a
baron-bailie, and other officers. The government is now
vested in a bailie, appointed by the superior; a body of
sixteen commissioners of police, appointed luider the act
of the 3rd and 4th of William IV. for establishing a general
system of poUce in Scotland; a town-clerk; procurator-
fiscal; and others. The bailie holds his office
during pleasure. There are seven incorporated trades,
the merchants, shoemakers, tailors, hammermen, skinners,
weavers, and fleshcrs; and no person is authorized
to carry on trade in the burgh who is not a member of
one of these companies. The bailie holds a weekly court
for the trial and determination of civil and criminal cases,
of which, on an average, about forty of the latter are
decided annually. The town-house, situated on the east
side of the public square, is a well-built edifice of stone,
two stories in height, with a portico of four Ionic columns
supporting a triangular pediment, surmounted by a neat
turret, in which is a handsome clock. There is likewise
a small prison, employed chiefly as a place of temporary
confinement for vagrants.
The PARISH, which is of triangular form, is about five
miles in length and three in extreme breadth, and is divided
into two nearly equal parts by the river Tweed.
It comprises 4400 acres, of which 3800 are arable, 300
meadow and pasture, and '21.') inclosed plantation. The
surface is boldly diversified with broad vales and undulating
heights, and abounds with much variety and beauty
of scenery: the rivers Tweed and Teviot, especially, present
Hiime pleasingly picturesque views in their devious
courses through the parish, flowing between richlywooded
banks, and receiving numerous tributary streams
from the higher lands. In this parish the soil is various,
but generally fcrtilu, and of light dry <|uality; the crops
arc oats, wheat, barley, potatoes, and t\irnip.>-. The system
of agriculture is imjiroved.and the four and five shift
rnnrsei of liasbandry are prevalent: lime and bone-dust
form the principal manures. The lands have been well
drained, and inclosed partly with stone dykes, but chiefly
with hedges of thorn: the farm-houses are substantially
built, and some, of more recent erection, are elegant;
threshing-mills have been erected on most of the farms,
some of them driven by steam; and all the improvements
in the construction of agricultural implements have been
adopted. For the most part the sheep reared and fed in
the parish are of the Leicestershire breed; and much
attention is paid to them: the cattle are all the shorthorned,
or Teeswater. The Union Agricultural Society
hold meetings in the town, for awarding prizes to successful
competitors at the monthly show of cattle, and
for improvements in agriculture. The older wood consists
of oak, beech, ash, and other forest-trees, of which
many fine specimens are to be seen in the parks of Floors
and Springwood; the plantations are chiefly firs, intermixed
with hard-woods. There are several mansions in
the parish and vicinity, of which Floors, the property of
the Duke of Roxburghe, is a stately edifice, erected in
17I8, after a design by Sir John Vanbrugh. It is situated
on the north side of the river Tweed, in an extensive
park embellished with fine-grown timber and rich plantations:
a holly-bush in the park, of venerable growth,
marks out the spot where James II. was killed by the
bursting of a cannon, while employed in the siege of
Roxburgh Castle, in 1460. Ednam House is also an
elegant residence, in tastefully-disposed grounds. The
mansion of Springwood Park, to which is an approach
by a beautiful Grecian archway; Hendersyde Park;
Wooden; Pinnacle Hill; and Woodside, are all handsome;
and in the vicinity of the town are also numerous
pleasing villas. Facility of intercourse with the neighbouring
places is afforded by railways, by excellent roads
in every direction, and by bridges. The annual value of
real property in the parish is £19,75.5.
For ECCLESIASTICAL purposcs the parish is within the
bounds of the presbytery of Kelso, synod of Merse and
Teviotdale; and the patronage is vested in the Duke of
Roxburghe. The stipend is £320. 13. 6., with a manse,
and a glebe valued at £54. 1 5. per annum. Kelso church,
erected in 1773, and repaired and reseated in 1833, is an
octagonal edifice, conveniently situated, and adapted for
a congregation of 1314 persons. An additional church
was erected in 1837, on a site northward of the town, at
an expense of more than £3500, towards which £1500
were contributed by Mr. James Nisbet, of London; it is
a handsome edifice in the later English style of architecture,
with a lofty square tower, and contains H77 sittings,
of which 144 are free. A certain portion of the parish
was allotted to it for a short time, as a district, and
called the North quoad sacra parish, with a population
of '2383. Adjoining it is a building for an infants' and
another school. There arc places of worship for members
of the United Presbyterian Church, the Free Church,
Reformed Presbyterians, Original Seceders, the Society
of Friends, and Wcslcyans, with an Episcopal chapel.
Two parochial schools arc held, one of which is a grammar
school, and the other a school for reading, writing,
and arithmetic. The master of the former has a salary
of £34, with .£80 fees, and a house and garden; and the
master of the latter a salary of £5. 11., with £50 fees,
and the interest of a bequest of £'240 for teaching gratuitously
a numlier of poor children. Another school is
maintained partly at the expense of two of the heritors,
who give the masters a schoolroom and dwelling-house
rent free, in addition to the fees, for teaching children of
the south division of the parish. A school for boys and
girls, also, is supported by the Duke of Roxburghe and
others, who pay the mistress £15 per annum, including
fees, and give the master as much as will raise the amount
f)f his fees to £60. The poor have the interest of funded
bequests, producing £35. 10. a year. A savings' bank,
under good management, has contributed to prevent applications
for parochial relief; and there are several
charitable institutions, which have also been highly beneficial
to the poorer inhabitants. The dispensary, established
in 1777, and supported by subscription, contains
wards for the reception of patients whose cases require
residence in the institution, and has hot, cold, and vapour
baths, which are accessible to the public. The majority
of the patients, however, are visited at their own dwellings.
The establishment is under the direction of a
physician and surgeons, and on an average affords relief
annually to about 500 patients.
The principal relics of antiquity are the interesting
ruins of the ancient abbey, which, within the last fifty
or sixty years, have been cleared from the barbarous incrustations
of masonry by which they were long concealed,
and have been prevented by judicious repairs
from sinking into entire dilapidation. Of this once
magnificent cruciform structure, of the Saxon or early
Norman style of architecture, the principal parts remaining
are a portion of the choir, and the central tower, with
part of the nave and transepts. A portion of the building
was fitted up in 1649 as a parish church, which was
in use till 1771; and the masonry employed for that
purpose, which concealed some of the finest parts of the
abbey, and disfigured the whole, was removed partly in
1805, and completely in 1816. By this means, the ruins
were restored to their original beauty; and in 18'-23
their further dilapidation was prevented, by replacing
much that was decayed, and thoroughly repairing what
remained. They are considered to be the finest specimen
of Saxon architecture in the kingdom. No vestige
now remains of the ancient residence of the Earl of Morton,
who resided in the village of Maxwellheugh in the
reign of Queen Elizabeth. Kelso gives the title of Earl
to the Duke of Roxburghe.