KIRKPATRICK-JUXTA, a parish, in the county of
Dumfries, S\ miles (S.) from Moffat; containing, with
the village of Craigielands, 934 inhabitants. The ancient
name of this parish was A'i/-patrick, the prefix of which
is of the same signification as that of A'irAr-patrick.
The suffix juita has been added to distinguish the place
from several other places of the same name, which are
more remote from the capital of Scotland. All the Kirkpatricks
appear to have received their common designation
from the celebrated saint, Patrick. This locality
was formerly the residence of Randolph, Earl of Murray,
regent of Scotland during the minority of David Bruce:
the earl possessed the old castle of Achincass, in the
parish. The well-known family of Johnstone of Corehead
occupied the tower of Lochhouse. The parish is
irregular in form, but may be considered as of the mean
length of six miles, and of about the same breadth. It
contains 21,000 acres, and is bounded on the north and
east by Wamphray and Moffat parishes, on the northwest
and west by Crawford and Closeburn, and on the
south by Johnstone parish. The lands of White-holm,
in the parish, belong to the shire of Lanark. The general
appearance of the district is bleak and hilly: the surface
on the west consists of the mountain range of tiueensberry;
and two or three miles to the east of this, is a
parallel range, between which and Qucensberry lies the
pastoral valley of Kinnel Water. Between the second
range of hills and tlie river Annan, which washes the
ea.stcrn botmdary of the parish, is a tract of land nearly
two miles broad and eight miles long, consisting of hill
and valley, chiefly arable, and constituting the best part
of the parish. A small portion of this land, however, is
rocky, and some of it peat-moss; another portion has
been reclaimed from waste moor. The highest part of
the parish is the mountain of Qucensberry, the summit
of which is 2140 feet above the level of the sea. The
Annan, the Kinnel, the Evan, and the Garpel arc the
streams connected with the parish: the Annan divides
it from Moffat, and after a course of about thirty miles,
in which it receives several tributary waters, falls into
the Solway Firth near the royal burgh of Annan.
The soil in general is dry, and tolerably fertile; the
richest and best cultivated lies in the eastern quarter of
the parish. About 7000 acres are in tillage; 230 are in
woods or plantations, of Scotch fir, oak, beech, elm, ash,
and spruce; and 14,000 are uncultivated, 2000 of which,
however, are supposed capable of tillage, or fit for plantations.
The cattle are chiefly of the Galloway breed;
and the sheep pastured here consist of the native
black-faced, with some Cheviots. The improvements in
agriculture in the parish, during the present century,
have been considerable. Formerly it was almost entirely
destitute of inclosures, but this deficiency has been to
some extent remedied. Draining, manuring, and the
raising of green crops have each received attention; and
the use of bone-dust manure for turnip land, and the
practice of letting sheep eat-off the turnip crops, are
two of the most approved usages of modern husbandry
adopted here. The farm houses and offices are in a state
of progressive improvement throughout the parish, much
attention being paid to the neatness of the buildings,
most of which are constructed of stone and lime, and
roofed with slate. The improvement also of the cattle,
and of the breeds of sheep, has been very considerable.
In this parish the rocks consist of freestone, trap, and
greywacke or bluestone, which last is much used for
common buildings. The annual value of real property in
Kirkpatrick-Juxta is £5557.
The only village is Craigielands, which is of small
extent, but consists of neat buildings on a regular plan,
raised some few years ago by one of the proprietors,
for the accommodation of persons residing on his lands.
In its vicinity is Craigielands, a handsome mansion
surrounded by a park. The lines of turnpike-road
running through the parish are, the road from Glasgow
to Carlisle, and another, intersecting that road at
Beattock Inn, from Dumfries to Edinburgh: the roads
and bridges are kept in good condition. Great facility
of intercourse is also afforded by the Caledonian railway,
which has a station in the parish, at Beattock. For
ecclesiastical purposes the parish is within the limits
of the presbytery of Lochmaben and synod of Dumfries;
patron, J. J. Hope Johnstone, Esq. The stipend of the
minister is £195, exclusive of the vicarage tithes, which
consist of twenty-four lambs, and forty-eight pounds'
weight of wool: he has also a manse, and a glebe of four
aral)le and five meadow acres, worth, with garden, about
£10 a year. Kirkpatrick church, built in 1*99, and
thoroughly rcjiaircd in 1H24, is a j)lain l)uil(ling, capable
of accommodating between 500 and GOO persons. There
are two iiuroeliial schools, the master of the first of which
receives a salary of £34 a year; the master of the second
school, who is not regularly settled, receives £17, and
each has also fees amounting to £15 or £20 a year. A
be(|uest of £130 was lately vested in the jjurchase of a
house and land, now yielding £6 per annum, appropriated
to teaching poor children; and a school, erected from
the accumulations of an ancient fund, is chiefly maintained
by Mr. Hope Johnstone. There are some other
schools, and a library. The chief antiquity is the ruin
of the castle of Achincass, the walls of which are about
150 feet square, twenty feet high, and fifteen feet thick.
Traces are still visible of the Roman road leading from
the great camp at Burnswark, in the parish of Middlebie,
to a small rectangular encampment in this parish called
Talius-liolm. There are also numerous cairns and circular
inclosures upon the hills. The parish contains
several strong chalybeate springs.