KIRKURD, a parish, in the county of Peebles, 65
miles (N. E.) from Biggar; containing 305 inhabitants.
It is said to derive its name from the situation of its
church on an eminence, urd being the Celtic for a height.
By some, however, the name is derived from an ancient
proprietor of land, named Urd Frazer, from whose connexion
with the place they also deduce the names of
Netherurd, Loch Urd, and Ladyurd, in the parish. In
the fifteenth century the place appears to have formed
part of the possessions of Sir David Scott, ancestor of
the ducal family of Buccleuch. Kirkurd parish is about
five miles and a half in length from east to west, and
from three to four miles in average breadth. It is
bounded on the north by the water of the Tarth, which
separates it from the parishes of Linton and Newlands;
on the east by the parishes of Newlands and Stobo; on
the south by Broughton; and on the west by Skirling
and Dolphington. The surface is diversified with hill and
dale in nearly equal portions. Hell's Cleuch, the highest
of the hills, has an elevation of '2100 feet above the level
of the sea; and on the summit is a cairn, situated on a
point where the parishes of Stobo and Broughton come
in contact with this parish. It is called the Piked .Staiie,
and commands an extensive view, embracing the country
beyond the Forth, and the chain of mountains stretching
from the eastern portion of the county of Fife to the
county of Dumbarton; also North Berwick, the Eildon
hills near Melrose, and the Cheviot hills in the county
of Northumbirland. The Turth is the only stream of
any importance; but there are several springs of excellent
water, affording an ample sup])ly, and near Castle-
Craig a sul|)hureous spring, which, on being analysed,
was found to contain properties similar to those of one
i>{ the Bprings at Harrogate, but inferior in strength.
The scenery is generally pleasing, and in many parts
enriched with thriving plantations.
The soil is light and gravelly, and seems well adapted
for the growth of timber. The whole number of acres,
according to actual measurement, is 6620, of which 2'200
are arable, about the same quantity meadow and pasture
land capable of being brought into cultivation, 600 in
woods and plantations, and the remainder chiefly sheeppasture
and waste. The crops are oats, barley, peas,
potatoes, and turnips. Wheat has been raised in very
small quantities, but it was not found suited to the soil.
The system of husbandry is advanced; the lands are
well drained, and irrigation is practised on some of the
meadow lands with singular benefit: the farm-buildings
are comfortable, though inferior to many others in the
neighbourhood; and the various improvements in the
construction of agricultural implements have been adopted.
Considerable attention is paid by the farmers to
the management of the dairy, and to live stock: about
2000 sheep are pastured, chiefly of the black-faced kind,
and 250 black-cattle of the Ayrshire breed are kept in
the parish. The woods and plantations are carefully attended
to, and have been much increased of late. In
this parish the substrata are not various; the prevailing
rocks are of the transition class. Whilst digging for
marl, the horns of an elk were discovered in excellent
preservation; and in some of the boggy lands, have
been dug up quantities of hazel-nuts in a perfectly sound
state. The annual value of real property in the parish
is £2638. Castle-Craig, the seat of Sir A. G. Carmichael,
Bart., is a spacious and handsome mansion, erected
by Sir John G. Carmichael, and enlarged and embellished
by the late proprietor; it is situated in a
highly-cultivated and improved demesne, and the gardens
and pleasure-grounds are laid out with great taste.
Netherurd House, formerly called Cairnmuir House, is
also a handsome residence, the seat of the White family.
The nearest market-towns are Biggar and Peebles, with
which, and with other places, the inhabitants have facilities
of intercourse by roads kept in excellent repair;
the turnpike-roads from Edinburgh to Dumfries, and
from Glasgow to Peebles, pass through the parish.
For ecclesiastical purposes the parish is within the
limits of the presbytery of Peebles, synod of Lothian
and Tweeddale; and the patronage is vested in Sir A.
G. Carmichael, Bart. The stipend of the incumbent is
£158, of which more than a half is a grant from the
exchequer; the manse was erected in I788, and the
glebe comprises about nineteen acres, nearly the whole
of which is good arable land. Kirkurd church, built
in I76G, and conveniently situated for the population,
is a neat and substantial edifice adapted for a congregation
of 300 persons. The members of the Free
Church have a place of worship on the south border of
the parish of Newlands. The parochial school is well
attended; the master has a salary of £34, with an excellent
house and a garden, and the fees average £26
per annum. Attached to the school is a good library;
and until the last few years tlicre was also a parochial
library, supported l)y subscription, in which was a considerable
collection of standard works: on its discontinuance
the books were divided among the members.
In the vicinity of Old Ilarestanes are some remains of
Druidical origin. Near Castle-Craig arc the ancient
mounts called the Castle and tlieLaw; they are
suposed to have been stations for the administration of
justice in former times. To the east of them is a circular
intrenchment on an eminence, named the Ring; and to
the west of them, another fortification, styled the Chesters;
both probably military stations. A stone kistvaen,
inclosing an urn of clay with human bones, was
found in 1754, at Mount Hill; and at the base of that
eminence was discovered, some years afterwards, a stone
coffin, containing human bones, with several rudelyformed
weapons of flint, and a small ring. James
Geddes of Rachan, author of an essay on the Composition
and Manner of Writing of the Ancients, and of several
other tracts, was born in this parish in 17IO; and the
late Dugald Stewart resided for some time at Netherurd
House.