KIRKCONNEL, a parish and village, in the county
of Dumfries, 4 miles (N. W. by \V.) from Sanq<ihar; containing
1130 inhabitants, of whom 500 are in the village.
St. Connel, to whom the church was dedicated, appears
to have given the name to this parish. The church at
one time belonged to the monks of Holywood, who received
the tithes, establishing a vicarage for the due
performance of divine service. At the Reformation the
revenues were held by Lord Crichton of Sanquhar, on
the payment of £20 Scots yearly to the monks; but
after that event, the patronage and tithes, with other
property of the abbey, were vested in the crown, and
granted by it to John Murray of Loehmaben. In the
reign of Charles II. the jiatronage was transferred to the
Duke of Queensberry; and upon the death of the last
duke, William, it came, with the title, into the noble
family of Scott, to whom nearly the whole of this parish,
with very extensive projjcrty in the neighbouring districts,
now belongs. The rAlusii is about fifteen miles
in length and eight in breadth, and contains upwards of
26,000 acres. It is bounded on the north and northeast
by the parish of Oawl'ordjohn, in the county of
Lanark; on the north-west and west by New Cumnock
and Auchinleck, in the county of Ayr; and on the southeast
and south-west by the parish of Sanquhar. The
surface throughout is irregular and hilly. The ground
gradually rises for some distance on each side of the
river Nith, which intersects the parish from west to east;
after which it forms a continued range of hills, of considerable
elevation, distant from the river on each side
about two or three miles, and affording good sheep pasture.
Beyond these hills, to the north and south, the
land consists of peat-moss covered with heath and grass,
or cold and swampy land, intersected with narrow valleys
and deep ravines.
The SOIL under cultivation is in some parts a light
gravelly mould; in other places it is a loam or clay, and
sometimes a mixture of moss and clay. Occasionally
there is a deep rich earth, especially upon the holm
lands near the river. About 6300 acres are arable;
about 19,100 are hill pasture, 542 low pasture, and 178
occupied by wood: both grain and green crops of all
kinds are raised, but barley and wheat are sown in but
small quantities, on account of the great distance of a
regular market. The sheep, of which 11,000 or 12,000
are kept, are chiefly of the native black-faced breed, as
being the most hardy, and the best suited to the bleak
exposure of hill pasturage: about 7000 Jambs are annually
reared, 5000 of which are sent to market. The
cows, which are principally kept for the dairy, are of
the Ayrshire or Cunninghame breed. Improvements
in every branch of agriculture have been extensively
carried on, chiefly by the noble proprietor of the
parish; and the annual value of real property in Kirkconnel
now amounts to £5647. Limestone and ironstone
are found in this district; but it is chiefly celebrated
for its coal, which is of the best quality, and was
extensively wrought until the mining operations were
transferred to the neighbouring parish of Sanquhar,
for more general convenience. There is an iron-plating
forge upon a small scale, employing eight or ten men.
A great public road runs through the upper district,
upon which the Glasgow and Carlisle coach used to pass
and repass daily: the parish roads are in good repair,
but bridges are much wanted on the great road. The
village is principally inhabited by labourers. For ecclesiastical
purposes the parish is within the limits of the
presbytery of Penpont, synod of Dumfries; patron, the
Duke of Buccleuch and Queensberry. The stipend
averages hardly £200, with a good manse and convenient
offices, and a glebe valued at £18 per annum. Kirkconnel
church, a plain structure bearing the date 1729,
has been enlarged and repaired within the present century,
and is in very good condition. There is a parochial
school, in which English, writing, and arithmetic
are taught; the master has the minimum salary, with a
house, and about £34 fees. On the farm of Rigg are
two mineral springs, useful in stomachic complaints;
but owing to the want of accommodation they are not
much frequented: the waters, however, are often sent
to distant parts of the country. There are some small
remains of antiquity. John Hyslop, author of the Cameronians
Dream, was a native of the parish; and the
late venerable and highly-esteemed George Jardine, Esq.,
professor of logic in the university of Glasgow, was in
early life, for a short time, parochial schoolmaster of
Kirkconnel: he bequeathed the sum of £50 for the benefit
of the schoolmaster, directing the capital to be laid
out on the most advantageous terms, and the interest
to be paid to the master for ever.