WAMPHRAY, a parish, in the county of Dumfries,
9 miles (S. E. by S.) from the town of Moffat; containing
509 inhabitants. This parish derives its name, in
the Gaelic signifying " the deep glen in the forest ",
from the situation of its church in a sequestered and
thickly- wooded vale on the south side of the Water of
Wamphray. It appears to have been of some little
consequence at an early period, and there are still vestiges
of the ancient house of Wamphray. No events of
historical importance are recorded in connexion with the
place; but at Girth-Head are some remains of a Roman
station, and the vestiges of a road leading from it to
Carlisle, and also towards Glasgow. On this road are
several stones at equal distances, supposed to have been
Roman milestones, near one of which Charles II. is said
to have passed a night on his route to England a little
before the battle of Worcester.
The PARISH is situated in the district of Upper Annandale,
and bounded on the west by the river Annan,
which separates it from the parishes of Johnstone and
Kirkpatrick-Juxta. It is about six miles and a half in
length and three miles in breadth, comprising an area of
12,000 acres; 3000 acres are arable, 250 woodland and
plantations, and the remainder hill-pasture, moorland,
and waste. The surface is marked by two mountainous
ranges, nearly parallel with each other and with the
river Annan, which intersect the parish from south-east
to north-west, and have an elevation varying from 1000
to 2500 feet above the level of the sea; and also by two
ranges of hills of inferior height, of which the highest
bill does not attain more than 1000 feet. Between these
heights are beautiful valleys, and tracts of level land in
a state of excellent cultivation: the vale of the Wamphray
is exceedingly fertile, and abounds with pleasingly
picturesque scenery. The Wamphray water, which has
its source in the hills to the north of the parish, taking
a southern direction, flows along the valley to which it
gives name, in some parts between banks richly wooded,
and in others between ijrecipitous rocks of freestone and
basaltic columns mantled with ivy. In about the middle
of its gracefully-winding course it forms numerous romantic
cascades, behind the manse, not far from the
church; and after a progress of nearly two miles and a
half between the mountain ranges, and having received
not a few streams from the heights, it abruptly diverts
its channel to the west, and falls into the river Annan
on the boundary of the parish. There is also a beautiful
cascade where this parish joins that of Moffat, called
the Bell-Craig, whose interesting scenery attracts many
visiters from the mineral wells of Moffat.
The soil is various; on the banks of the Annan, a deep
rich loam; in some parts, of ligliter (juality, varying in
colour from a bright red to a dark brown; and in others,
clay: the lower grounds have a subsoil of sand or gravel.
Crops are raised of wheat, barley, oats, potatoes, and
turnips, with the usual grasses, and vegetables and fruit
of all kinds. The system of husbandry has been greatly
improved within tfie last thirty or forty years; the farms
are of considerable extent, and the farm houses and olhces
in general well built, and adapted to the nature of the
farms, upon all of which tiircshing-machines have been
erected. Much waste land has been reclaimed and
brought into cultivation, and several of the larger sheepwalks
are interspersed with portions of arable ground,
producing excellent crops. The lands have been mostly
inclosed, and the fences are kept in good order. Many
of the cottagers here have pendicles of land attached to
their dwellings, in the cultivation of which, during the
intervals of labour at their respective callings, they are
profitably engaged. The cattle are chiefly of the Galloway
breed, and much attention is paid to their improvement;
the sheep are principally of the Cheviot breed,
occasioually crossed with the Leicester. About 500
head of cattle, and nearly 16,000 sheep, including 1000
of the black-faced breed, are kept; and also a considerable
number of swine. The grain raised in the parish is
either for home consumption, or disposed of in the
neighbourhood; the cattle are purchased by dealers for
the Dumfries market, and the sheep are sent to Liverpool
and other places in the south, and occasionally to
Glasgow and Edinburgh. The plantations, which are
mostly of recent date, consist of Scotch fir, and larch,
with oak, ash, and other trees; they are under careful
management, regularly thinned, and generally in a
thriving state. Along the banks of the rivers are some
remains of natural wood, chiefly oak and ash. Limestone
is found in some places, but it is not wrought,
from the scarcity of fuel for burning it into lime; and
freestone, of very inferior equality, occurs in several
parts. The annual value of real property in Wamphray
is £3573. There are a few good houses occupied by
some of the smaller landed proprietors, but no seats;
and the village, which is called Newton, is very inconsiderable.
Letters are forwarded from the office at
Moffat, with which place facility of communication is
maintained by the Caledonian railway, and the turnpike-
road to Langholm, both which intersect the parish;
other roads also pass through the parish, kept in repair
by statute labour.
This place is ecclesiastically in the presbytery of Lochmaben
and synod of Dumfries. The minister's stipend
is £221. 12. 10., with a manse, and a glebe valued at£12
per annum; patron, the Earl of Hopetoun. Wamphray
church, situated nearly in the centre of the parish, is a
neat substantial structure, erected in 1834, and containing
sufficient accommodation. There is a place of worship
for members of the United Presbyterian Church. The
parochial school is attended by nearly ninety children;
the master has a salary of £34. 4. 4., with a house and
garden, and the fees average about £25. In the parish
are vestiges of several ancient camps, some of which are
supposed to be of Roman origin, especially one near the
Roman road previously noticed, and another to the rear
of it. There were also till lately the remains of a Druidical
circle, almost entire, on a rising ground eastward
of the church; but in the progress of agriculture, they
were removed. Dr. Ilogerson, physician to Catherine,
Empress of Russia, spent the earlier part of his life here,
and afterwards purchased the principal estate in the parish,
near which, at Dumcrief in the parish of Mofl'at,
he resided till his decease; and he, as well as his son,
the late Dr. John Rogerson, physician to the forces, was
buried here.