Dunsyre has been inhabited for thousands of years. The cultivation terraces on the hill above the village are prehistoric; the Roman army passed through the valley; a baronial castle stood within a few hundred yards of the church. What follows is the parish's history in nine chapters.
The name & the hill
The Celtic origins of the name, the Druidical tradition, and the prehistoric cultivation terraces on Dunsyre Hill.
Read moreRomans in the parish
Agricola's route through the Garvald pass, the earthen Roman dyke, and the burial urns found in the valley.
Read moreThe castle & barony
Dunsyre Castle, Westhall Tower, the succession of noble owners, and a vault that once held instruments of torture.
Read moreThe Barony Court 1523–1542
The Court Book of the Barony of Carnwath 1523–1542: a unique record of baronial justice written in Middle Scots, with direct connections to the parish of Dunsyre.
Read moreClan Lockhart
From the Crusades and the Lee Penny to the Lord President of the Court of Session: seven centuries of one family's presence in South Lanarkshire.
Read moreThe Covenanters
Donald Cargill's last sermon on Dunsyre Common, William Veitch's escape from the dragoons, and the preaching holes in the moors.
Read moreThe church
An ancient foundation gifted to the monks of Kelso in the twelfth century, and held by them until the Reformation.
Read moreThe railway
The Caledonian branch to Dolphinton, built out of rivalry and not demand, and the station that served Dunsyre from 1867 to 1945.
Read moreThe parish in 1834
The Rev. William Meek's Statistical Account: population, wages, the Medwin straightening, and life in the parish two centuries ago.
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