K I R 



461 



K I R 



Kirkalilr. the church and town house. The former stands on a rising 

 ^T-"*' ground behind the town. It was rebuilt in J.S07, and is 

 rather a handsome structure. The town-house and prison 

 is a plain old building of hewn stone, projecting a little in- 

 to the street, and is ornamented with a tower and spire : 

 it contains also the guard-house and public weigh-house. 

 The inhabitant* have long feit the want of a suite of rooms 

 for public meetings, assemblies, &c. and are now (1818) 

 engaged in erecting a handsome building to remedy this 

 inconvenience. The harbour, which is tolerably safe, but 

 has no great depth of water, is situate at the east end of 

 the town, and has been much improved of late years. In 

 1796, an inner harbour or basin was added to it, capable 

 of containing 1 5 sail of vessels of 1 50 to 200 tons. The 

 outer harbour can accommodate 30 to 35 sail of ships. 



Kirkaldy was very early erected into a royal burgh ; 

 but the precise date is unknown. It was granted in the 

 year 1334 by David II. to the abbey of Dunfermline, in 

 whose possession it continued till the year 1 450, when the 

 commendator and monastery sold to the barftes and inha- 

 bitants the burgh and harbour, with all the rights and pri- 

 vileges. This charter was renewed by Charles I. in 1644. 

 The government of the burgh is vested in a council an- 

 nually chosen, consisting of 2 1 members, of whom 10 must 

 be marine; s, eight merchants, and three craftsmen ; out of 

 these are elected a provost, two bailies, a dean of guild, and 

 a treasurer, which form the magistracy. 



In former times, Kirkaldy enjoyed considerable prospe- 

 rity and opulence, and in public assessments and similar 

 documents, it was rated as the sixth burgh of Scotland ; the 

 only burghs on wh,ich higher assessments were imposed, 

 being Edinburgh, Dundee, Aberdeen, Glasgow, and Perth. 

 During the reign of James I. and the commencement of 

 that of Charles I. it possessed lOOsaii of vessels, many of 

 which were of considerable tonnage. From this latter pe- 

 riod it appears to have fallen rapidly into decay. Between 

 the year 1644 and 1650, and sTOrtly after, in the subse- 

 quent struggle with England, in less than 10 years 96 of 

 its ships were taken at sea. The distress of the inhabitants 

 was aggravated by the oppression of the then existing go- 

 vernment, to which they had become obnoxious, by the ac- 

 tive part which they took in the religious differences which 

 then agitated the kingdom. The battle of Kilsy th, in 1 645, 

 it is said left 200 widows of Covenanters in Kirkaldy. 



At the Revolution in 1688, the vessels belonging to the 

 town were only 20 in number, and of small tonnage, and 

 in 1700 they were reduced to two ferry-boats and one 

 coaster. The trade has now greatly revived. There are at 

 present belonging to Kirkaldy five vessels employed in 

 the West India trade, two in the whale fishery, 26 chief- 

 ly in the trade to the Baltic and British North America, 

 five coasters, and three ferry-boats, making in all upwards 

 of 6500 tons, and employing 350 seamen. Ship-building 

 was carried on here with spirit about 1 5 years ago, but it 

 has now greatly declined. The manufactures consist prin- 

 cipally of ticks, checks, and sheetings, the greater part of 

 vhich was formerly sent to the London market, but now 

 these goods are chiefly sent to Glasgow, whence they are 

 exported to the West Indies and America. On an average 

 of the last three years, the goods manufactured here and 

 in the contiguous villages of Linktoun and Pathhead, a- 

 mount to 2,032,321 yards, valued at 166,219 Sterling. 

 Like every other manufacturing town, Kirkaldy felt se- 

 verely the stagnation of trade in 18 16 and 181 7, which has 

 reduced this average : the value of the goods manufac- 

 t ured in 1 8 1 5 being 1 25,98 1 . The trade is now again on 

 the increase. There are several mills in the town and im- 

 mediate neighbourhood for spinning yarn, which is chief- 

 ly consumed by the manufacturers. There were also mills 

 for spinning cotton yarn, but these being found unprofit- 

 able, have been given up several years since. Of late years, 



Kirkcud- 

 bright. 



a considerable trade has been carried on in importing li- Kitknldy 

 nen yarn from Ireland and Germany. Flax and ashes are 

 the chief articles of import from the Baltic. m There are 

 two tan-works, and four salt pans, which make annually 

 15,000 bushels of salt. Immediately adjoining the town, 

 to the east, is an extensive distillery ; and close at the back 

 of the town there is a coal-work, where 1 5,000 tons of coal 

 are raised yearly. There is a weekly market held on Sa. 

 tin-day for the sale of grain, which is well attended. Kir- 

 kakly is the s,eat of a custom-house, the jurisdiction of 

 which extends from Largs to Aberdour, and in all this dis- 

 trict Kirkaldy has the only legalised quay for the shipping 

 and landingof goods. A subscription library was instituted 

 about 20 years ago, and now consists of 3000 volumes, in 

 general well selected. There are branches oK4 banks, viz. 

 the Bank of Scotland, Fife Bank, Glasgow Bunk, and the 

 Commercial Bank of Scotland for the accommodation of 

 this and the neighbouring towns. The house rents of the 

 burgh are about 6860 per annum. The corporation once 

 possessed a considerable extent of land, but this was, at 

 different times, sold, with the consent of the convention of 

 lloyal Burghs, to defray the expense of repairing the har- 

 bour. The revenue of the town now consists of the shore- 

 dues and anchorage, the impost of two pennies Scots per 

 pint on all ale and beer brewed or sold in the burgh, the 

 petty customs, and some trifling feu-duties. It amounts 

 annually to about 550. Kirkaldy has produced several 

 men eminent in their day ; amongst others, Michael Scott, 

 who flourished in the 13lh century ; and in the last cen- 

 tury, Dr. John Drysdale, the celebrated Dr. Adam Smith, 

 and that able statesman Mr. Oswald of Dunikier. Kirk- 

 aldy joins with Dysart, Kinghorn, and Burntisland, in re 

 turning a member to the British Parliament Population 

 in 1811, 3(J79. West Long. 3 10', North Lat. 56 8'. 

 KIRKGHISES. See TARTAR v. 

 KIRKCUDBRIGHTis atown in Scotland,and theprin- 

 cipal in the stewartry of the same name. It is tftte seat of the 

 steward courts, and is situated on the river Dee, about 6 

 milesabove itsconfluence with the Solway Firth, in Lat. 54 

 49' N. Long. 4 43' W. ; and is therefore about 31 leagues 

 S. S. W. of Edinburgh, and 9 leagues S. W. of Dumfries. 



In the valuable statistical account of Kirkcudbright, 

 drawn up by Dr.Muter,the name is supposed to have been 

 derived from an ancient church in the immediate vicinity Name, 

 of the burgh, which had been dedicated to St. Cuthbert, 

 and of which some vestiges still remain. It has, however, 

 been ingeniously suggested, that the learned doctor is mis- 

 taken on this point, and that the name Kirkcudbrightowes 

 its origin to that of the ancient British fortress of Caerban- 

 lorigttm, situated on Drumore hill, about 4 miles distant. 



Kirkcudbright was anciently a burgh of regality, and 

 held of the Douglasses, lords of Galloway, as superiors. 

 But, upon the forfeiture of the Douglas estates, James II. 

 erected the town into a royal burgh, by a charter dated at 

 Perth, Oct. 20, 1455 ; which was renewed and confirmed 

 by a novoflamus from Charles I., dated Holyroodhouse, 

 July 20, 1633. This charter, in common with that p^" the 

 other royal burghs in Scotland, involves the pernicious 

 principle of self-election. It fixes that the town-council 

 is to consist of 17 members, three of whom are magis- 

 trates, who are to meet annually at Michaelmas, and vote 

 out two or three of their number, and elect two or three 

 new councillors in their place. 



The pecuniary affairs of the burgh of Kirkcudbright 

 have been extremely well managed. The whole pro- 

 perty originally contained in the charter of James II. 

 remains entire, none having been sold or disposed of. 

 The town rental, and other revenues, amounted, in 1787, 

 to 333, and the debt to 1734; and in 1818, the to- 

 tal revenue amounts to 1198, and the debt, including 

 some funds mortified for charitable purposes, to 4682. 



Set of the 

 . burgh. 



