Notices of Heathpool. By James Hardy. 411 



gnarled oaks, which belonged to Lord Collingwood," is at Heathpool Linn ; 

 and undoubtedly on the height of Heathpool Bell adjacent to the Linn, if 

 it belongs to the estate, is a wood of oak trees, which although from 

 exposure they wear an old world look, are certainly trained trees. There 

 are also on the S.W. of Harrow Bog about f of a mile S. from Heathpool, 

 on the east side of Colledge, other planted oaks of stunted growth. The 

 natural wood of Harrow Bog is a tangled thicket of contorted hazels, which 

 have been long famous for supplying the country-side with " Harrow Bog 

 nuts." I was told that in the hot summer of 1864, the hazel nuts from it 

 were extremely small in size ; much more so than in ordinary years. 

 The name of the wood, it may be conjectured, might be derived 

 from its being liable to supply the cultivator with timber for constructing 

 the primitive rude harrows and other agricultural implements.* 



Lord Collingwood died 6th March, 1810,off Port Mahon, and was buried 

 in St. Paul's Cathedral, by the side of Lord Nelson : Lady Collingwood 

 died 17th Sept., 1819. 



After the death of these distinguished owners, Heathpool again relapsed 

 into pastoral seclusion. There still remained a tie with the past in the 

 tenantry. The Reeds after leaving Heathpool are believed to have become 

 tenants of South Middleton, and early in the century went back to Heath- 

 pool. At South Middleton, the family owned a freehold cottage. In 

 Burke's " Landed Gentry," William Peed, 4th son of George Reed and 

 Elizabeth Werge, is called " of Heathpool," and that he was married and 

 had a family. He was probably the Reed who returned, and then only as 

 a tenant. In 1841 and 1847, William Reed, occupier of land was on the list 

 of voters. There were no voters in 1872 or 1880. In 1872, Gilbert William 

 Werg Reed, residing at Heathpool had freehold house and land at South 

 Middleton. The cottage and land here have since been sold. At Kirk- 

 newton, a monument records the deaths of Thomas Reed of Hoppen, 

 1817, of Anne Reed, daughter of Thomas, and of Leighton Reed, 3rd son of 



* When conversing with our venerable member, Mr Milne-Home, as far 

 back as 1849, he mentioned that there were once tenures in some places 

 in the east of Berwickshire, of which Mr Bishop of Reston-hill had told 

 him, that had a right of timber in the woods of the manor " for harrow 

 and barrow, for soam and team." The soam was a chain or rope to drag 

 the plough ; team also was an ox-chain. In Galloway, soam is the iron- 

 head of a plough. This does not help us in explaining the phrase " soam 

 and team." In a lease of the lands of Brokholl, Heruode, (Harewood) and 

 Denewood (Berwickshire) let by the Prior of Durham, 10 March, 1429-30, 

 to Thomas Atkynson and his wife of " Bonkyll," there is this clause : — 

 " Also yt ys accordit that the sayd Thomas and his wyfe sail have tymbre 

 for byggyng of new howsys and reparelyng of tham, when that it needys 

 by reson, and also for plewes and harrowes for tylth made within the said 

 lande by bydyng of the priour of Coldyngham and delyveraunce of his 

 officers, gyve silk tymbre may be fune within the sayd wode." — The 

 Priory of Coldingham, p. 104 (Surtees Society). 



