W I G 



WIGTOWN, a royal borough, market-town, and the 

 capital of the {hire of the fame name, Scotland, is fituated 

 on the fide of a hill near the confluence of the river Blade- 

 nock, at the diftance of 105 miles S.W. by S. from Edin- 

 burgh. It is of very high antiquity, and appears to have 

 received its charter of incorporation from king Robert 

 Bruce. The civil government is vefted in a provoft, two 

 baillies, and twelve counfellors. Wigtown unites with the 

 boroughs of Whitehorn, New Galloway, and Stranraer, in 

 fending one member to the Briti(h parliament. The church 

 is in good repair. A well-fupplied market is held weekly, 

 and five fairs annually. Being the fhire-town, the Iheriffs' 

 courts are holden here. A grammar-fchool is eitabliflied, 

 and well conduaed. The parifh of Wigtown is in the form 

 of an oblong-fquare, extending five miles in length and four 

 in breadth, and comprehends about 5500 acres. The chmate 

 is cold, but remarknble for producing health and longevity. 

 A great diverfity prevails in the foil and furface : towards the 

 fouth it is interfperfed with hills, which are almoft entL>-eJy 

 arable, with a dry, light, and fertile mould ; the north-weft 

 corner is more varied and lefs productive ; and the north- 

 weft part is principally covered with mofs, and appears to 

 have been formerly an arm of the fea. The greater part is 

 inclofed ; and the fpirit of agricultural improvement is much 

 encouraged. Particular attention is paid to the repairs of 

 the roads and bridges. The population of the parifti, at 

 the enumeration of the year 181 1, amounted to 171 1. In 

 the weftern part of the parifh is a large circle of ftones, 

 called " The Standing Stones of Torhoufe," which is fup- 

 pofed to have been a temple of the Druids. — Beauties of 

 Scotland, vol. ii. Wigtownftiire. Gazetteer of Scotland, 

 1806. Carlide's Topographical Diftionary of Scotland, 

 2 vols. 4to. 18 13. 



Wigtown Bay, a bay of the Irifh fea, on the S. coaft of 

 Scotland, at the mouth of the river Cree, between the 

 counties of Wigtown and Kircudbright. 



WIGTOWNSHIRE, the weftern part of the diftriA 

 of Galloway, forms the fouth-weftern extremity of Scot- 

 land. It is bounded on the E. by Kircudbright, on the 

 S.E. by Wigtown bay, on the S. and W. by the Irifli 

 fea, and on the N. by Ayrfhire. It is of an irregular 

 figure, of which the greateft length is about thirty miles, 

 and the breadth nearly twelve. The fuperficial contents are 

 469 fquare miles, or 238,721 Scottifh acres. The {hire com- 

 prehends three royal boroughs, Wigtown, Stranraer, and 

 Whitehorn ; alfo the town of Portpatrick, and thirteen other 

 pariflies. By the pop\(4ation return of the year 181 1, the 

 number of houfes is ftaftd to be 5402 ; that of the inhabit- 

 ants 26,891 ; namely, I2,205males,and 14,686 females. The 

 (hire fends one member to the imperial parliament, and the 

 three boroughs unite to fend another. Wigtownftiire is one 

 of the moft level counties in Scotland ; and the hills are in 

 general free from projefting rocks, and very acceffible to 

 the plough. The navigation along the coaft is fo uninter- 

 rupted, that it may be regarded as one of the moft eligible 

 fituations in the ifland, in point of natural advantages, for 

 a trading diftrict. The richeft lands lie upon the coaft, 

 where the means of improvement are to be met with in the 

 greateft abundance : the inland and more elevated parts have 

 a confiderable mixture of heath and mofs, but are all in a 

 greater or lefs degree fufceptible of improvement. There 

 are few mountains in Wigtownftiire. The Cairnpat, near 

 Portpatrick, is one of the moft confiderable : it rifes 800 

 feet above the level of the fea. The fummit bears all the 

 marks of having been a military ftation, being furrounded 

 by three ftone walls, with very ample fpaces between them ; 



WIG 



and commands a profpeft of Loch-ryan, and Luce bay, 

 which by advancing inland form the peninfula, called the 

 Rhynns of Galloway, in which Portpatrick is fituated. 



The rivers of this county are of no great importance. 

 The Cree forms part of its eaftern boundary. The next 

 ftream to the weftward is the Bladenoch, which rifes from a 

 lake called Loch Macbeary, fituated moftly between the two 

 parifties of Kirkowen and Penningham. There are feveral 

 fmall iflands in it ; upon the largeft of which are the remains 

 of a confiderable building and fmall garden. The river 

 Bladenoch, which has its fource in this lake, runs in a fouth- 

 eaftern direftion for about two-thirds of its length ; after 

 which it takes a more eafterly courfe, and empties itfelf into 

 the bay of Wigtown : its whole length is about twenty -four 

 miles. Tarff is a ftream which rifes in the preciniSs of 

 Ayrftiire, and after a courfe of twelve miles, in a fouth- 

 eafterly direftion, falls into the Bladenoch in the parifti of 

 Kirkowen. Luce-water is a fmall river, which runs into the 

 great bay of that name. Salmon are caught in it ; and it is 

 obferved that the flcin of the falmon, when it firft goes up 

 the river, which is deeply tinged with mofs, is of a filveuy 

 colour, but after remaining fome time, it becomes of a 

 brownifti-yellow. 



Wigtownftiire has feveral frefti-water lakes, but none of 

 particular importance. In the parifti of Sorbie is one of 

 three miles in circumference, well ftored with pike, perch, 

 and eels. It is called Dowalton lake, becaufe the ancient 

 powerful chiefs, the Macdowals, had their refidence near it. 

 In the parifti of Ince are fifteen lakes, of different degrees 

 of extent, abounding with fifti of feveral kinds, and fre- 

 quented by a variety of water-fowls. Swans emigrate from 

 Ireland, particularly in fevere winters, and continue in thefe 

 lakes till fpring. The ftiire of Wigtown is deeply pene- 

 trated by navigable bays. Wigtown bay and Luce bay ad- 

 vance in a direftion nearly parallel far into the country to- 

 wards the north. At the fame time, from the northern part 

 of the county, the long and narrow bay called Loch-ryan 

 advances fouthward towards the bay of Luce, and peninfu- 

 lates an extenfive territory, which appears to have long re- 

 mained divided from the reft of Scotland. Loch-ryan is a 

 beautiful as well as a fafe and commodious bay for ftiipping. 

 It is about ten miles in length from north to fouth : the en- 

 trance into it is nearly two miles broad. It is bounded on 

 the eaft by the parifti of Balantrae, in Ayrftiire, and on the 

 weft by Millar Point, a headland in the parifti of Kirkholm. 

 About three or four miles from the mouth of the loch, on 

 the eaft fide, is the little village of Cairn ; contiguous to 

 which is a commodious bay with good anchoring ground, 

 and depth of water fufficient for ftiips of any burthen ; and 

 all veftels entering into or coming out of the frith of Clyde 

 feek this bay in ftormy weather. King Wilham's fleet an- 

 chored here in their paflage to Ireland. Befides the Cairn 

 bay, there are feveral other good anchoring bays in the loch. 

 Luce bay, which advances from the fouth towards Loch- 

 ryan, is far more extenfive. In dark and hazy weather, 

 veftels often miftake Luce bay for the Irifti channel, and 

 when keeping a northerly courfe, fometimes run on ftiore, 

 before the error is difcovered. The bay of Luce contains 

 a great variety of lefler bay?, fome of which are capable of 

 being converted into convenient harbours ; and mariners ac- 

 quainted with them find anchoring places, in which they are 

 in fafety from almoft every wind. The coaft around the 

 bay of Luce is very various : in fome places it confifts of a 

 fine gravel beach ; at other points fteep rocks project into the 

 fea, forming a bold inacceflible ftiore. The moft fouthern 

 point of the coaft, or rather of Scotland, is called the Mull 



of 



I 



