Ecclefechan
Encyclopedia
Ecclefechan is a small village in the south of Scotland
in Dumfries and Galloway
.
Ecclefechan lay in the early middle ages within the British kingdom of Rheged, and the name is derived from the Brythonic
for "small church" (cognate with Welsh "eglwys" = church, "bychan" = small, which has the form "fechan" following a feminine noun). After Gaelic later spread in the area, the belief arose that the name derived from the 7th century St Féchín of Fore.
The village is known as "Fechan" to the local residents. It has two shops, one of which is no longer a Post Office
, a hairdresser, a church, a doctors surgery and a primary school "Hoddom Primary School". It also has three hotels: "The Ecclefechan Hotel" with its white-painted frontage is prominent on the High Street and the main junction in the village; the "Cressfield Hotel" which has an adjoining caravan park; "Kirkconnel Hall Hotel" which sits to the north.
, 5 miles (8 km) north of Annan
and 8 miles (12.9 km) northwest of the English
border. The A74(M)
runs immediately north of the village and J19 of this motorway is just northwest of the village.
The High Street of the village has a burn which runs through a culvert below it. This culvert was constructed in 1875 by Dr George Arnott at his own expense.
's birthplace "The Arched House" is a tourist attraction and has been maintained by the National Trust for Scotland
since 1936.
Ecclefechan lies at the foot of a large Roman
Fort, Burnswark, whose flat top dominates the horizon. Two miles from the village centre lies Hoddom Castle
, a caravan and holiday park.
Thomas Carlyle
(1795–1881), the essayist, satirist and historian was born in Ecclefechan on 4 December 1795 at The Arched House. Carlyle left Ecclefechan at the age of 13 and walked the 84 miles to Edinburgh
in order to attend university. In 1828 Carlyle moved to Craigenputtock
with his wife Jane. He never forgot his roots and insisted that Ecclefechan should become his final resting place. He was buried in Ecclefechan churchyard on 5 February 1881.
Archibald Arnott
(1772–1855), Napoleon's doctor on St Helena, was born in Ecclefechan on 18 April 1772 at Kirconnel Hall. He returned to Ecclefechan in his retirement and he was also buried in the Ecclefechan churchyard.
William Harkness
(1837–1903) who was an astronomer
was born at Ecclefechan.
James Bryson McLachlan (1869–1937). Born in Ecclefechan. Immigrated to Nova Scotia where he became a noted Labour figure, and member of the Communist party.
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
in Dumfries and Galloway
Dumfries and Galloway
Dumfries and Galloway is one of 32 unitary council areas of Scotland. It was one of the nine administrative 'regions' of mainland Scotland created in 1975 by the Local Government etc. Act 1973...
.
Ecclefechan lay in the early middle ages within the British kingdom of Rheged, and the name is derived from the Brythonic
Brythonic languages
The Brythonic or Brittonic languages form one of the two branches of the Insular Celtic language family, the other being Goidelic. The name Brythonic was derived by Welsh Celticist John Rhys from the Welsh word Brython, meaning an indigenous Briton as opposed to an Anglo-Saxon or Gael...
for "small church" (cognate with Welsh "eglwys" = church, "bychan" = small, which has the form "fechan" following a feminine noun). After Gaelic later spread in the area, the belief arose that the name derived from the 7th century St Féchín of Fore.
The village is known as "Fechan" to the local residents. It has two shops, one of which is no longer a Post Office
Post office
A post office is a facility forming part of a postal system for the posting, receipt, sorting, handling, transmission or delivery of mail.Post offices offer mail-related services such as post office boxes, postage and packaging supplies...
, a hairdresser, a church, a doctors surgery and a primary school "Hoddom Primary School". It also has three hotels: "The Ecclefechan Hotel" with its white-painted frontage is prominent on the High Street and the main junction in the village; the "Cressfield Hotel" which has an adjoining caravan park; "Kirkconnel Hall Hotel" which sits to the north.
Geography and administration
Ecclefechan lies in the valley of the Mein Water, a tributary of the River AnnanRiver Annan
The River Annan is a river in southwest Scotland. It rises at the foot of Hart Fell, five miles north of Moffat. A second fork rises on Annanhead Hill and flows through the Devil's Beef Tub before joining at the Hart Fell fork north of Moffat.From there it flows past the town of Lockerbie, and...
, 5 miles (8 km) north of Annan
Annan, Dumfries and Galloway
The royal burgh of Annan is a well-built town, red sandstone being the material mainly used. Each year in July, Annan celebrates the Royal Charter and the boundaries of the Royal Burgh are confirmed when a mounted cavalcade undertakes the Riding of the Marches. Entertainment includes a...
and 8 miles (12.9 km) northwest of the English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
border. The A74(M)
M74 motorway
The A74 and M74 motorways form a major motorway in Scotland. Following an extension opened on 28 June 2011, it connects the M8 motorway west of Glasgow to the English border at Gretna, creating an alternative route for traffic moving from the south to the west of the city...
runs immediately north of the village and J19 of this motorway is just northwest of the village.
The High Street of the village has a burn which runs through a culvert below it. This culvert was constructed in 1875 by Dr George Arnott at his own expense.
Places of interest
Thomas CarlyleThomas Carlyle
Thomas Carlyle was a Scottish satirical writer, essayist, historian and teacher during the Victorian era.He called economics "the dismal science", wrote articles for the Edinburgh Encyclopedia, and became a controversial social commentator.Coming from a strict Calvinist family, Carlyle was...
's birthplace "The Arched House" is a tourist attraction and has been maintained by the National Trust for Scotland
National Trust for Scotland
The National Trust for Scotland for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, commonly known as the National Trust for Scotland describes itself as the conservation charity that protects and promotes Scotland's natural and cultural heritage for present and future generations to...
since 1936.
Ecclefechan lies at the foot of a large Roman
Roman Britain
Roman Britain was the part of the island of Great Britain controlled by the Roman Empire from AD 43 until ca. AD 410.The Romans referred to the imperial province as Britannia, which eventually comprised all of the island of Great Britain south of the fluid frontier with Caledonia...
Fort, Burnswark, whose flat top dominates the horizon. Two miles from the village centre lies Hoddom Castle
Hoddom Castle
Hoddom Castle is a large tower house in Dumfries and Galloway, south Scotland. It is located by the River Annan, south-west of Ecclefechan and the same distance north-west of Brydekirk in the parish of Cummertrees...
, a caravan and holiday park.
Notable residents
Thomas Carlyle
Thomas Carlyle was a Scottish satirical writer, essayist, historian and teacher during the Victorian era.He called economics "the dismal science", wrote articles for the Edinburgh Encyclopedia, and became a controversial social commentator.Coming from a strict Calvinist family, Carlyle was...
(1795–1881), the essayist, satirist and historian was born in Ecclefechan on 4 December 1795 at The Arched House. Carlyle left Ecclefechan at the age of 13 and walked the 84 miles to Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
in order to attend university. In 1828 Carlyle moved to Craigenputtock
Craigenputtock
Craigenputtock is the craig/whinstone hill of the puttocks . It is the upland farming estate on the watershed between Dumfries and Galloway, from Dumfries and Castle Douglas...
with his wife Jane. He never forgot his roots and insisted that Ecclefechan should become his final resting place. He was buried in Ecclefechan churchyard on 5 February 1881.
Archibald Arnott
Archibald Arnott
Archibald Arnott was a British Army surgeon best remembered as Napoleon's doctor on St. Helena, and who was present at the Emperor's autopsy...
(1772–1855), Napoleon's doctor on St Helena, was born in Ecclefechan on 18 April 1772 at Kirconnel Hall. He returned to Ecclefechan in his retirement and he was also buried in the Ecclefechan churchyard.
William Harkness
William Harkness
William Harkness was an astronomer, born at Ecclefechan, Scotland, a son of James Harkness . He was educated at Lafayette College , graduated from the University of Rochester , and studied medicine in New York City. He served as a surgeon in the Union armies during part of the American Civil War...
(1837–1903) who was an astronomer
Astronomer
An astronomer is a scientist who studies celestial bodies such as planets, stars and galaxies.Historically, astronomy was more concerned with the classification and description of phenomena in the sky, while astrophysics attempted to explain these phenomena and the differences between them using...
was born at Ecclefechan.
James Bryson McLachlan (1869–1937). Born in Ecclefechan. Immigrated to Nova Scotia where he became a noted Labour figure, and member of the Communist party.
Culture
- Robert BurnsRobert BurnsRobert Burns was a Scottish poet and a lyricist. He is widely regarded as the national poet of Scotland, and is celebrated worldwide...
(1759–1796) composed a song entitled The Lass O' Ecclefechan.
- Ecclefechan also has links to the GuinnessGuinnessGuinness is a popular Irish dry stout that originated in the brewery of Arthur Guinness at St. James's Gate, Dublin. Guinness is directly descended from the porter style that originated in London in the early 18th century and is one of the most successful beer brands worldwide, brewed in almost...
family, the story of the Whistling Ploughboy of Ecclefechan under the title A Guinness With a Difference was produced by ministries and charts the ploughboy's influence under GodGodGod is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....
on the Guinness family.
- "Oor Wullie" of The Sunday Post fame once got a day off school for spelling "Ecclefechan" correctly, and the Jocks and the Geordies of The DandyThe DandyThe Dandy is a long running children's comic published in the United Kingdom by D. C. Thomson & Co. Ltd. The first issue was printed in 1937 and it is the world's third longest running comic, after Detective Comics and Il Giornalino...
once reminisced the Great Battle of Ecclefechan.
- Local produce includes Ecclefechan butter tartButter tartA butter tart is a type of small pastry tart highly regarded in Canadian cuisine and considered one of Canada's quintessential desserts. The tart consists of butter, sugar, syrup, and egg filled into a flaky pastry and baked until the filling is semi-solid with a crunchy top.The butter tart should...
and a blended whiskyScotch whiskyScotch whisky is whisky made in Scotland.Scotch whisky is divided into five distinct categories: Single Malt Scotch Whisky, Single Grain Scotch Whisky, Blended Malt Scotch Whisky , Blended Grain Scotch Whisky, and Blended Scotch Whisky.All Scotch whisky must be aged in oak barrels for at least three...
called "The Fechan" whose label denotes the Arched House. The Ecclefechan Tart gained national prominence in late 2007 when the supermarket Sainsbury's promoted them as an alternative to mince pies at Christmas, and the tarts proved to be very popular with over 50,000 packs sold in November alone. A version made by the MorayMorayMoray is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland. It lies in the north-east of the country, with coastline on the Moray Firth, and borders the council areas of Aberdeenshire and Highland.- History :...
confectioner WalkersWalkers ShortbreadWalkers Shortbread is a Scottish manufacturer of shortbread, biscuits, cookies and crackers. The company is Scotland's biggest exporter of food....
is now nationally available in the UK.