Oxton, Scottish Borders

Oxton is a small rural village in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland, just off the A68. It is 4.5 miles north of Lauder, and 25 miles south east of the centre of Edinburgh, yet in a quiet rural position.

History

The village of Oxton lies in the parish of Channelkirk. This name for the parish appears to have come into general use in the district around the beginning of the eighteenth century but its ancient name was Childer-kirk and later Gingle-kirk. A Roman camp, visible from the air, has been identified nearby and may have been connected with the progress of the army of Septimus Severus in AD 209-210. Saint Cuthbert, who became Bishop of Lindisfarne, was born here in AD635 and probably baptised his early converts at the nearby Holy Water Cleuch (spring).

The village Oxton was called Ugston for several hundred years and appears under that name as late as the 1841 census. As with all Scottish parishes its inhabitants were ruled by a combination of the Kirk Session and the Heritors, the latter being local landowners who were jointly responsible for funding all projects in the parish such as repairs or extensions to the church, the manse, the school, the churchyard, the schoolmaster’s house, and even the river bridges, all out of their own pockets.

Climate

The village often gets snowed in during the winter, as the Borders Council gritters cannot get access so villagers have to rely on the local farmers to help clear roads with tractors.

Gallery

See also

References

    External links

    Wikimedia Commons has media related to Oxton, Scottish Borders.

    Coordinates: 55°46′20″N 2°48′12″W / 55.7722°N 2.8033°W / 55.7722; -2.8033

    This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Thursday, April 28, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.