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Castle Douglas
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Castle Douglas | |
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| Caisteal Dhùghlais (Gaelic) | |
| Castle Douglas (Scots) | |
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| OS grid reference: | NX765625 |
| Population: | 3,671 (2001 Census) |
| Council area: | Dumfries & Galloway |
| Constituent country: | Scotland |
| Sovereign state: | United Kingdom |
| Police force: | Dumfries & Galloway Constabulary |
| Lieutenancy area: | The Stewartry of Kirkcudbright |
| Former county: | Stewartry of Kirkcudbright |
| Post town: | CASTLE DOUGLAS |
| Postal: | DG7 |
| Telephone: | 01556 |
| Scottish Parliament: | Dumfries & Galloway |
| UK Parliament: | Dumfries & Galloway |
| European Parliament: | Scotland |
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- For the castle in South Lanarkshire, see Douglas Castle
Castle Douglas (Gd: Caisteal Dhùghlais), a town in the south of Scotland in Dumfries and Galloway, lies in the eastern part of Galloway known as the Stewartry, between the towns of Dalbeattie and Gatehouse of Fleet.
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Castle Douglas is built next to Carlingwark Loch in which traces of prehistoric crannogs can be found, evidence of early inhabitation of the area. Small Roman forts were situated nearby, built around AD 81 but were abandoned soon after.
Nearby Threave Castle was a seat of the powerful "Black" Earls of Douglas. A small collection of cottages developed by the shores of Carlingwark, which was a source of marl. These cottages can still be seen on the Western approach to Castle Douglas and are known as the Buchan. The development of a military road through Galloway passed through the Carlingwark area and improved transportation connections in the 1700s.
Castle Douglas was founded in 1792 by a wealthy descendant of the Douglas family, William Douglas, who made his money in an 'American Trade' and created a planned town on the shores of Carlingwark Loch. The town's layout is based upon the grid plan pattern of streets as used in Edinburgh's New Town, built around the same time. Sir William Douglas also created a number of industries in Castle Douglas, including hand-woven cotton factories from which Cotton Street derives its name.
The completion of the Castle Douglas and Dumfries Railway in 1859 further improved the town's connections, and it soon developed into a major market town for the surrounding area. This is still true today and the 1900 hexagonal market building is in constant use. Although the railway was closed in 1965 the A75 trunk road was developed roughly following the lines of the original military road and passed through Castle Douglas. The many hotels and pubs which derived from coach stops are an indication of the town's importance as a stopping place for travellers.
The town houses the Castle Douglas Art Gallery, an offshoot of the Stewartry Museum at Kirkcudbright.
Nearby stands Threave Castle, the family castle of the Black Douglas line of the House of Douglas.
The town is commonly used by tourists as a base for exploring the rest of the area.
The Rt. Hon. Dr David Clark, Baron Clark of Windermere
Major-General Sir Victor Morven Fortune
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