Country and County: Dumfries and Galloway

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O, That I Were Where Helen Lies

O, that I were where Helen lies!
Night and day on me she cries;
O, that I were where Helen lies!
In fair Kirkconnel lee.

O Helen fair! beyond compare,
A ringlet of thy flowing hair,
I’ll wear it still for evermair
Until the day I die.

Curs’d be the hand that shot the shot,
And curs’d the gun that gave the crack,

Glenluce Devil

During the 17th Century an incident linked to poltergeist like activity in Glenluce became was recorded and published by Glasgow’s first Professor of Mathematics and demonologist, George Sinclair (died 1696) in his 1685 work, ‘Satan’s Invisible World Discovered’.

Rerrick Poltergeist 1695

Not much now remains of the scene where this famous case took place, with just a single skeletal tree marking the location of the Ring Plantation at Ringcroft of Stocking where in 1695 the home of Andrew Mackie in the parish of Rerrick was reputedly haunted by a poltergeist and this caused a stir in Scotland after the case was published in a pamphlet by the local minister.

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Robert Burns and Folklore

Robert Burns was born on the 25th January 1759 during the ‘Age of Enlightenment’ but also in a time when the country superstitions and supernatural beings were an integral part of folk belief. The landscape of Burns’ was one where the natural rhythms of nature were much more intertwined in the day to day of working life.

Lochmaben Stane (Stone)

The Lochmaben Stane (or Lochmabenstane, Lochmabenstone, Clochmabenstane, Old Graitney Stone, Lowmabanstane, Loughmabanestane) stands in a farmers field near where the Kirtle Water enters the Solway Firth. Made if granite, it measures 7-8 feet in height and has a girth between 18 and 21 feet (depending upon your source).

Gretna

The name Gretna derives origins from ‘Gretenhow’, an Angle term meaning gravel hill. Of course the Angles were not the first settlers in Gretna, they had been preceded by both the Romans and Norsemen.  The area surrounding Gretna has seen many battles between the English and Scots as they invaded each other. In 1376 Gretna was completely destroyed during one such battle.

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The Legend of Sawney Bean

The story of Sawney Bean is one of the most gruesome Scottish legends, the plot of which would not look out of place in any modern horror/slasher movie. Evidence suggests the tale dates to the early 18th century.

The County Hotel

The hotel is said to have been haunted by the ghost of Bonnie Prince Charlie, who stayed here in 1745. Charlie is said to haunt many places in Scotland.

Site of The King’s Arms Hotel

The King’s Arms Hotel, which was demolished in 1973, was reputed to be haunted by a woman in her early twenties. Traditionally she was the widow of Captain Robert Stewart, who died during the French revolution. She pined away after his death and died of heartbreak at the age of 24.