Selkirk
After the Hadrian’s wall conference, we headed north into Scotland to visit our eponymous town of Selkirk. In fact we have nothing to do with the town of Selkirk – we all come from Cumberland, but it is always interesting to visit the town with which we share a name.
Selkirk today is a very pleasant small town of around 5000 inhabitants. In the Middle Ages it was rather more important, which is why it is a given its name to a county, but today it is rather overshadowed by Hawick, (pronounced Hoik) which lies a dozen miles to the south and boasts some 14,000 inhabitants.
The centre of Selkirk is the fine triangular marketplace with a bakery proudly proclaiming that it is the home of the original Selkirk Bannock (which is a very tasty current bun). The building with a large spire is the courthouse, built 1803
It was here that Sir Walter Scott presided as magistrate for nearly 30 years from 1803 to 1832. Scott was by profession a lawyer who became sheriff, administering justice for the county of Selkirkshire while writing novels and poetry in his spare time. It has now been opened to the public with a waxwork display inside showing a trial in progress.
The other main feature of archaeological interest is the Auld Kirk up a side street which goes back originally to the Middle Ages but was rebuilt in 1747 but was made redundant ib 1861 when the roof was removed and it was left as a ruin. However it is now well maintained, perhaps because among those buried there were members of the Murray family who were ancestors on the maternal side of the American President Roosevelt.
Opening off from the Market Square is Halliwell’s Close, reputed to be the oldest surviving row of houses in Selkirk, being built at the end of the 18th century. Here is the Selkirk Museum the Halliwell’s House Museum, which takes its name from Walter Halliwell, a wigmaker who owned buildings in this close in the early 18th century. Halliwells Close has been the home to generations of Selkirk families and the workplace of many trades. From 1956 to 1981, Mr Fred Robson ran a Museum of ironmongery from here which formed the origin of the Museum.
Here we see a waxwork model of Mr Robson at work in his shop.
In the 19th century the focus of Selkirk moved downhill to the Riverside where a number of mills were built at a time when the Tweed industry was flourishing. The biggest of these was Ettrick and Yarrow Spinners mill, built between 1836 and 1850 by James and Henry Brown. In 1901 it was taken over by the Scottish Cooperative Society, who used it for making spun carpet yarns, and it continued in use till 1989.
Then in 1971 the Riverside area took a new lease of life when Exacta Circuits began making printed circuit boards for computers and Selkirk made a bid to become the Silicon Glen of Scotland. The venture lasted until 1999 when sadly the manufacture of printed circuit boards was no longer profitable.The mill is now owned by the Scottish Borders Enterprise Council, who are have made it water and wind tight and are looking for tenants.
When we arrived we hoped to be able to obtain accommodation for the night at the main hotel the County Hotel, but alas they were full, but they very kindly rang round for and eventually found us accommodation in Hawick.
Here we found very magnificent accommodation at the Mansfield House hotel, a 19th century mansion 
built by wealthy auctioneer where we had the main room from which we had a fine view over the town The following day we return to Selkirk and explored this fascinating town.
The hazard of travelling in Selkirkshire: a large flock of sheep crossing the road.
After looking at Selkirk, we then travelled south west out of Scotland back into England to to Beckermet on the coast of Cumberland, which is in fact the Selkirk ancestral home.
20th December 2016