Gazetteer of Scotland

G IR
GL A
GIRTHON ; a parifh in the ftew-
?.i ty of Kirkcudbright. It extends from
N. to S. about ao miles in length,
and from 3 to 5 in breadth. The fur-
face and foil are remarkably varied :
the northern half, and all along the
eaftern boundary being bleak, hilly,
covered with heath, and .interfperfed
with feveral lakes, which empty their
waters into the river Fleet : of thefe
Loch Fleet, from whence the river takes
its rife, Loch Scero, Loch Grutmock, and
Loeb Wbyanyan, are the chief. The
•river Fleet bounds the parifh m the
W. poifeffing a falmon h!hing of fmall
value : on its banks is lately eftabiilh-
ed the thriving village of Gatehouse,
containing 1150 inhabitants. Near
this village is Cally, the beautiful re-
fidence _of James Murray, Efq. of
Broughton, furro.unded with beautiful
gardens and exteniive plantations. The
parifh, including the village of Gate-
boufe, contained in 1793, 1790 inhabit-
ants.
GIRVAN; a confiderable village
and parifh in Ayrfhire. The town is
Situated at the mouth of the river Gir-
van, and appears to have been a place
of confiderable antiquity. It is a poft
town, on the great road from Ayr to
Portpatrick. It poflefies many advan-
tages for trade and manufacture, hav-
ing abundance of excellent coal and
limeftone in the neighbourhood ; and
the harbour, at the mouth of the river,
being in its prefent Rate commodious,
and ltill capable of much improvement.
It is very .neatly built, and chiefly inha-
bited by weavers of cotton and woollen
cloths. The town is a burgh of ba-
rony ; the charter of which was ori-
ginally granted to Thomas Boyd, Efq.
of Balloghtoul, on whole eftate it was
built ; the charter was afterwards re-
newed by King William in 1696; but,
till the year 1785, the privileges of e-
lectingmagiftrates was never exercifed.
It is now governed by z bailies, and
10 counfellors, annually elected : and
the town enjoys all the privileges per-
taining to other burghs of the fame
kind. It contains about 1000 inhabit-
ants. The parifh of Girt an extends
about 9 miles in length along the Car-
rick coaft of the Atlantic ocean, and
the breadth varies from a to 6. To-
wards the S. the furface is hilly, but
the eminences are chiefly covered with
ihort grafs, affording excellent flieep
paflure : the low grounds are abund-
antly fertile, and well cultivated. The
coaft is generally flat and fandy, inter-
fperfed with large whinftones, with
which mod of the houfes are built.
There is a confiderable bed of gyp/urn,
or plafter of Paris, and feveral beds of
rock marl. There are feveral remains
Oi encampments on the hills, but none
of them are of fuch importance as to
deferve particular notice. Population
in 1793, 1725.
Girvan ; a river in Ayrfhire, takes
its rife in the parifh of Muirkirk, near
the fource of the Doon. It runs S. W.
through the diftrict of Carrick, and
pours its watersinto the Atlantic ocean
at the town which bears its name.
The vale through which it paffes is a-
dorned with much beautiful fcenery,
and with many elegant feats, anfwer-
ing exactly to Buchannan's defcrip-
tion, when he fays H, multis tnllis ama-
nij cingitur." The landholders on its
banks, have long applied with won-
derful affiduity to adorn and enrich
their lands with all the modern im-
provements of hufbandry ; and none
more fuccefsfully than Sir Adam Fer-
gufon of Kilkerran, and Mr. Hamil-
ton of Bargenny. The fcenery of the
fine old Scottifh fong, entitled " The
Earl of Cafftllh'' Lady" is laid on its
banks ; and its beauties have been fui*-
ther celebrated by the poet Kennedy?
whofe poems, particularly his " Flyting
zyi' Dunbar," are preferved in Banna-
tyne's collection. At the mouth of the
Girvan is a valuable falmon fifhing,
and its seftuary forms a tolerable har-
bour.
GLADSMUIR; a. parifh in the
county of Haddington, lying on the
S. bank of the Frith of Forth ; and
bounded on the S. by the fmall river
Tyne i containing in all about 6000 a-
cres, of which one half may be under
tillage; the ground rifes in the'middle
to a ridge, which is a heathy barren
muir ; but gradually on each fide to-
wards the river and the Frith, it im-
proves in fertility. The whole parifh
abounds with coal, and feveral pits
are wrought. This parifh gave birth
to George Heriot, who founded the
hofpital in Edinburgh, which bears
his name ; and what is more to ths
honour of the paiiih, it was the firft
fettlement of the late Principal Robert-
fon, who here compofed his invaluable
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