Kirtle Water, a stream of SE Dumfriesshire, formed, in the extreme N of Middlebie parish, by the confluence of two head-streams, of which Winterhope Burn, rising at an altitude of 1250 feet above sea-level, runs 17/8 mile south-south-westward, whilst the other, rising at 890 feet, runs 1½ mile south-by-eastward. From the point where they meet (570 feet), Kirtle Water winds 161/8 miles south-south-westward and south-eastward through or along the boundaries of Middlebie, Kirkpatrick-Fleming, Annan, Dornock (detached), and Gretna, till it falls into the head of the Solway Firth at Kirtlefoot. It traverses a vale of much beauty, richly embellished with wood; it enfolds the meadow of Kirkconnel burial-yard, containing the grave of 'Fair Helen of Kirkconnel-Lee;' it is crossed, at Kirtle-Bridge, by a viaduct of the Caledonian railway, comprising nine arches, each 36 feet in span; and it contains eels, perch, and trout, and is frequented by salmon.Ord. Sur., shs. 10, 6, 1864-63.
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