River Cree

A historical perspective, drawn from the Ordnance Gazetteer of Scotland: A Survey of Scottish Topography, Statistical, Biographical and Historical, edited by Francis H. Groome and originally published in parts by Thomas C. Jack, Grange Publishing Works, Edinburgh between 1882 and 1885.

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Cree, a river of Galloway, issuing from Loch Moan, which lies, 675 feet above sea-level, on the mutual boundary of Ayr and Kirkcudbright shires. Thence it winds 11 miles south-south-westward along that boundary, and next 21½ miles south-eastward along all the boundary between Kirkcudbright and Wigtown shires, past Newton-Stewart, till at Creetown it falls into the head of Wigtown Bay, the Iena Aestuarinm of Ptolemy. On its right lie the parishes of Barr, Colmonell, and Penninghame, on its left of Minnigaff and Kirkmabreck; and on its left it receives Minnoch Water, Penkill Burn, and Palnure Burn. Navigable for small craft as high as Carty, it assumes near Penninghame House a lakelike appearance, widening at intervals to close on a furlong; here were of old the celebrated ' cruives of Cree, ' i. e., salmon-traps in the stone cauls or dam-dykes, which. serving the country-folk for bridges, came to be well-known landmarks. Throughout most of its lower course the ` Crystal Cree ' flows through flat flowery meadows, its hanks being only occasionally adorned with heathery knolls and lichened or fern-clad rocks; but from Bargrennan upwards its scenery is wild and mountainous, a succession of desolate moorlands- Trout may be caught in considerable quantities in the upper waters; salmon and sea-trout at several good casts about Penninghame House; and smelt or sperling, during March, in the brackish waters of the estuary.—Ord. Sur., shs- 8, 4,1857-63. See pp- 12-22 of Wm. M `Ilraith's Wigtownshire (2d ed., Dumf., 1877).

An accompanying 19th C. Ordnance Survey map is available, or use the map tab to the right of this page.

Note: This text has been made available using a process of scanning and optical character recognition. Despite manual checking, some typographical errors may remain. Please remember this description dates from the 1880s; names may have changed, administrative divisions will certainly be different and there are known to be occasional errors of fact in the original text, which we have not corrected because we wish to maintain its integrity. This information is provided subject to our standard disclaimer

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