A village of Nithsdale in Dumfries and Galloway, Dalswinton lies to the north of the River Nith, 6 miles (10 km) northwest of Dumfries. Nearby are Dalswinton Tower, a former stronghold of the Comyn family, and Dalswinton House which was built by the entrepreneur Patrick Miller (1731 - 1815), landlord of Robert Burns who farmed at Ellisland. Thanks to Miller's initiative, the threshing mill and drill plough were introduced to Scotland and the first turnip seeds were sent to him by King Gustav of Sweden - hence the name 'swede' for turnips. He also designed an armament called the Carronade which was later used against the French navy and on Dalswinton Loch he launched the world's first steamboat in 1788.
Evidence from aerial photographs suggest that Dalswinton was the site of a large Agricolan Roman fort which was destroyed and later replaced by a cavalry fort downstream at Carzield.
