A vision of Britain through time
A vision of Britain from 1801 to now.
Including maps, statistical trends and historical descriptions.
A vision of Britain through time
A vision of Britain from 1801 to now.
Including maps, statistical trends and historical descriptions.
Covington, a hamlet and a parish in the Upper Ward of Lanarkshire. The hamlet stands between the Clyde and the Caledonian railway, 1¼ mile N by E of its station and post-town Thankerton,, this being 33½ miles SW of Edinburgh and 36½ SE of Glasgow; at it is the parish church (230 sittings), an old building enlarged in the early part of last century. A neighbouring tower, built in 1442 by Lindsay of Covington barony, is now a fine ruin; and Covington Mill was the place where that famous martyr of the Covenant, Donald Cargill, was seized by Irving of Bonshaw in May 1681. The parish, containing also the villages of Thankerton, Newtown of Covington (7 furlongs NNE of Thankerton), and Billhead (¾ mile NNE of the church), comprises the ancient parishes of Covington and Thankerton, united some time between 1702 and 1720. Bounded NW by Pettinain, E by Libberton, SE by Symington, and W by Carmichael, it has an utmost length of 5 miles from NNE to SSW, viz., from the Clyde below Brown Ford to the top of Tinto; its greatest breadth, from E to W, is 25/8 miles; and its area is 51671/8 acres, of which 53 are water. The Clyde, here winding 3¾ miles west-north-westward and northward, roughly traces all the boundary with Libberton; and three or four burns run to it through the interior or on the borders of the parish. In the extreme NE the surface sinks to 630 feet above sea-level, thence rising to 829 at Billhead, 1049 near Wellbrae, 1013 at Chester, 661 at Thankerton bridge, and 2335 on Tinto; it is divided among meadows or low well-cultivated fields along the Clyde, pastoral slopes, and heathy uplands. Nearly two-fifths of the entire area are under the plough, and about 80 acres are in wood. Other antiquities than Covington Tower are a cairn, three camps, and a 'Druidical 'temple. ' Here, in 1828, his father being parish minister, was born the late Lord Advocate, William Watson, who in 1880 was raised to the peerage as Baron Watson of Thankerton. St John's Kirk is the only mansion: and 2 proprietors hold each an annual value of more, 2 of less, than £500. Covington is in the presbytery of Biggar and synod of Lothian and Tweeddale; the living is worth £265. A public school at Newtown of Covington, with accommodation for 70 children, had (1880) an average attendance of 44, and a grant of £48, 3s. Valuation (1882) £6487, 9s. Pop. (1801) 456, (1831) 521, (1861) 532, (1871) 454, (1881) 444.—Ord. Sur., sh. 23, 1865.
(F.H. Groome, Ordnance Gazetteer of Scotland (1882-4); © 2004 Gazetteer for Scotland)
| Linked entities: | |
|---|---|
| Feature Description: | "a hamlet and a parish" (ADL Feature Type: "populated places") |
| Administrative units: | Covington ScoP Lanarkshire ScoCnty |
| Place: | Covington |
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