This poem is a brief commentary on the social status of streets in Gatehouse (maybe mid 19th century ?)
Front Street's a grand street
Back street is dandy
The Whistle Raw's abune them a'
For drinking ale and brandy
Present day name |
Old name |
Date |
Notes |
Ann Street |
Old Military Road until 1820s Murray Place marked on 1866 Estate plan of Gatehouse. |
c.1820 |
After Anne, wife of Alexander Murray of Cally.
Top end sometimes referred to as Rosebank. Nurseryville used for south side in 1841 census. |
Back Neilson |
Neilson Square in 1841 census. |
c.1812 |
Tenement behind Neilson Sq., demolished in 1930s. Now a house name on same site. |
Birtwhistle Street |
Local name: Whustle Ra' 1841 : Birtwhistle Row 1851 : Birtwhistle St. |
On 1854 OS map |
Named after Birtwhistle family who owned cotton mills in the town. Brick-built workers' terraced cottages. |
Boatgreen |
|
Late 18th century |
Formerly town harbour. |
Brewery Brae |
|
Brewery opened 1784 |
The hill in High Street as it passes the Old Brewery. |
Bridge Terrace |
Bridge End Terrace per 1841 census. |
|
Bridge End also applied to Fleet St & Garden Street (1797 will of James Murray) |
Castramont Road |
Formerly road to Laurieston |
Marked on 1866 Estate Plan of Gatehouse |
First use in a census was in 1911. |
Catherine Street |
Back Street from before 1841 census |
1891 census: Catherine St |
Named after Catherine, wife of James Murray of Cally. |
Church Street |
|
1891 census: first mention. |
Girthon Church built 1818 |
Deil's Elbow or Devil’s Elbow |
1881 census: Hunter Square
1901 census: Murray Square |
|
Courtyard off High Street. James Hunter owned the adjacent brewer buildings from 1857 to 1869. Horatio G Murray Stewart owned them from 1874 to 1869. |
Digby Street |
Cross Street from before 1841 census. Upper Cross Street |
On 1854 map as Cross St. Digby St. in 1891 census. |
Possibly after Anne Eliza Wingfield Digby, wife of Horatio Granville Murray Stewart of Cally. |
Dromore Road |
Rusko Street used in 1841 census. Marked on 1866 Estate Plan of Gatehouse. |
1891 census: first use of Dromore Rd. |
Dromore was one of the names used for Gatehouse Station. Local name = ‘Back Road’ |
Fleet Street |
Bridge End (in a 1797 will) Fleet St. in 1841 census. |
|
Name also applied to Bridge Terrace & Garden Street (1797 will of James Murray). First houses feued in Fleet Street in the 1790s. |
Garden Street |
From before 1841 census: Back Fleet St.
|
1871 census: Garden St
|
Local name: Wee Ireland (Many people of Irish descent lived here in the early censuses) |
Hannay Street |
Boatgreen St. in 1841 census. George Street (suggested by John Russell in his History of Gatehouse – source is unknown) |
1891 census: Hannay St.. 1911 census: Boatgreen Rd. |
Hannay - maybe after Hannay family from Kirkdale ? |
High Street |
1841 census: both Front Street & High St. 1851 census: High Street 1854 OS map: Main Street |
|
First houses feued in High Street in the 1760s. |
Horatio Square |
1881 census: first time appears in a census |
House built in 1782 |
Probably named after Horatio Granville Murray Baillie of Cally. |
Neilson Square (East Neilson & West Neilson) |
Neilson Street in 1841 census.
An earlier name may have been East Quebec Terrace (Presumably there was also a West Quebec Terrace) |
1812 - date carved in stone on building.
1840's marriage announcement in D&G Standard gives East Quebec Terrace |
Often wrongly written as Nelson St.(e.g. 1851 census). Named after the first owner of the houses: William Neilson.
The money for Neilson Square and Back Neilson was partly provided by the family of William Neilson (the builder), and who lived in Quebec, Canada. (ex David Steel)
|
Old Ford Road |
The Wee Road |
|
Lane from High Street that passes between Birtwhistle St. and Swan St. before leading to an early ford over the River Fleet before the Fleet Bridge was built. |
Roseberry Terrace or Rosebery Terrace |
Part of Swan St. and / or Digby St. |
1911 census: first use of Roseberry Terr. |
Suggestion that it may have been named after Archibald Primrose, 5th Earl of Rosebery, the Prime Minister 1894-95. |
Swan Street |
|
1841 census. |
|
The Cut |
|
c.1820 |
|
Trevarthen Place |
Lower part of Dromore Rd beside Ship Inn ? |
1920 Valuation Roll |
Name used by Dignam Family at Ship Inn |
Victoria Street |
1851 census: Bankhead Street. 1861 census: Bank St. also Cross Street and Lower Cross Street |
Bankhead St c.1790s Victoria St. in 1881 census |
Bankhead Street marked on 1866 Estate map of Gatehouse. Named after Queen Victoria (reigned 1837 to 1901) |
Woodside Terrace |
Mail Road Townend |
First used in 1881 census |
Townend used when there was no road out of Gatehouse at the dams. |