The History of Eckford Parish

This history section is all about Eckford Parish, its history, wildlife, church, farming, etc. It has been compiled by the ladies of Eckford Scottish Women's Rural Institute and was first assembled in 1966 to commemorate the fortieth birthday of Eckford SWRI which was founded in 1926.

To celebrate the millennium, the present members decided to update the history as so much has changed since 1966. The original account was mainly written in August 1966 and has been added to and updated in 1999.

It said in the 1966 account, “It is significant that the County of Roxburgh was one of those included in the Census of 1966, for the rural areas are more affected by modern trends and developments that can be appreciated by the urban dweller. That Eckford Parish, which extends to the remarkable figure of 9,999 acres, is emphatically rural can be assessed from the fact that two branches of the SWRI exist within its bounds.”

This is no longer the case. There is now one branch of the SWRI at Eckford, with only twelve members in 1999. Also the County of Roxburgh no longer exists, Eckford has been part of Scottish Borders Council since local government reorganisation in 1996.

This section, then, is an account written by the residents of a small village in the Scottish Borders, relating how their locality and lives have changed over the years.

While attention has been paid to the source of published material, the aim is to avoid reproducing work which is already available in printed and, therefore, recorded form.