Moffat
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- For people named Moffat, see Moffat (surname).
Moffat is a burgh and former spa town in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, lying on the River Annan, with a population of around 2,500. The most notable building in the town is the Moffat House Hotel, designed by John Adam. The nearby Star Hotel, a mere 20ft (6 m) wide, boasted a record in the Guinness Book of Records as the narrowest hotel in the world.
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[edit] History
The Devil's Beef Tub near Moffat was used by the Johnstones to hoard cattle stolen in predatory raids.
[edit] Early tourism as a spa town
During the 17th century Moffat began to grow from a small back-water village into a popular spa town. The sulphurous waters of Moffat Spa were believed to have healing properties and during the Victorian era the high demand led to the water being piped down from the well to a specially built bath house in the town centre (now the Town Hall). Luxurious hotels sprang up to accommodate the increasing numbers of tourists. One such hotel opened during Moffat's heyday in 1878, the Moffat Hydropathic Hotel was destroyed in a fire in 1921.
The old well was refurbished in the mid 1990s, and is still accessible by vehicle and foot. The water smells very strongly of sulfur, with deposits on the walls and well itself. At the grand reopening of the well people visiting it were encouraged to drink a glass of it.
The well is reached by following Haywood Road and climbing up Tank Wood (on the right at the top) - the path at the end was the original route to the well. When the water was first piped into town for the baths it was pumped uphill to a tank in the appropriately named Tank Wood, before travelling back downhill to the bath house.
[edit] Wool trade
Moffat was a notable market in the wool trade, and this is commemorated with a statue of a ram by William Brodie in the town's market place. The ram was presented to the town by William Colvin, a local businessman, in 1875. The ram is missing its ears, and has been since it was first presented. Legend has it that when Brodie realised that he had forgotten the ears he promptly committed suicide (although he did commit suicide shortly afterwards, this is unlikely to be the reason).
[edit] Famous and infamous visitors
Robert Burns came for the waters and frequented the local bars.
The infamous murderer and alleged graverobber William Hare also stayed in the Black Bull Hotel during his escape to Ireland after turning Kings evidence against William Burke. (Main article West Port murders)
In 1935, the remains of the victims of the Lancaster murderer, Dr Buck Ruxton, were found in a stream near The Devil's Beef Tub. A landmark case in legal history, it was the first in which the murderer was successfully convicted using forensic evidence and fingerprint identification in the UK. The bridge at the top is still used to this day - near the very top it is a switchback that is not quite wide enough for two vehicles to pass on.
[edit] Tourism
The town attracts many tourists all year round, both as visitors and as walkers in the surrounding hills. Notable shops include the Moffat Toffee Shop and the Edinburgh Woollen Mill, while its restaurants and cafes include The Limetree, Claudio's, Arietes, The Rumblin' Tum, The Balmoral and the Buccleuch.
It also has a recreation park with a boating pond and a memorial to Air Chief Marshal Lord Dowding, commander of RAF Fighter Command during the Battle of Britain, who was born in Moffat in 1882.
There is an official Camping and Caravanning Club campsite (for tents, caravans and motorhomes) that is open from 17 March to 31 October. This is situated next to the Hammerlands Center - a combination garden centre, gift shop, restaurant, fish farm and children's play area with farmyard animals.
For walkers there is also the Gallow Hill. Despite its name it has never been used for hanging anybody, and is more likely to have been named thus due to the shape of a tree near the top. Moffat is also situated only a few miles from the Southern Upland Way where it passes through Beattock.
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