Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
The mansion is about 2 miles west of Melrose between the River Tweed and the B6360.
Frequent buses run between Galashiels and Melrose; alight at the Tweed bank roundabout
and follow the signposts (it's a 15-minute walk). You can also walk from Melrose to Ab-
botsford in an hour along the southern bank of the Tweed.
Selkirk
POP 5742
While the noisy throb of machinery no doubt once filled the river valleys below Selkirk, a
prosperous mill town in the early 19th century, today it sits placidly and prettily atop its
steep ridge. Naughty millworkers who fell foul of the law would have come face to face in
court with Sir Walter Scott, who was sheriff here for three decades.
The helpful
tourist office
(
01750-20054;
www.visitscottishborders.com
;
Halliwell's
Close; 11am-4pm Mon-Sat, noon-3pm Sun Apr-Oct)
is tucked away off Market Sq. In-
side is
Halliwell's House Museum
(admission free)
, the oldest building (1712) in Selkirk.
The museum charts local history with an engrossing exhibition, and the attached
Robson
Gallery
has changing exhibitions.
Drop into
Sir Walter Scott's Courtroom
(Market Sq; admission free; 11am-3pm
Mon-Sat Apr-Oct)
, where there's an exhibition on his life and writings, plus a fascinating
account of the courageous explorer Mungo Park (born near Selkirk) and his search for the
River Niger.
SIR WALTER SCOTT
Sir Walter Scott (1771-1832) is one of Scotland's greatest literary figures. Born in Edinburgh, he moved to his
uncle's farm at Sandyknowe in the Borders as a child. It was here, rambling around the countryside, that he deve-
loped a passion for historical ballads and Scottish heroes. After studying in Edinburgh he bought Abbotsford (
Click here
), a country house in the Borders.
The Lay of the Last Minstrel
(1805) was an early critical success. Further works earning him an international
reputation included
The Lady of the Lake
(1810), set around Loch Katrine and the Trossachs. He later turned his
hand to novels and was instrumental in the development of the historical fiction genre. His first novel,
Waverley
(1814), which dealt with the 1745 Jacobite rebellion, set the classical pattern of the historical novel. Other works
included
Guy Mannering
(1815) and
Rob Roy
(1817).
Later in life Scott wrote obsessively to stave off bankruptcy. His works virtually single-handedly revived in-
terest in Scottish history and legend in the early 19th century. Tourist offices stock a
Sir Walter Scott Trail
book-
let, which will guide you to many places associated with his life in the Borders.
