The 'County of Wigtown', or 'Wigtownshire' (
Gaelic: ''Siorrachd Bhaile na h-Uige'') is a
registration county in the south west of
Scotland. It borders
Ayrshire to the north, and the
Stewartry of Kirkcudbright to the east. Together The Stewartry and Wigtownshire are referred to as
Galloway : until the
19th century Wigtownshire was also sometimes known as 'West Galloway'.
[1]
As 'Wigtown', it is a
lieutenancy area. The
county town was historically
Wigtown. On the establishment of a county council in
1890,
Stranraer, the largest town in the county, became the administrative centre. Wigtown includes the southernmost point in Scotland, the
Mull of Galloway, the
Machars and the
Rhins of Galloway peninsula. Major road links to the area comprise of the
A77 to the north, and the
A75 to the east. It is currently administered by
Dumfries and Galloway Council.
Until 1975 it was a
county.
Major towns
★
Newton Stewart
★
Stranraer
★
Whithorn
★
Wigtown
Other significant towns and villages
★
Ardwell
★
Castle Kennedy
★
Drummore
★
Glenluce
★
Kirkcowan
★
Portpatrick
★
Port William
★
Sandhead
References
1. New Statistical Account of Scotland. (1834).