WIOTOWN, a co. forming the s.w. corner of Scotland, is bounded on the w. by the Irish channel, n. by Ayrslure, e. by the stewartry of Kirdeudbright and the Solway firth, and s. by the Irish sea. Its extent from e. to w. is computed at from 39 to 3-1 m., and from n. to s. 24 to 28 miles. This county, which constitutes West Galloway, was formed about the year 1341, and is between 54° 38'-55° 4' n. lat., and 4° 16'-5° 6' w. longitude. Wigtown is somewhat irregular in tom, being deeply intersected by two i arms of the sea, one of which, loch Ryan, a long narrow inlet, stretches southward from the n,w. corner for fully 9 m. into the county, while Luce bay on the s. makes a wide indentation 18 m. long with an average of 12 wide, the heads of the inlet and bay being only 6 in. apart. The western part of Wigtown, known as the Mins of Galloway, a peninsula whose length (from n. to s.) is 28 In., and breadth in.; its northern extremity is Corsewall point, and its southern the Mull of Galloway, each protnontor y being provided with a light-house. The south-eastern half of Wigtown is separated from the stewartry by Wigtown bay, 15 in. long and 14 m. wide at its mouth, and between this latter and Luce bay, 1Vigtown extends southward in a blunt triangu lar form, terminating in Burrow Head. The inhabitants of Wigtown were of Celtic origin, and up to the middle of the 16th c., a Celtic dialect was universally spoken; and for a century afterward it was in use in the remote districts. Wigtown is• irregular in its surface, but its eminences are inferior in height to ,those of any other county of Scotland—none of them exceeding 500 feet. The soil is varied, and—with the exception of a portion lying along the sea-shore, especially in the s.e., which consists of a rich loaml-the quality is mostly inferior. There is a large extent of moss and moor, mostly of a very poor and unproductive nature, judging from the appearance and prod uce of much of what has been reclaimed. There has, however, been a considerable improvement made of late years in farm-buildings. The climate is rather mild, but moist, the rainfall being comparatively great. There are many dairy establishments in this couuty, ahnost exclusively for making cheese similar to the Somersetshire cheddar. The cows are frequently let for hire at from £9 to £12 per cow, the farmer supplying all food, and the dairyman the labor. Most of the cows are of Ayrshire breed; it is
difficult to obtain the pure native breed of cattle; and the Galloway pony, formerly in such vogue, is now hardly to be met with. The area of Wigtown is over 512 sq.m , or 327,906 acres, of which about three-fifths would be unprofitable to reclaim. The gov ernment returns for 1878 give 146,089 acres under all kinds of crops, bare fallow, and grass; under corn crops, 38,188; under green crops, 18,752; clover, sanfoin, and grasses under rotation, 52,437; permanent meadow pasture, 36,201. There were 5,792 horses. for the use of agriculture; also 40,401 cattle, 131,030 sheep, and 9,491 pigs.
Besides numerous small streams,Wigtown contains three rivers of considerable,size, the Cree, which forms the eastern boundary, and the Bladnoch—both of which fall into Wigtown bay—and the Luce, which empties itself into Luce bay; the former two are navigable for a few miles, and yield salmon and trout. The county also possesses several small fresh-water lochs. In the Rhins of Galloway, on the s.w., is situated the parish of Kirkmaiden, the most southerly point in Scotland—hence " from Maidenkirk to John o' Groat's." There were at an early period a considerable number of religious houses in the county; and the church, believed to be the oldesAin Scotland, founded by St. Ninian, was built near the site of what is now the village of Whithorn. At the reformation there were 21 parishes; the number was reduced to 17, but is now 20. The principal towns are Wigtown, Newton-Stewart, Stranraer, and Whithorn. There is no mineral wealth, and little trade or manufacture carried on in Wigtown. There is a distillery at Bladnoch, a woolen manufactory at Kirkeowan, and some saw-mills and starch mills at Stranraer and elsewhere. The mail-coach was first run through Wig town in 1804, and was only superseded by a railway from Castle Douglas to Port Pat rick in 1857. This line is now connected with Dumfries eastward and with Glasgow, by way of Girvan, to the north. The valued rent of Wigtown in 1674 was £5,634; the valuation for 1878-79 was £250,779. Pop. '71, 38,830; parliamentary constituency (1878– 79), 1561.