ANNAN, a royal borough, the capital of Annandale, a district of Dumfries-shire, in Scotland ; is situated in N. Lat. 3'. and NV. Long. 3°., near a degree to the south, and two miles to the west of the meridian of Edinburgh. It is built on a high bank on the east side of the river Annan, within a mile of where it falls into the Solway Frith. The town is remarkably neat and clean, and has been greatly extended and improved within these fifteen years. The houses are built of ex cellent freestone, and covered with slate. The streets are in general broad, and well paved. There are two handsome spires, with clocks ; one on the church, the other on the townhouse; and there is a stone bridge of five arches over the river. The borough contains 1800 inhabitants; and, including the country part of the pa rish, and the new village of Bridekirk, the population will amount to 3000.
At the mouth of the river, there is a safe natural har; hour, called Port-Annan. Vessels, drawing fourteen feet water, can enter it at spring-tides, when such as do not draw more than nine feet may come up to the land ing-place, called the Well, within a quarter of a mile of the town, to which the larger vessels may have access, by removing a ledge of rock in the river, and forming a quay, which is now in contemplation.
The trade consists chiefly in importing timber from abroad, slate from Lancashire and Wales, coal from Cumberland, wines, groceries, Ecc. from Whitehtven and Liverpool. One hundred and seventy-seven vessels, carrying 7030 tons, arrived last year, from June 1808 to June 1809. During the same period, the exports amount ed to about 1000 tons, consisting chiefly of grain, pota toes, hams, bacon, and hog's lard.
There is a cotton manufactory driven by water, and a good deal of weaving carried on in the town ; and at Bridekirk, on the estate of Mount Annan, there is a woollen manufactory on a large scale, and a good deal of weaving in the village.
The town of Annan is well supplied with good water ; and it has also a chalybeate and an alum spring ; but these have not yet come much into use.
The salmon fishing was formerly considerable ; and at the pool below the bridge, ninety fish have been ta ken at a draught. But the fishing in the river has been almost destroyed by the stake-nets, which, in the last twenty years, have been erected in the Frith, and pre vent the free run of the fish in the flowing tide.
A weekly market has lately been established at An nan, where butcher meat, grain, and all articles of con sumption, are sold. Great quantities of pork are brought here, and purchased by persons, who, after curing it properly, sell it to dealers for the Newcastle and Lon don markets.
The great road from London to Port-Patrick passes through this borough ; and should a new road, as is in tended, be made from Carlisle, by Geriston, to Gretna, Annan will be mid-way, a stage of sixteen miles, to ei ther Carlisle or Dumfries.
From the antiquities found in the parish of Annan, the Romaus appear to have occupied both the banks of this river. in later times, the town was defended by a castle of considerable magnitude, whose scite and out works may still be traced. It was built by the Bruces, after they became lords of Annandale. Upon the death of David II. the son of king Robert, in 1371, this castle, and that otilochmaben, with the lordship of Annandale, came to Thomas Randolph, earl of Murray, and went with his sister Agnes to the Dunbars, earls of March. After their forfeiture, it went to the Douglasses, who also lost it by the same fate ; and then having come to Alex ander, duke of Albany, he, for rebellion against his brother James III., and plundering the fair of Lochma "len in 1484, was also forfeited ; since which time these cases continued in the hands of the king, for the pro tection of the west border of Scotland.