| Place-name: | Gatehead |
| Suggested Meaning: | head, top of the road, way, path |
| S. gait ‘road, way, path’ + head ‘head, top’ | |
| Blaeu Coila (1654): | Gaithead |
| OS Name Books (1855-57): | Gatehead |
| Location: | Ordnance Survey (1893-1960) |
| Early Forms |
| Gaithead (1654), Gaithead (1654) |
The earliest reference to the property of Gaithead, to be found thus far, appears in the ‘Testament, Testamentar and Inventory of James Dunbar of Polquir Tour (Polqhuirter), spouse of Agnes Barclay’, dated 25th April 1564 [1,2].
Item with John Gammill in gaitheid
Item with johne gammill in gallowhill ane yung cow of ii yeiris auld the price xxx sh,
Item John gamill in gallowhill xxxviij
Scotland’s People, Legal Records Wills & Testament, Glasgow Commisary Court CC 9/7/2
John Gammill also held the lands of the neighbouring property of Gallowhill [1,2]
Gatehead also appears in the form Gaithead in Blaeu Coila Provincia (1654). The first element of the name is Scots gait ‘road, way, path’ [3] while the second element suggests head, as in ‘head or top of the road‘.
In 1205 a toll and customs point was established at Corsencon, as well as at four other routes into the sheriffdom of Ayr, by William the Lion, King of Scots following his elevation of Ayr to a Royal Burgh [4]. Corsencon hill stands on the boundary of Ayrshire and Dumfriesshire approximately three miles to the east of Gatehead.
Blind Hary makes reference to this route in “The Wallace” explaining that Wallace and his men on their way to his ‘ryall hous‘ at Blackcraig in Glen Afton were forced to turn back because the road (gait) at Corsencon had been destroyed (spilt).
At Corssencon the gait was spilt that tide,
The Wallace’, Book III Blind Hary [5]
Forthi that way behovid thaim for to ride. ‘
On 5th July 1680 during the Covenanting struggle government troops were stationed near the old Castle of Cumnock in pursuit of the Reverend Richard Cameron ‘The Lion of the Covenant’ and his men when they received intelligence that –
… Cameron with a partie of 13 or 14 horss marched to Corsancone toward Cummerhead and Crawford John
Earl of Airlie, Letters [6]
The Ordnance Survey Name Book (1855-57) entry for Gatehead reads –
A farm house occupied by … Craig – the property of J. S.Menteth Bart
The farmer at that time was William Craig and the property was owned by Sir James Stuart-Menteth, 2nd Baronet of Closeburn & Mansfield.
The medievel route from Corsencon towards Cumnock Castle is now known as Mansfield Road. The modern house of Gatehead sits a few hundred yards to the north side of the Mansfield Road at what could be considered the top of the road travelling from Corsencon. Alternatively the gait in question could be the small path off the Mansfield Road to Gatehead, which sits at the head of the path.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
| References |
| [1] ] Many thanks to Yvonne Saunderson who transcribed the ‘Testament, Testamentar and Inventory of James Dunbar of Polquir Tour (Polqhuirter), spouse of Agnes Barclay’, dated 25th April 1564 .Scotland’s People, Legal Records Wills & Testament, Glasgow Commisary Court CC 9/7/2 |
| [2] New Cumnock Place-Name: Gallowhill |
| [3] Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltde | gate, gait |
| [4] W.J. Watson ‘The Celtic Place-Names of Scotland’ | Corsancone p. 198 |
| [5] Matthew P. McDiarmid ‘Hary’s Wallace’, Vol I. and II.,The Scottish Text Society (1968/69) |
| [6] Papers of the Earl of Airlie , National Records of Scotland, GB234/GD16 |
| Maps |
| Reproduced with the Permission of the National Library of Scotland |
| https://maps.nls.uk/ |
| Map 1: Johan Blaeu, The province of Kyle / auct. Timoth. Pont.Coila Provincia (1654) |Gaithead |
| Map 2: Ordnance Survey, One-inch to the mile maps of Scotland, 2nd Edition – 1885-1903 (1895)|Gatehead |
| Map 3: Ordnance Survey Maps – Six-inch 1st edition, Scotland, 1843-1882 (1856) | Gatehead |