| Place-name: | March Burn |
| Suggested Meaning: | boundary burn |
| 1st element: | Scots. march ‘boundary’ |
| 2nd element | Scots burn ‘stream’ |
| Blaeu Coila (1654): | March b. |
| OS Name Books (1855-57): | March Burn |
| Location: | Ordnance Survey (1895) |
March Burn
Scots march ‘boundary’ + Scots burn ‘stream’
There are several March Burns in the parish of New Cumnock and all serve or may have previously served the purpose of forming a boundary between lands. The first element is Scots march ‘a border or boundary’ [1], which is pronounced locally as mairch and the second element is the common Scots burn ‘stream’ [2].
Reproduced with the permission of the National Library of Scotland
The Ordnance Survey Name Book (1855-57) entry for March Burn reads –
A burn rising at the east end of the Knipes and flowing northwards into the River Nith. It is called March Burn because in several places it is a county and parish boundary
This March Burn more or less runs along part of the ancient boundary between the Sheriffdom of Ayr and the Sheriffdom of Dumfries, later the county boundary between Ayrshire-Dumfriesshire and now the local authority boundary between East Ayrshire and Dumfries and Galloway. It also covers part of the parish boundary between New Cumnock and Kirkconnel.
The March Burn rises in the parish of New Cumnock and cuts back and forth over the boundary and by the time it flows under the A76 it is on the Dumfriesshire side of the boundary and remains on that side until it enters the River Nith.
Marchburn Cottage
The cottage sits on the north side of the A76 road and on the west bank of the March Burn on the Dumfriesshire side of the boundary.
March Bridge
The March Bridge, known locally as Mairch Brig, carries a B-road across the River Nith past Corsencon and onto Mansfield Road.
N.B. Update 05/01/2026
In order to avoid confusion with the March Bridge entry in the ‘Place-Names of the Coalfield Communities’ [3] which refers to the small road bridge that crosses over the March Burn (see the photo of March Burn above) the March Bridge (Mairch Brig), is the local name for the bridge that crosses the River Nith, which presumably takes its name from being in the vicintity of the boundary between New Cumnock and Kirkconnel. N.B. neither bridge was recorded in the OS Name Books (1855-57).
March Stane-Dyke
The Ayrshire-Dumfriesshire County Boundary follows the stane-dyke that cuts across the field between the Park Burn and March Burn where they both enter the River Nith.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
| References |
| [1] Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. |march |
| [2] Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. |burn |
| [3] Place-Names of the Coalfield Communities |March Bridge (New Cumnock) |
| Maps |
| Reproduced with the Permission of the National Library of Scotland |
| https://maps.nls.uk/ |
| Map 1: Joan Blaeu, Coila Provincia, [or], The province of Kyle / auct. Timoth. Pont (1654) |March Burn |
| Map 2: Ordnance Survey Maps – Six-inch 1st edition, Scotland, 1843-1882 | March Burn |
| Ordnance Survey Name Books |
| By Permission of Scotland’s Places |
| scotlandsplaces.gov.uk |
| Ayrshire OS Name Books (1855-57) Vol. 49| March Burn |
| Dumfriesshire OS Name Books (1848-58) Vol. 30| March Burn |
| Dumfriesshire OS Name Books (1848-58) Vol. 30| Marchburn |