Langholm

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Langholm
Gaelic:	Langaim
Scots:	as above
Location
OS grid reference:	NY364847
Statistics
Population:	2,311

Administration
Council area:	Dumfries and Galloway
Constituent country:	Scotland
Sovereign state:	United Kingdom
Other
Police force:	Dumfries and Galloway Constabulary
Lieutenancy area:	Dumfries
Former county:	Dumfriesshire
Post office and telephone
Post town:	LANGHOLM
Postal district:	DG13
Dialling code:	013873
Politics
Scottish Parliament:	Dumfries
UK Parliament:	Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale
European Parliament:	Scotland

Langholm and the River Esk, showing Langholm Bridge

Langholm, also known in Scots as the "Muckle Toon", is a burgh in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, on the River Esk and the A7 road. The town grew around the textile industry, but is now best-known as the birthplace of Hugh MacDiarmid and Thomas Telford.

The Langholm Bridge was constructed over the River Esk between 1775 and 1778 by Robert Hotson. Thomas Telford worked on the construction as a journeyman, and the road west from the bridge is now named after him.

The town was an important centre for the Border Reivers. Each year many visitors come for the annual Common Riding, which takes place on the last Friday of July.

A branch of the Carlisle to Hawick railway line was built to Langholm in 1864, but closed some 100 years later. The last train was on 13th of June 1964.

Langholm is also the birth town of Thomas Hope who was born in 1809. After emigrating to America, Hope set up a chain of stores and became rich. In 1888 he returned and Hope told his friend Robert Smellie that when he died he would donate money for a town hospital. In March 1890 he died and between 1894 and 1896 the hospital was built. The Thomas Hope Hospital is still in use.

Langholm was also the home of Albie Tedham who was one of Scotland's top fiddle players during his life.

Actor Gregor Fisher, best known for his portrayal of his character Rab C Nesbitt in the British sitcom of the same name, spent part of his childhood in Langholm but moved to the outskirts.

In 1871, Langholm Rugby Football Club was founded, being the oldest Rugby club in the borders.

The unused episcopalian church on the Castle Holm in the burgh has been converted into the Armstrong clan museum. In 1972, astronaut Neil Armstrong was welcomed to the town, and made the first freeman of the burgh. He happily declared the town his home. The BBC [1] have a video clip of the visit.

Langholm is surrounded by three hills. The highest is 300m Whita hill, on which stands an impressive obelisk commemorating the life and achievements of Sir John Malcolm (1769‑1833), the distinguished soldier, statesman, and historian. The others are Warblaw (in Langholm it is pronounced Warbla) and Meikleholmhill.

The town is home to a music and arts festival, a food festival and the Langholm walks.

Langholm has long been home to a thriving woollen milling trade and at one stage there were 22 mills in a town of 2,000 people. There has been consolidation and closure since then, but many people still earn their living in the trade. The Edinburgh Woollen Mill, seen on many a high street, is based in Langholm.

Another local business is Border Fine Arts, set up in the early seventies. It makes figurines of local wildlife, each one hand painted by local people. The company trades around the world.