Postcard of Lincluden Abbey, near Dumfries

"Lincluden Abbey -  Dumfries". A colour tinted postcard from a photograph of the ruined abbey.   When Robert Burns exchanged the role of farmer for that of Exciseman he moved with his family from Ellisland Farm into a tenement flat in Bank Street, Dumfries. He developed the habit of taking walks along the banks of the River Nith, perhaps to replace the outdoor life he had previously led.   This postcard illustrates Lincluden Abbey, a picturesque mediaeval ruin which captured the poet's imagination. It is situated on rising ground above the Cluden Water, a tributary which joins the west bank of the River Nith.   It was here that Burns wrote the song, "Ca the Yowes to the Knowes", which features the Cluden and Lincluden Abbey. In September 1794 he wrote to George Thomson, his publisher, "In a solitary stroll which I took today, I tried my hand on a few pastoral lines. Here it is."