South Calder Water
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
(
Scotland)| South Calder Water | |
|---|---|
 ,The river at Coltness | |
 | |
| Location | |
| Country | United Kingdom ( Scotland) |
| Basin features | |
| Cities | Shotts, Allanton, Bonkle, Newmains, Wishaw, Coltness, Craigneuk, Forgewood, Motherwell |
The South Calder Water, known locally as "The Cawder", or simply "Calder", is a river in Scotland. It runs west from the high plateau between Shotts[1] and Fauldhouse to its joining with the much larger River Clyde.
The high plateau is also the watershed of the River Almond, which flows east into the River Forth.
The etymology of the name is not confirmed but is most likely from the Cumbric language, a language closely related to modern Welsh and was spoken across the Strathclyde area throughout the Early Middle Ages to about 1200 AD. The proposed etymology would come from the words "caled dwr", meaning "hard water", most likely either referring to the strength of the current or the rocky riverbed beneath the water.[2]
History
It is known that the ancient Romans constructed roads through Wishaw and Motherwell not too far from the river, and the ruins of the fort at Bothwellhaugh lies at the convergence of the Calder with the Clyde. Supposedly, a bridge that crosses the river at Bothwellhaugh was indeed built by the Romans, but the true age of the bridge is doubted.[3]
In the early 1600s, a large manor house was constructed on the banks of the river and named Wishaw House, as well as the purchase of several local farmsteads.[4] It is thought that this house was inherited through generations of nobles until it was abandoned and eventually demolished in the 1950s.