- Ruthwell
infobox UK place
country = Scotland
official_name= Ruthwell
gaelic_name=
scots_name=
os_grid_reference= NY099674
latitude=54.9934
longitude=-3.4076
population=
unitary_scotland=Dumfries and Galloway
lieutenancy_scotland= Dumfries
post_town=
postcode_district =
postcode_area=
dial_code=
constituency_westminster=
constituency_westminster_2=
constituency_scottish_parliament=
static_
static_image_caption=Ruthwell ChurchRuthwell is a village and parish on the
Solway Firth betweenDumfries and Annan inDumfries and Galloway ,Scotland .Ruthwell's most famous inhabitant was the Rev. Dr.
Henry Duncan . He was a minister,author ,antiquarian ,geologist ,publisher ,philanthropist ,artist andbusinessman .In 1810, Dr. Duncan opened the world's first commercial
savings bank , paying interest on its investors' modest savings. The Savings Bank Museum tells the story of early home savings in Britain.In 1818, Dr. Duncan restored the
Ruthwell Cross , one of the finest Anglo-Saxon crosses in theUnited Kingdom , now in Ruthwell church. This cross is remarkable for its runic inscription, which contains excerpts from "The Dream of the Rood ", an Old English poem.After the
Disruption of 1843 in theChurch of Scotland , Dr. Duncan became one of the founding ministers of the Free Church of Scotland.During his youth,
Robert Murray M'Cheyne spent summer holidays at "Clarence Cottage" in the hamlet ofClarencefield near Ruthwell, the home of his maternal aunt. During these visits he would often call to see "Uncle" Henry Duncan at the manse. M'Cheyne's parents were born in this part of Scotland.A well situated 3 km west of the village of Ruthwell is stained reddish (Latin: rutilius) by the high levels of iron salts in the water. This red well is now most noted as the place whereRobert Burns hoped to cure his final illness by drinking the iron-rich water.External links
* [http://www.multimap.com/map/browse.cgi?lat=54.9926&lon=-3.409&scale=100000&icon=x Map of Ruthwell]
* [http://www.savingsbanksmuseum.co.uk/ The Savings Bank Museum]
* [http://www.ruthwellrovers.com/ Ruthwell Rovers F.C.]
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