Excerpt from Borrowstounness and District: Being Historical Sketches of Kinneil, Carriden, and Bo'ness, C. 1550-1850

Influenced by a liking for things historical and by the sentiment that my kinsfolk have been closely identified with this district for many generations, I commenced to collect the material which will be found in the following pages by way of a recreation seven years ago. There was at first no idea of the present publication. But as my investigations proceeded I discovered so much of what I believed to be new and interesting information that I felt impelled to preserve it, however imperfectly, in volume form. Many difficulties of treatment and arrangement presented them selves. The chief of these was in deciding Whether to continue the narrative to the present time or to end it at the middle of the 19th century. Ultimately the latter method was adopted, and for various reasons. Apart from the comparatively brief narratives in the Old and New Statistical Accounts there was nothing in the nature of a local chronicle; detailed reference to early history was very desirable the space at disposal for modern events would be wholly inadequate and compression was not always possible. I decided therefore to leave the more modern period alone.

In all cases the official books and papers have been carefully examined. Each chapter, with two exceptions, is complete in itself, and everything has been done to make the volume reliable. Great care has been taken to avoid errors and omissions, and should any such be discovered it is hoped that they will be put down to the exacting nature of the work.

It does not profess to be a complete history, but rather a series of sketches dealing with various phases of burghal and parish life. Facts and events are stated, but in such a way as to raise pictures of periods, of outstanding events and individuals, of progress and of decay, all of which point their own lessons.

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