Waverley mill is at the bottom left in the photo below, with Buccleuch mill as its neighbour. To the right is the railway station.

During the war, Waverley was owned by three Scott brothers: James (1868-1924), Arthur (1873-1940) and Tom (1875-1947). Tom was a Scotland rugby international in the late 1890s.

The mill was constructed in 1866-1867 by Canonbie-born general merchant James Scott (1804-1881) and his sons John (1838-1894) and Alex (1843-1903).

The family expanded the operation in the 1870s to create Langholm’s largest woollen mill, pushed into second place in 1878 by the growth of Reid & Taylor.

John lived in Ashley Bank, which became a hotel in the 1890s. His son James (1864-1941) started the rival Kilncleuch mill in 1895, to the annoyance of Waverley mill family members. John’s daughters Margaret, Mary and Catherine played for the Langholm Ladies hockey team.

Alex built Erkinholme in 1885 and died in 1903, passing Waverley mill on to his sons James, Arthur and Tom.

Tom outlasted his brothers in the business and made his sons Alex (1905-1988) and William (1908-1971) partners in 1939.

In 1973, the company was purchased by Allied Textiles, which had also bought Reid & Taylor in 1964. It sold the Waverley site in 1975 to Edinburgh Woollen Mill (‘EWM’). EWM continued production for nearly two decades and maintained its head office in Langholm until 2018 when it moved to Carlisle.

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