Blindlee

NT43NE 6 4706 3730

(NT 4706 3730) Blindlee (NR) (site of)

OS 6" map (1971)

'Blindlie' is noted in 1649 as one of the principal houses in Selkirkshire.

W Macfarlane 1908

No traces remain of this old peel tower.

Name Book 1858

Though there are no structural remains of this tower, the head-dyke SW of the old quarry S of The Birks cuts across the foundations of some buildings of unknown age.

RCAHMS 1957, visited 1947

No structural remains of a tower exist here. The site is located on a level platform on the hillside, measuring some 27.0m by 8.0m. At NT 4706 3730 is a small rectangular foundation 0.4m high, scooped into the hill slope on the S side. The area around the site has been extensively quarried, destroying any other traces of foundations, although traces of an old field bank can be seen to the W of the 'tower' site, indicating that this is possibly the site of a farm.

Visited by OS (WDJ) 17 January 1961

The stede of 'Blindlie' is noted in 1456, the first time that a list of the stedes in Ettrick Forest is given. It was one of two stedes held by the queen in 1480; Exchequer Rolls indicate that she maintained a considerable establishment in the Forest. In 1588, the stede was held in feu by George Hoppringill.

M L Anderson 1967

One unroofed L-shaped building and one incomplete enclosure, annotated Blindlee Tower (Site of), are depicted on the 1st edition of the OS 6-inch map (Selkirkshire 1854-62-3, sheet iv). One unroofed building marked by pecked lines is shown on the current edition of the OS 1:10000 map (1983).

Information from RCAHMS (SAH) 15 August 2000

The open rectangle depicted on the current OS digital maps is located at NT 47076 37308.

Information from RCAHMS (DE), February 2010