Soonhope?

[hdw]

One of my Stephenson ancestors farmed at Soonhope, near Lauder, in the early 1800s. I'm not a native of Berwickshire and when I went looking for Soonhope some years ago, I found this derelict farmhouse in the hills near Lauder, and thought that might be it?

Can anyone confirm that this is Soonhope farmhouse? If not, what is it called?

Harry

[DonM]

Go to Google Maps (use Satellite)
Type in Addinston, Lauder its on the (A697)
You will see Soonhope Burn
Follow the adjacent road north along the burn.
Where the road cross the burn (to the left) there are two dwellings just to the north.
I'm pretty sure the dwelling on the northside is Soonhope.

https://www.google.ca/maps/@55.7794104,-2.7571709,533m/data=!3m1!1e3

Now select this https://maps.nls.uk/view/216384212 and you will see what I mean.

Was this where your photo was taken?

Don

[Forfarian]

I don't know.

See https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/208042

[DonM]

I saw you lurking Forfarian, and knew you were waiting to pounce, but I'll give you credit for the shortcut and the glossy photo.

Don

[Ruskie]

https://maps.nls.uk/geo/explore/side-by-side/#zoom=17.919481943720417&lat=55.77868&lon=-2.75440&layers=168&right=ESRIWorld

It’s a lovely spot Harry. Can you show is the exact location of the dwelling in the photo on a modern map?

[hdw]

It's over 20 years since we went there and my memory is vague, but I'm looking at the OS map sheet 66 Edinburgh, and after Lylestone on the A697, north of Lauder, we must have followed the Cleekhimin Burn up into the hills to Soonhope. More photos were taken that day but I only seem to have the one on the computer.
I've written several articles about my Stephenson ancestors at Longyester near Gifford. They were tenants of several farms in the Lammermuirs and had a flock of sheep on the highest point, Lammer Law.

Harry

[Forfarian]

I saw you lurking Forfarian, and knew you were waiting to pounce, but I'll give you credit for the shortcut and the glossy photo.

I's very disconcerting to click on 'Reply' and instantly see the 'While you were reading ...' banner.

Credit for the photograph of Soonhope is Walter Baxter's, not mine.

I don't think that either of the houses in that photograph is the one in hdw's photograph, so either that one was demolished and replaced, or hdw's photo was not taken at Soonhope.

[Ruskie]

Unfortunately it’s not Soonhope in the photo though is it? 

It would still be interesting to know where it is - It’s quite lovely.

Added. Snap Forfarian. 

There is no “Google street view” of the area to try to determine the age of the current dwelling either.

[Forfarian]

One way to investigate would be to see if the Borders planning department has any record of the building of the new houses at Soonhope. If the house on the left is a replacement, it is possible that the application might contain a photograph of the house it replaced.