Lochhouse Tower
Forget Indiana Jones’ escapades in distant
lands - there are stories of hidden gold linked to the Johnstone tower at
Lochhouse which was built with six-foot thick walls in around 1536 on the site
of an earlier building.
It’s reputed that a Lochhouse Johnstone’s last
will and testament in 1566 made mention of a hoard of gold and silver booty
that was buried in a coffer at the tower – and it’s never been recovered –
while a John Johnstone of Lochhouse was executed in 1603 for robbery and
murder, despite being a man of the cloth.
The tower was originally surrounded by a
loch from which the name is derived and unusually for a Border tower it has
rounded angles and has a step in as the wall thickness diminishes at a higher
level.
Lochhouse is now converted into luxury self
catering accommodation and further details can be obtained at http://www.lochhousetower.co.uk/
