The Toll House - Innerleithen

Went out for a walk with my Mother the day before the Wedding just to get some fresh air. The sky was quite grey and overcast and finding a blipworthy subject was proving to be quite difficult.

I spotted this above the door of a house just before the bridge over the River Tweed which carries the old road south out of Innerleithen to Galashiels and Peebles. I quite liked the semi-ornate script and the signs of lichen and moss-staining appearing against the roughness of the stone.

Since 1775 Innerleithen had good road communication with Peebles and Galashiels. Following the Turnpike Acts of the eighteenth century charges were levied for the upkeep of turnpike roads and collected at this toll house. It seems that road tax is nothing new ! Hopefully they had fewer potholes then than we encountered on our trips over the following week....