Repair work at the Caul in the River Nith in Dumfries has attracted interest from local residents this week.

Workers have been busy repointing the joints in the stonework of the structure and they will be on site as and when weather permits.

The Caul was constructed to provide more water power for a grain mill by raising the river level upstream behind it.

The mill was converted into a hydroelectric station in 1911 and helped power the town’s street lighting but has since been rebuilt and is now home to the Robert Burns Centre and Film Theatre.

Records show that a ford once existed close to where the Caul is and was used by pilgrims passing through Dumfries on the way to Whithorn and St Ninian’s Cave.