The River Afton (or Afton Water) is a small river in

Ayrshire Ayrshire (, ) is a Counties of Scotland, historic county and registration county, in south-west Scotland, located on the shores of the Firth of Clyde. The lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area of Ayrshire and Arran covers the entirety ...

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

, which flows north from

Alwhat Hill Alhang is a hill in the Carsphairn and Scaur Hills range, part of the Southern Uplands of Scotland. It is the lowest Donald hill in the range; Meikledodd Hill is 1m higher. The northern slopes of the hill are the source of the River Afton. It is ...

in the

Carsphairn and Scaur Hills The Carsphairn and Scaur Hills are the western and eastern hills respectively of a hill range in the Southern Uplands of Scotland. Ordnance Survey maps don't have a general name for the hill area as a whole. Also, Ordnance Survey use "Scar" rathe ...

, through

Afton Reservoir Afton may refer to: Places Canada * Afton River (Nova Scotia) * Afton, Nova Scotia * Afton, Prince Edward Island * Afton Station, Nova Scotia United Kingdom * River Afton, Ayrshire, Scotland * Glen Afton, Ayrshire, Scotland * Afton Reservoir, Ay ...

and then for eight miles down Glen Afton before joining the

River Nith The River Nith (; Common Brittonic: ''Nowios'') is a river in south-west Scotland. The Nith rises in the Carsphairn hills of East Ayrshire, between Prickeny Hill and Enoch Hill, east of Dalmellington. For the majority of its course it flows ...

New Cumnock New Cumnock is a village in East Ayrshire, Scotland. It expanded during the coal-mining era from the late 18th century, and mining remained its key industry until its pits were shut in the 1960s. The village is southeast of Cumnock, and east of ...

. New Cumnock in the Afton area was the scene of the

Knockshinnoch Disaster The Knockshinnoch disaster was a mining accident that occurred in September 1950 in the village of New Cumnock, Ayrshire, Scotland. Liquid peat and moss flooded pit workings, trapping more than a hundred miners underground. For several days rescu ...

in 1950. The river is celebrated in

Robert Burns Robert Burns (25 January 1759 – 21 July 1796), also known familiarly as Rabbie Burns, was a Scottish poet and lyricist. He is widely regarded as the List of national poets, national poet of Scotland and is celebrated worldwide. He is the be ...

's poem

Sweet Afton "Sweet Afton" is a lyrical poem describing the Afton Water in Ayrshire, Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, ...

BBC Radio Scotland - words to "Flow gently sweet Afton"
/ref> and this led to a number of townships in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

being called Afton. File:Confluence of Afton Water with River Nith.jpg, Looking south towards the River Nith at the point where it is joined by Afton Water just north of New Cumnock. The water entering from the bottom left of the picture is the River Nith and the water entering from the right is Afton Water. The hill in the background is Corsencon Hill (475 metres). Cumnock Castle stood on this site in the Middle Ages. File:Burns Cairn Glenafton.jpg, The Burns Cairn in Glen Afton. The inscription on the cairn says "''Flow Gently Sweet Afton''. Robert Burns 1759 - 1796. Erected by New Cumnock Burns Club (500) to mark its golden jubilee 1973."

References

Rivers of East Ayrshire {{Scotland-river-stub