There are several small hamlets within the parish of Nicholforest and these include: Bushfield, Catlowdy, Kershopefoot, Penton, Scuggate, Stoneygate and Warwicksland.

  The area was once a huge forest between England and Scotland and today (as can be seen in photographs on the left) there are still many trees, watered by the Liddel and the Kershope coming down from the Cheviots.

  The area is historically of great interest. In the 16th century, the Borderland was divided into six Marches; three on the Scots side and three on the English side and Nicholforest was part of the West March. Kershopefoot, which is in the northern corner of the parish, right on the Border, was a recognised venue for the feuding Scots and English Reivers to meet on days of truce. Reference to this can be found in the fine Border ballads, which recount the deeds of these men.
“At Kershopefoot the tryst was set, Kershope of the lily lee…” (“Hobbie Noble’’)

Descendants of these Borderers: Armstrongs, Forsters, Grahams, Bells and many others, still live in and around Nicholforest parish.
  Probably the oldest building in the area is Stonegarthside Hall, an impressive ancient Border stronghold; at one time it was the seat of the Forsters. It is now a listed building. The present Church, dedicated to St. Nicholas, was rebuilt in 1866 and the parish registers date back to 1760.
 
The railway, originally the North British Railway, ran through Nicholforest until 1968, when the Beeching axe descended on the ‘Waverley’ main line route to Edinburgh. Penton and Kershopefoot stations fell victim, and as one local farmer said, regretfully, ‘the life went out of the parish with the closure of the railway.’
  Between the wars, the Forestry Commission planted thousands of conifers on the surrounding fellsides, covering the bleak moorland like green knitted blankets. Now the rail link has gone, and the forests are being cropped. Huge lorries, some in tandem, thunder their way across the countryside, churning up the roadside verges and dominating the winding country roads. Those forests still owned by the Forestry Commission are open to the public for hikers and ramblers, but those sold off in recent years to provide concerns are now padlocked and entry is forbidden.
 
At Stoneygate there was a blacksmith’s shop until about 40 years ago, Jobby Turnbull being the blacksmith. Nearby at Drakemire, Wat Cowan plied his trade as a clogger. The parish was plentifully supplied with inns and alehouses, many of the latter now dwelling houses or farms.
Probably the most famous of these establishments was the Huntsman, or the Corner House, known locally as ‘Annie Jane’s.’ Annie Jane Potts was the proprietress of the Huntsman and her premises were the centre for a variety of entertainments. ‘Burns’ Suppers’, ’Tatie-pot Suppers’, ’Kern Suppers’ and magnificent farmhouse dinners and teas were her speciality. Every Easter Sunday night she made traditional mulled ale, with eggs, stout, ginger and spices, to her own recipe. People came from all parts—especially over the Border, where Sunday drinking was forbidden, to enjoy a convivial evening.

  Farming, mostly sheep and cattle is the chief occupation of the local people; very few crops are grown and most of the land is under grass or forestry. Nowadays, farmers are diversifying; farming and tourism in some cases taking equal shares. Tourism has, in recent years, become an important earner in this unspoilt corner of England