Now little more than the outline of a foundation, it occupied a site on the southern slope of Cockburn Law overlooking the Whiteadder Water.
[1] The land surrounding Cockburn Tower belonged to the powerful Dunbar family in the early 15th century.
In about 1527, William Cockburn purchased the land from Alexander Lindsay, 4th Earl of Crawford.
[3] However, in 1696 the Tower and surrounding land were auctioned off to pay the debts of Sir James Cockburn of that Ilk, 1st Baronet.
It seems that the Tower fell into disuse soon thereafter, and by 1820 it was already a roofless ruin, although significant portions of the walls remained standing.