Prehistoric settlement in the area is represented by the Friar's Nose, a
multivallate promontory fort immediately east of the reservoir. Directly across the Whiteadder valley from the fort, to the north-east of the reservoir, traces of a prehistoric settlement and field system have been recorded.
Penshiel Grange is a ruin located to the southeast of the reservoir. It was a monastic
grange attached to
Melrose Abbey and was probably built in the first half of the 15th century, though there is reference to Penshiel in a charter of 1200. Penshiel Grange is protected as a
scheduled monument. The main building measures about , and has a wall about high. There are some traces of a tower at the south-east corner, and some evidence of a courtyard to the north and south of the ruin, with the wall on the south of the main building, now being merely a turf-covered stony bank. There were at least two building to the north, one of which may have been a chapel. The fragmentary ruin comprises the east and west walls of a small tower house, built in the 16th century. The tower was constructed from
whinstone and was around across. The remaining walls are thick and stand to a height of . The height and appearance of the tower are uncertain, though there is evidence of a vaulted cellar. ==Photo gallery==