Scott's notes say the farm of Blackhouse in Selkirkshire was said to be the scene of the event, with the remains of a very ancient tower beside the farmhouse, in a wild and solitary glen on the Douglas Burn, which joins the Yarrow after passing a craggy rock called the Douglas Craig. Lady Margaret was said to have been carried off from this tower by her lover. Seven large stones on the neighbouring heights of Blackhouse were shown as the place where the seven brothers were slain, and the Douglas Burn was said to be the stream where the lovers stopped to drink.
Scott also says the chapel of St Mary, whose traces could be seen by the lake that bears her name, was said to be the burial place of Lord William and Fair Margaret. He thought a real event probably lay behind the ballad. Modern scholars class it as pseudo historical and note similar ballads, so the local attachments may have gathered after the song became popular. The pin is set on the Douglas Burn and is approximate.
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