There are many old photographs of Dumfries town streets in the booklet series "BYGONE DUMFRIES AND GALLOWAY" by Desmond Donaldson. Volume #1 shows the High Street, Queensberry Square and the area around Burns Statue all cobbled in granite setts probably from the Dalbeattie quarries.
Even today many of these streets still have their cobbles with a thin layer of tarmac on top. Recent neglect to repair these streets by a Council 'with no money' for repairs see the old cobbles exposed by the many potholes found in these streets. In recent years the Vennel and the Plain Stanes around Midsteeple have been re-paved with beautiful large granite slabs import from exotic places like China.
Copies of Donaldson booklets and other phptographic collections for D&G are to be found in the Ewart Library and the DGFHS Research Centre.
www.dgfhs.org.uk