The club was one of the first clubs founded in Scotland; the only other Borders club older than the Dumfries club was the Annan (N.B.) club formed in December 1867.[2]
Dumfries was founded in October 1869 as a rugby union club, but changed to association rules in 1870.[3] The club however switched back to rugby union in 1877;[4] the club's final reported association match was a 2–0 defeat to Maybole in October 1877.[5]