text: This act did not apply in Scotland , however , where 16 remained the age of consent , so many young couples took to eloping to Scotland , and most stopped to tie the knot in Gretna Green , the nearest town over the border .
  
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  Many parents of the couples attempting the elope would try waiting at the town line of Gretna Green Since they knew that this was the nearest town and the most likely place they would go .