769 



AYRSHIRE. 



AYRSHIRE. 



county not inaptly points out the different qualifications of these 

 districts. It is to the following effect : 

 Kyle for a man, 

 Carrick for a cow, 

 Cunningham for butter and cheese, 

 And Galloway for woo' (wool). 



Galloway is immediately south of Ayrshire. 



The whole county according to the Population Tables of the 

 Census of 1851 contains 650,156 acres, which is about 1016 square 

 miles. The 'New Statistical Account of Scotland' says the area 

 is "computed to contain 1600 square miles," which is apparently 

 an error. 



The chief towns in Ayrshire are as follows : In Kyle, AYR, and 

 its suburb Newton-upon-Ayr ; GALSTON, a small inland market-town ; 

 and the port of Troon, which has risen to importance from the 

 improvement of its harbour, the railroad from Kilmarnock, the 

 opening of extensive quarries, and the flourishing state of the coal- 

 trade. In Cunningham is the burgh of IRVINE at the mouth of the 

 river Irvine ; the manufacturing towns of KILMARNOCK and BEITH ; 

 the port* of SALTCOATS and ABDROSSAN ; the small coast-town of 

 L AKOS, which is frequented as a bathing-place ; and the inland towns 

 of STEWABTON and NEW MILNS. In Carrick the towns of GIRVAN 

 and MAYBOLE have risen in importance by the increase of manu- 

 factures. Troon is referred to below : the other places will be found 

 under their several names. 



The following towns we notice here, with the populations accord- 

 ing to the Census of 1851 : 



Cumnock, in the parish of Old Cumnock, is 16 miles E. from Ayr, 

 and about 52 miles S. from Glasgow by the Glasgow, Dumfries, and 

 Carlisle railway, which passes near the town : population of the 

 parish, 3777 ; of the town 2395. The town was made a burgh of 

 barony by James IV. in 1509. In the centre of the village is a spa- 

 cious square, from which several small streets branch off. The village 

 is lighted with gas. It contains a parish church, a Free church, and 

 chapels for United Presbyterians and Independents. Weaving and 

 hand-sewing employ a portion of the population. The manufacture 

 which has rendered the village somewhat celebrated is that of the well- 

 known wooden snuff-boxes, which are generally admired. Threshing- 

 machiues are made here. There is a savings bank. Several annual fairs 

 are held in Cumnock. Near Cumnock are Dumfries House, the seat 

 of the Marquis of Bute, and one or two other handsome mansions. 

 Limestone and freestone are abundant in the parish ; ironstone has 

 been found, and smiths' coal, cannel coal, and plumbago or black-lead 

 are wrought in the adjoining parish of New Cumnock, which in 1851 

 contained 2759 inhabitants. 



Dailly, in the parish of Dailly and district of Carrick, population 

 2413, is about 6 miles E. from Girvan harbour. It is a well-built and 

 thriving place, containing the parish church, a Free church, several 

 schools besides the parochial school, a library, and a friendly society. 

 Coal, limestone, and freestone abound here ; the coal has been worked 

 f >r many years. The parish contains a curious oval encampment, 

 attributed to Robert Bruce, the ruins of two small fortalices, and ves- 

 tiges of a chapel said to have been dedicated to St. Macarius, the place 

 being called Mackry-kill. The island or insulated rock of Ailsa Craig 

 is in the parish of Dailly. 



JJalmellingtvn, in the parish of Dalmellington, is about 15 miles 

 S. K. from Ayr, on the high road between Dumfries and Ayr, and 

 a short distance north of Loch Doon : population of the parish, 2910. 

 In the neighbouring hills minerals, principally coal, abound, and 

 they are now extensively wrought. There are iron furnaces about 

 three miles from the village, and hundreds of miners' houses have 

 of late years been erected on a previously barren moor. The chief 

 occupation is that of wool-spinning, and the weaving of plaids, 

 tartans, and carpets. There are in the village the parish church, 

 a fine and well-situated structure, and a Free church. In addition 

 to the parish education about 26 poor children are taught free. 

 There are a reading-room well supplied with newspapers and maga- 

 zines, and a large parochial library. A Roman road ran through 

 the parish, and has been traced through the neighbouring parish of 

 Dalrymple. Several sepulchral cairns were formerly existing in the 

 parish, but the stones have been removed and applied to use in farm- 

 buildings. 



Hairy, in the parish of Dairy, is 22J miles S.W. from Glasgow, and 

 174 miles N. from Ayr by the South-Western railway, which has a 

 station in the town : population, 2706 ; the population of the parish, 

 8865. Dairy is seated on an eminence overlooking the river 

 Garnock, in an angle formed by the junction of that river with the 

 Ry, a considerable stream, from which the place is believed to derive 

 it* nam<". The parish is of very early origin, and the church, which 

 stands in the centre of the village, was dedicated to St. Margaret, on 

 whose festival in the month of July an annual fair is held : the custom 

 of lighting a large bonfire at the church-gate the night preceding the 

 fair is still observed. Benides the parish church there are places of 

 worship for the Free Church, United Presbyterians, and Roman 

 Catholics. The court or moot-hill is still to be seen close to the vil- 

 lage, and on Caerwiiming Hill in the neighbourhood are the vestiges 

 of a large ancient fortification. Many of the inhabitants are engaged 

 in rural occupations ; cotton-weaving and the manufacture of wool 



oioo. DIV. vol.. i. 



and flax are also carried on. Dunlop cheese is made by most of the 

 neighbouring farmers. Lying in the great mineral field of Ayrshire, 

 Dairy has increased greatly in the number of its inhabitants of late 

 years. Coal-pits, lime-works, and iron furnaces cover the face of the 

 country, and give employment to a large portion of the population. 

 Extensive iron-works have been established close to the village, and 

 the supply of minerals is said to be inexhaustible. 



Kilbirnle, a small town in the parish of Kilbirnie, is situated at the 

 south end of Kilbirnie Loch, on the river Garnock, about 20 miles 

 S.W. from Glasgow : population, 3399 ; of the whole parish, 5484. 

 The town is lighted with gas. There are here numerous and exten- 

 sive coal-works and several iron furnaces. In the town are a cotton 

 and a thread-manufactory. The parish church is a very ancient build- 

 ing, containing a curious carved gallery, and many ancient carved 

 armorial bearings of the Crawford family, whose family seat, Kilbir- 

 nie Castle, is now a large ruin in the parish. The churchyard contains 

 among other monuments the ' stately tomb ' of Captain Crawford of 

 Jordanhill, the captor of Dumbarton Castle, and of his wife Jean Kerr 

 of Kerreslande, both of whose effigies in carved stone can be seen 

 inclosed in the tomb from a small aperture in the side. There are in 

 the town a Free church, a chapel for Reformed Presbyterians, and a 

 subscription library. The South-Western railway passes close to the 

 village. The Loch of Kilbirnie is nearly two miles long and about half 

 a mile broad. 



Jfilmaura, an ancient burgh of barony in the parish of Kilmaurs, 

 situated on the Kilmaurs water, 20 miles S.W. from Glasgow by road, 

 and 30 miles by railway : population, 1083. It consists of one long 

 street of thatched houses, among which is a small court-house, sur- 

 mounted by a spire. Besides the parish church there are a Free 

 church and a chapel for United Presbyterians. The cutlery made 

 here was at one time esteemed, but this trade has long since passed 

 away. Cotton-weaving is carried on to a small extent. The ruins of 

 Kilmaurs Castle adjoin the burgh. In the churchyard is the tomb of 

 the Chancellor Earl of Glencairu, to whom the estate formerly belonged. 

 The parish is fertile. 



KUwinning, a small town in the parish of Kilwinning, 26 miles S.W. 

 from Glasgow by the Ayrshire railway : population, 3265. It is situ- 

 ated on the bank of the river Garnock, and derives its name from St. 

 Winning, a Scottish saint of the 8th century, to whom the abbey, 

 founded in the 12th century by Hugh de Morville, was dedicated, as 

 had been the church which previously stood there. The abbey was 

 almost wholly destroyed in 1560 by order of the States-General of 

 Scotland. The ruins remaining indicate the former grandeur of what 

 was one of the richest abbeys in Scotland. To the west of the abbey 

 is a fountain, known as ' St. Winning's Well,' which in the year 1184, 

 according to Hoveden, and on the anniversary of the saint's death 

 ran blood for a stated period, during which it was visited by large 

 numbers of devotees, in the belief that the crimson stream was a cer- 

 tain cure for all diseases. Not many years ago an underground com- 

 munication of leaden pipes was discovered between the well and the 

 ruins of the abbey, which it is supposed the monks used for the pur- 

 pose of effecting the ' miracle.' In the neighbourhood are Eglinton 

 Castle, the Eglinton Iron- Works, and numerous coal-pits, which afford 

 employment to a large portion of the parish population. The parish 

 church, erected in 1775 in the centre of the village, will accommodate 

 about 1000 persons. The churchyard contains some interesting monu- 

 ments. There are a Free church, chapels for United Presbyterians 

 and United Original Seceders, and a savings bank. Many of the inha- 

 bitants are hand-loom weavers ; there are some miners. A good deal 

 of Ayrshire needlework is sewed by the females in the town. 



MaucMine, population, 1449, about 12 miles E.N.E. from Ayr, is 

 situated on the south side of Mauchiine Hill, about a mile from tho 

 river Ayr. Its charter as a burgh of barony was lost about 135 years 

 ago, and has not been renewed. The parish church, erected in 1829, 

 is a commodious gothic structure, with a tower at the east end 90 feet 

 high, surmounted with pinnacles ; it is placed in the centre of the 

 town. There are chapels for Free Church and United Presbj terian 

 congregations, an educational institute for 50 children, a savings bank, 

 a public library, and several benevolent and religious societies. The 

 manufacture of wooden snufl-boxes employs a considerable number of 

 the inhabitants. Weaving and shoemaking are carried on to some 

 extent. Several bridges cross the river Ayr near Mauchlinc, of which 

 the most important is the one at Barskimmiug. It is an elegant struc- 

 ture of one arch, 100 feet in span and 90 feet high. At Mauchiine is 

 a station of the South-Western railway. Mauchiine Castle is a tower 

 of considerable antiquity, formerly a possession of the Loudoun 

 family. 



Muirkiri; population of the parish, 3423, on the right bank of the 

 water of Ayr, 25 miles E. by N. from Ayr. In the vicinity are extensive 

 iron-works, on which the prosperity of the place chiefly depends. 

 Coal, ironstone, and lime are abundant. Some small canals and 

 tramways have been constructed in connection with the iron-works. 

 There is a principal station of the Glasgow and South-Westurn 

 railway. In the village are the parish church, erected about 1817, 

 and repaired since that time, a Free church, and a chapel for United 

 Presbyterians. 



Tarbolton, or Torlolton, population of the parish, 2824, about 7 miles 

 N.E. from Ayr, is a free burgh of barony by charterof Charles II. Tho 



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