Tag Archives: archives

New Cumnock Auld Kirk Project

by bmcuser

Last week we had the pleasure of welcoming New Cumnock Primary School’s P6 class to the Centre, to research the people and places connected to New Cumnock’s Auld Kirk. The class project is part of the New Cumnock Auld Kirk & Village Heritage Trail. The class has already been out and about in the Auld Kirkyard, gathering names of people buried there many years ago, with their teacher Miss Smith and project leader Bobby Guthrie.

Copy of New Cumnock Primary Visit May 2013 (13)

They came along to the Burns Monument Centre to find out more about some of the prominent local people with lairs in the Auld Kirk, such as teacher Andrew Stirling, Reverend James Young, and the merchant Thomas Kirkland. With expert guidance from the Centre’s Registrars, the pupils were able to search Scotland’s People. They found information about these New Cumnock families from Birth, Death and Marriage Records, Census Records, and Old Parish Records.

Copy of New Cumnock Primary Visit May 2013 (5)

To find out as much as possible about New Cumnock’s past, the pupils were also keen to look at maps, photographs and archive records of the area. The archivist showed the class some wonderful records, for example the New Cumnock Baptismal Register (1796 – 1846), a New Cumnock Public School logbook from the 1870s, Ayr Presbytery records showing Rev. Young’s ordination in 1758, and New Cumnock Poor Relief records.

New Cumnock Primary Visit May 2013 (8)

Photographs, maps and newspapers help us build a vivid picture of a place. The pupils enjoyed browsing through the old Ayrshire newspapers on microfilm. They were also keen to compare New Cumnock of today with the village in the photographs of the 19th century. Maps were also helpful to look at the development of the village over the years, and to compare streets and landmarks with the village in 2013.

Copy of New Cumnock Primary Visit May 2013 (9)

To make the most of their visit the pupils were given a special tour of the building, giving them an idea of how it is used on a daily basis, for registration, archives, local and family history. They were also keen to find out about the history of the Burns Monument itself and even managed to squeeze in our outdoor quiz. It was a busy day!

New Cumnock Primary Visit May 2013 (16)

 There’s another nice story about the visit on the East Ayrshire Council website.

(Thanks to EAC and Miss Smith at New Cumnock Primary School for the great photos!)

Prospectus for Kilmarnock Academy, 1876

by bmcuser

Today is World Heritage Day, so it is fitting that our latest piece of digitised local heritage is very topical. We’ve been doing a lot of work on school and education history recently, speaking to schools about their own archives, and thinking of ways this material can be used in 21st century education. We’re also interested in how our collections and expertise can inform future developments with local schools and regeneration.

Copy of Kilmarnock Academy Prospectus 1876 image

We’ve unearthed some fascinating documents from Kilmarnock’s 19th century school history. One significant item is the Prospectus for Kilmarnock Academy, 1876.  This was produced for the opening of the new school at the corner of North Hamilton Street and Woodstock Street, after its move from the original site at Green Street. The prospectus gives a summary of the curriculum and the rate of fees. It states the intention of the school is to “prepare youths for the Office or Counting-house, and Students for the University.”

Just click on the image below to see the digitised booklet, and zoom in to see more detail.

Kilmarnock Family Heritage Day

by bmcuser

Last weekend we held our first Family Heritage Day, with two workshops lead by author and storyteller Judy Paterson. These workshops were relaxed and informal, and designed to get our families talking about their own stories and sharing stories of Kilmarnock’s past. Our staff were also on hand to guide the young people and adults through some of the wonderful local history and archive materials that we had out for browsing.

Family Heritage workshop 1

The young people and their parents, grandparents (and godparents) were able to get hands-on access to a wide range of material, including old Kilmarnock newspapers and periodicals, maps, photographs, and archive material. Our Archivist delved into the Kilmarnock Town Council Minutes of 1830 to share the extraordinary story of Mr Green the Aeronaut, who set sail in his hot-air balloon from the Cross that summer.

Family Heritage workshop 2

Judy Paterson set off the workshops by sharing some stories of her own town, Inverkeithing in Fife, and also brought along some fascinating objects that had their own stories, for example the canonball she found in her garden! Participants were asked to bring in objects of their own, and to share the stories behind them. There were some brilliant photographs and artefacts, all with very personal stories attached, and all with some connection to Kilmarnock’s past and present.

Family Heritage workshop 3

The participants even managed to squeeze in some very worthwhile research! One family found out why their garden was a particular shape, while another found their old family business listed in the Kilmarnock Directory.

The favourite story was that of the Sour Milk Rebellion at the Kilmarnock Cross in 1829 – which Judy Paterson brought to life wonderfully. We were able to look at detailed maps of the town centre from that period to get an idea of the town’s marketplace and the streets and buildings nearby. As well as telling stories, Judy got stuck into some hands-on research with the participants (pic below).

Family Heritage workshop 4

The Family Heritage Day was a great success, and we hope to do far more that encourages families to learn about their local heritage, and to share and pass on their town’s stories.

These workshops were kindly supported by Historic Scotland, Heritage Lottery Fund,  and the Live Literature Fund, which is supported by The National Lottery through Creative Scotland and managed by Scottish Book Trust.

 

Copy of HLFHI_BLK    Print     SBT logo

 

Heritage Family Day

by bmcuser

We’re very excited about our Heritage Family Day on Saturday 23rd February. Storyteller Judy Paterson has some fascinating auld Killie stories to share, some of which may be familiar! We want to use Kilmarnock town centre’s rich history to inspire new stories and to encourage the sharing of stories across generations. Participants are encouraged to bring along an old photo or object that means something to them personally.

More details about the workshops below -

 family heritage day poster

Silverwood Primary’s Jacobite Research

by bmcuser

We recently hosted the impeccably behaved P6/7 pupils from Silverwood Primary, who were researching Kilmarnock’s links with the Jacobite Rebellion of 1745. The overwhelming local story linked to the Jacobites is that of William Boyd, 4th Earl of Kilmarnock.

Kilmarnock Earl of Kilmarnock age 42

Boyd joined Bonnie Prince Charlie’s men and fought at Culloden, where he was captured and imprisoned at Tower Hill, London. The pupils looked at history books and articles, which give a variety of possible reasons for Boyd’s ‘treacherous betrayal of the Crown’.

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As well as the politics of the era, the pupils were particularly interested in Boyd’s family and the background story of their home, the Dean Castle. The Dean was almost destroyed by a fire in 1735, worsening the family’s financial situation. After the fire, they lived in Kilmarnock House. The pupils used old maps of the town to work out where Kilmarnock House was located. They were also interested in the house’s later use, as Kilmarnock’s Industrial School in the late 19th century.

Kilmarnock House 2

Using the maps, the pupils could see that the old house was located near what is now the Howard Park. In our local history books they read of Boyd’s wife, Lady Kilmarnock, and her walks along the river while she awaited the fate of her imprisoned husband. This became known as The Lady’s Walk, which forms part of the Howard Park today.

The Ladys Walk1

The Earl of Kilmarnock’s role in the town was discussed. From the Archives we looked at the Kilmarnock Town Council minutes from the 1740s, which show the Earl’s signature (simply, ‘Kilmarnock’). We pointed out the changes in the minutes from mid 1745, when the Earl had joined the Rebellion. In September of that year the Council agree that given the town is ‘threatened with ane invasion into the neighbourhood’, the town guard is to be supported ‘by a sufficient number of men.’ From October 1745 the Council refers to Mr William Boyd rather than the Earl of Kilmarnock. The picture below shows the pupils studying the minute book.

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The pupils were fascinated by the first-hand accounts of Boyd’s trial and eventual execution for treason in August 1746. These accounts were printed in book or pamphlet form in 1746. We have copies in our Special Collection, and under the appropriate conditions, the pupils were able to look at them in detail.

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Included in this collection is the book below, which records the trial and sentencing of the Earl of Kilmarnock.

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Although officially sentenced to be hung, drawn and quartered (graphically described for the Earl’s benefit in the above book), Boyd’s sentence was reduced to a more straightforward execution shortly before his death.

There is more on the history of the Boyd family and the Dean Castle, including images of artefacts held there, on the Future Museum site.