| Ardrossan | |
| Scottish Gaelic: Àird Rosain | |
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Ardrossan
Ardrossan shown within North Ayrshire |
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| Population | 10,952 [1] (2001 census) est. 10,520[2] (2006), |
|---|---|
| OS grid reference | NS232424 |
| Council area | North Ayrshire |
| Lieutenancy area | Ayrshire and Arran |
| Country | Scotland |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | ARDROSSAN |
| Postcode district | KA22 |
| Dialling code | 01294 |
| Police | Strathclyde |
| Fire | Strathclyde |
| Ambulance | Scottish |
| EU Parliament | Scotland |
| UK Parliament | North Ayrshire and Arran |
| Scottish Parliament | Cunninghame North |
| List of places: UK • Scotland • | |
Ardrossan (Gaelic: Àird Rosain) is a town on the North Ayrshire coast in south-western Scotland. The name "Ardrossan" describes its physical position — 'ard' from the Gaelic àird meaning headland, 'ros' a promontory and the diminutive suffix '-an' - headland of the little promontory. Ardrossan is becoming an affluent commuter town with a population of roughly 11,000 and is in a three-towns corroboration act with the nearby towns of Saltcoats and Stevenston.
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Ardrossan's roots can be traced back to the construction of its castle 'Cannon Hill', thought to be in around 1140, by Simon de Morville. The castle and estate passed onto the Barclay family (also known as Craig) and it passed through successive heirs until the 14th century. Then it passed onto the Eglinton family on the death of Godfrey Barclay de Ardrossan, who died without leaving an heir. Sir Fergus Barclay, Baron of Ardrossan was said to be in league with the Devil and in one of his dealings he set the task of the Devil to make ropes from sand; upon failing to do Satan kicked the castle with his hoof in frustration and left a petrosomatoglyph hoofprint.[3]
The castle stood until 1648, when Oliver Cromwell's troops had it destroyed, taking much of the stonework to Ayr to build the fort there. The ruins still stand, but are overgrown and in a dangerous condition.
Ardrossan developed quickly during the 18th and 19th centuries thanks to its position on the coast. Exports of coal and pig iron to Europe and North America were the main trade from the town's port, which became a centre for shipbuilding. Fishing vessels and small cargo boats were the mainstay of the shipyard until the 1950s, when the yard all but ceased to exist as a result of foreign competition. A smaller yard, McCrindle's, operated until the 1980s before it ceased trading.
Passenger services from Ardrossan harbour to Brodick on the Isle of Arran started in 1834, and services to Belfast in Ireland (later Northern Ireland) and the Isle of Man followed in 1884 and 1892 respectively. Clyde sailings were operated initially by the Glasgow and South Western Railway Company from Winton Pier and the Caledonian Railway from Montgomerie Pier. The Earl of Eglinton's ambitious plan for a canal link to Glasgow was never realised.
Between 1841 and 1848 Ardrossan was a part of the "West Coast Main Line" equivalent of its time. The fastest route from London to Glasgow was by train to Fleetwood, and thence by packet boat to Ardrossan. After 1848 the entire journey could be made by rail, avoiding Ardrossan.[4][5][6] The link to the Isle of Man no longer operates, having first been moved to Stranraer, then all Scottish services terminated altogether. Shell-Mex developed an oil refinery in Ardrossan from a World War II aviation-fuel canning factory, and the harbour was expanded for the company's tanker ships to berth. Local residents blocked plans in the 1960s for further expansion of the refinery, limiting the operations that could be carried out there. Operations at Shell-Mex ceased in 1986.
The harbour has been substantially redeveloped as a marina, and the passenger and vehicle ferry to Brodick is still operated by Caledonian MacBrayne.
Ardrossan was one of the last towns in Scotland to be made a Burgh, in 1846, with a Provost, magistrates and commissioners. Its Burgh status was lost in 1974 on the formation of Strathclyde Regional Council, whereupon it came under Cunninghame District. It is now part of North Ayrshire, created as a unitary authority in 1996.
Since 2006 Ardrossan has been part of a regeneration area, overseen by the Irvine Bay Regeneration Company. Their vision for Ardrossan is as a gateway to Arran and a good place to live and relax next to the sea in a regenerated town centre serving the existing and incoming community. This has started to be achieved through renewal of the town centre, which includes A derelict office in Princes Street which has been turned into two modern shops. The former Jack Miller's Hotel building at 78 Princes Street has been redeveloped and the refurbished building was completed in autumn 2010 and has been let out and is now open as an art gallery and artists studio space called Phoenix [1] The Studio displays Scottish Art as well as holding art classes and demonstrations. The old pumphouse has also been transformed into a popular contemporary Italian restaurant cecchinis [2]. The future development of the harbourside in a co-ordinated and overall plan. The Ardrossan North Shore project is now taking shape, which includes the redevelopment of the oil refinery site and the extension of the marina.
There are three railway stations in Ardrossan: Ardrossan South Beach, close to the boundary with Saltcoats; Ardrossan Town, in the centre of town, closed 1968 and reopened 1987; and Ardrossan Harbour, which is near the port for the Arran ferry. East-bound trains to Glasgow Central run every half-hour and a westbound service to Largs runs every hour. Rail services are operated by First ScotRail.
There are also two closed Railway Stations in the town. Ardrossan North was located adjacent to Montgomerie Street, and the platform remains can still be seen to this day, although the redevelopment of the former Shell Bitumen Plant site edges ever closer to the station remains. Ardrossan Montgomerie Pier was located further down the line from Ardrossan North, but the building of the harbourside apartments removed the last remains of the platforms and no evidence remains that a railway station once stood there. The last train ran through both these stations around 1968, although by that time they served summer boat train services only, with regular passenger traffic ceasing back in 1932.
Ardrossan is linked to Glasgow via the A737 road and to Ayr via the A78 road. The A78 Three Towns Bypass was opened in December 2004 and has provided a much-needed improvement to local transport links, reducing local travelling times significantly. The bypass has also helped to divert a significant amount of heavier traffic from the Three Towns. Bus services are available to the town and are operated primarily by Stagecoach West Scotland.
A regular ferry service from Ardrossan to Brodick on the Isle of Arran has run since 1834. Today, a ferry to Brodick departs every two hours and 45 minutes Monday–Saturday with each journey lasting 55 minutes.
In the past Ardrossan also ran regular ferry services to Belfast, and the Isle of Man (summer only). The Belfast run was operated by the Burns & Laird Line with the last scheduled service in 1976. The last ship to sail this route was the MV Lion, which is still the largest car ferry to operate from Ardrossan. The Isle of Man run was operated by the Isle of Man Steam Packet Company during the summer holiday season with the last service in 1985, although Caledonian MacBrayne later experimented with a smaller vessel to the Isle of Man for a couple of seasons, which ran one return service per week.
Ardrossan is served by 3 Primary schools and 1 Secondary school.
While being an exemplar of post-industrial Scotland's socio-economic malaise, Ardrossan is located on the edge of an area of exceptional natural beauty. The towering peaks of the Isle of Arran are starkly visible on a cold sunny day. Beyond, one can see the Paps of Jura and the Mull of Kintyre.
Offshore from Ardrossan is the small Horse Isle, an RSPB reserve and home to nationally important populations of herring gulls and lesser black backed gulls. The Holm Plantation area dividing Ardrossan and Saltcoats is a popular area for alternative walks to the seaside. The current regeneration[7] of the area has led to the plantation receiving many new amenities such as lighting and landscaped flower areas.
Ardrossan is located near two nuclear power stations, Hunterston A nuclear power station (currently being decommissioned) and Hunterston B nuclear power station. A 24 Mega-Watt (MW) windfarm which opened in 2004 overlooks the town.
In Ardrossan Loyal, there are five churches. St.Peter-in-chains is a Roman Catholic church. Barony St.Johns and the Park Church are Church of Scotland. There is also the EU Congregational Church and the Church of the Nazarene.
Ardrossan is in the Ayrshire North & Arran constituency in the House of Commons and Cunninghame North constituency in the Scottish Parliament. The Westminster seat is held by the Labour Party, and the Holyrood seat was gained by the Scottish National Party from Labour in the May 2007 election by a mere 48 votes.
Historically, Ardrossan has been part of the UK parliament constituencies North Ayrshire (1868–1918), Bute and Northern Ayrshire (1918–1983) and Cunninghame North (1983–2005). These constituencies traditionally returned Conservative or Unionist MP's until 1987, when the constituency was won by the Labour Party.
Ardrossan has a Unionist Club on Princes Street, which was established in 1901 and a Labour Social Club is present in the neighbouring town of Saltcoats.
In North Ayrshire council, Ardrossan is represented by 2 Independent councillors, 1 Labour councillor and 1 SNP councillor. The results were:
| North Ayrshire council election, 2007: Ardrossan and Arran | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | 1st Pref | % | Seat | Count | |
| Independent | Margie Currie | 1,439 | 2 | 4 | ||
| SNP | Tony Gurney | 1,414 | 1 | 4 | ||
| Labour | Peter McNamara | 1,007 | 3 | 7 | ||
| Independent | John Hunter | 952 | 4 | 9 | ||
| Conservative | Gordon Allison | 857 | ||||
| Labour | Margaret Munn | 829 | ||||
| SNP | William McLaren | 573 | ||||
| Independent | Kenneth MacDougall | 228 | ||||
| Scottish Socialist | Nigel Hunter | 144 | ||||
The town has two diplomatic missions, a Danish and a Norwegian consulate.[8]
Ardrossan has some notable buildings, for example Barony St John's Church and St Peter-in-Chains Roman Catholic Church. St Peter's is of modern construction in an all-brick, Swedish style. Its architects were the notable Gillespie, Kidd & Coia. Barony St John's dates from the mid-nineteenth century. Both buildings are on the South Crescent, overlooking South Beach and Irvine Bay. The crescent is lined by large villas dating from the 19th century, many of which have been converted into multiple residences.
Also known as 'Cannon Hill' by locals, it is a great place to visit, including a swing park. An historic ancient burial place on Castle Hill was vandalized in the 1950s. One tomb was taken to the Barony Church on South Crescent for safekeeping.
A prehistoric shell-mound, measuring 102 ft by 16 ft, on the side of Cannon Hill, close to Ardrossan Town railway station, was excavated by the Ayrshire historian John Smith in the 1890s. Its length was mostly overhung by a few feet, by the rock face, which had formed a rock-shelter, which the excavation showed had been occupied at intervals over a considerable period of time. The railway workings had cut a longitudinal section in the mound, which overlay a 1 ft layer of raised beach sand.[9]
The mound was composed of seashells, mainly periwinkle and limpet, and animal bones. Relics found included a stone 'anchor' with a groove cut round it for a rope, a possible stone sinker, fragments of very coarse, hammer stone, hand-made pottery, also pieces of wheel-turned, glazed pottery, a bone chisel, two bone needles, etc. No sign of the mound is visible today.[10]
Arguably the town's most notable son was physicist John Kerr.[11] He discovered the quadratic electro-optic effect, a change in the refractive index of a material in response to an electric field, now known as the Kerr effect.
Former pupil David T. Denver is Professor of Politics and International Relations at the University of Lancaster.[12] Professor Denver is a frequent media commentator on Scottish political issues and voting patterns and has published several books in the field of statistical analyses of voting patterns.. His daughter, Rachel Bell, has followed in his footsteps and has published several statistical reports within financial services. Well-respected City Project Manager Louise Milligan also lived in Ardrossan and is currently working in a high profile role for RBS in London.
Roy Aitken, who was born and raised in the town, went on to become one of the great captains of Celtic Football Club in the 1980s, and also captained the Scotland International Team. Roy also played for Newcastle United, Aberdeen and St Mirren, and managed Aberdeen to their last trophy success when they won the Scottish League Cup in 1996. Roy was given his Celtic first team debut at the age of 16 while he was still attending St Andrew's Academy in neighbouring Saltcoats. His manager at the time was Jock Stein.
Bobby Ferguson, who was born and raised in the town, won seven Scotland caps while goalkeeper for Kilmarnock in the 1960s. Bobby was transferred to east London club West Ham United for a fee of £65,000 in 1967, which at the time was a world record fee for a goalkeeper. He made his West Ham debut against Sheffield Wednesday on 19 August 1967, the first game of the 1967–68 season.
W.B. Young who holds one of the records for longest Scottish rugby career was also from Ardrossan.
Former Shadow Secretary of State for Scotland Peter Duncan attended Ardrossan Academy, and Mark Menzies, the current Conservative MP for Flyde, was born in Ardrossan.
Campbell Martin, journalist and former Independent Member of the Scottish Parliament for West of Scotland,[13] now editor of the3towns.com, an online local newspaper covering Ardrossan, Saltcoats and Stevenston.
Flying Officer Kenneth Campbell, recipient of the Victoria Cross, came from Ardrossan.[14]
Calum Kennedy (1928–2006), popular exponent of Scottish Gaelic song in the 1950s and 60s, ran a hotel in Ardrossan towards the end of his life.
From the core of its now-gone industrial workers, Ardrossan has produced a number of people of individual note. Ardrossan Academy has produced several former pupils that hold US and international patents for their scientific work.
The town also featured on Series 1, Episode 3 of hit BBC comedy Gary: Tank Commander, during which "The General" wanted to trace the footsteps of his ancestors, the MacBadgers, who had originally hailed from the town.
The name Ardrossan has also been given to places elsewhere in the world:
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