Shotts | |
---|---|
Metalworker statue in town centre. | |
Location within North Lanarkshire | |
Population | 8,630 (2020) [1] |
Council area | |
Lieutenancy area | |
Country | Scotland |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
Post town | Shotts |
Postcode district | ML7 |
Dialling code | 01501 |
Police | Scotland |
Fire | Scottish |
Ambulance | Scottish |
UK Parliament | |
Scottish Parliament | |
Shotts is a small town [2] in North Lanarkshire, Scotland. It is located almost halfway between Glasgow (17 miles or 27 kilometres) and Edinburgh (26 miles or 42 kilometres). The town has a population of about 8,840. [3] [4] A local story has Shotts being named after the legendary giant highwayman Bertram de Shotts, [5] [6] though toponymists give the Anglo-Saxon scēots ("steep slopes") as the real source of the name. [7] Shotts is the home of the world famous Shotts and Dykehead Caledonia Pipe Band, 16 time winners of World Pipe Band Championships. [8]
Until 1457 [9] Shotts was part of the Lanarkshire parish of Bothwell under the designation of "Bothwell-muir". [6] [10] Groome related that the pre-reformation church of Bertramshotts is mentioned in a Papal bull in 1476. [11] The parish, one of the largest in Lowland Scotland at 10 miles long and 8 miles wide, was sometimes called Shotts [12] but officially it was known as Bertram Shotts. [13]
In 1830s the principal owners of the land were the Duke of Hamilton, [14] Sir Thomas Inglis Cochrane of Murdoston MP, the Right Honourable Dowager Lady Torphichen, and Robert Carrick Buchanan Esquire of Drumpellier. [6]
Shotts was known for its mining and ironworks. The Shotts Iron Company was first established in 1801 and provided employment for Shotts and the surrounding area for 150 years, and was eventually wound up in 1952. [15] [16] These were developed when transport by canal and railway became possible. [17] By the late 1800s the ironworks had grown to the extent that the village slogan was "Shotts lights the world", as gas lamp standards made here were exported throughout the British Empire and beyond. [18] In the years leading up to World War II there were 22 coal mines in the area, but Northfield Colliery, the last of these, closed in the 1960s.
Shotts is south of the M8 in North Lanarkshire between Wishaw and Harthill. Historically the Shotts Iron Works were between Calderhead, source of the South Calder Water, and Stane. [21] Shotts parish was originally made up of five villages: Dykehead, [22] Calderside, Stane, Springhill and Torbothie; all growing up around the old coach roads between Glasgow and Edinburgh that expanded and merged during the 18th and 19th centuries following the growth in mining. [23]
Nearby is Kirk o' Shotts transmitting station.
Knowhoble Hill, lying beside Teilling Burn, was the site of a dwelling belonging to the Cleland (Clevland) family.
The town has a number of churches.
A couple of miles north of Shotts is the Kirk O'Shotts Parish Church (although this covers the community of Salsburgh and other nearby communities).
Shotts has a number of sports facilitated in the local community. Shotts Golf Club, an 18-hole course founded in 1895, is to the North-East of the town. [25] On the first Saturday in June each year, Shotts hosts its own Highland Games in Hannah Park. [26]
HMP Shotts, a high security prison holding male prisoners with maximum security classification, is located between Shotts and Salsburgh. It opened in 1978 and provided a new source of employment after the closure of the mines.
The town is served by Shotts railway station, which is connected on the Shotts Line between Glasgow and Edinburgh.
The Henderson Theatre is a 147 seater black box theatre built in 1982 within the Shotts Community Education Centre. [29] It is named after Archibald James Henderson, a coal miner who later became a member of the Scottish National Theatre Society and the Scottish National Players and formed several local drama groups: the YMCA Players, Shotts Labour Party Drama Team, Shotts Miners' Welfare Players, and Shotts Bertram Players. He was also active in Shotts Community Drama Association. [30]
Notable bands
Airdrie is a town in North Lanarkshire, Scotland. It lies on a plateau 400 ft above sea level, 12 miles (19 km) east of Glasgow. As of 2012, it had a population of 37,130. Historically part of Lanarkshire, Airdrie forms a conurbation with its neighbour Coatbridge, in what was formerly the Monklands district, with a population of approximately 90,000.
Lanarkshire, also called the County of Lanark, is a historic county, lieutenancy area and registration county in the Central Lowlands of Scotland. The county is no longer used for local government purposes, but gives its name to the two modern council areas of North Lanarkshire and South Lanarkshire.
Cambuslang is a town on the south-eastern outskirts of Greater Glasgow, Scotland. With approximately 30,000 residents, it is the 27th largest town in Scotland by population, although, never having had a town hall, it may also be considered the largest village in Scotland. It is within the local authority area of South Lanarkshire and directly borders the town of Rutherglen to the west. Historically, it was a large civil parish incorporating the nearby hamlets of Newton, Flemington, Westburn and Halfway.
Motherwell is a town and former burgh in North Lanarkshire, Scotland, United Kingdom, south east of Glasgow. It has a population of around 32,120. Historically in the parish of Dalziel and part of Lanarkshire, Motherwell is the headquarters for North Lanarkshire Council. Geographically the River Clyde separates Motherwell from Hamilton to the west whereas the South Calder Water separates Motherwell from Carfin to the north-east and New Stevenston and Bellshill towards the north.
Wishaw is a large town in North Lanarkshire, Scotland, on the edge of the Clyde Valley, 15 miles (24 km) south-east of Glasgow city centre. The Burgh of Wishaw was formed in 1855 within Lanarkshire. It formed a joint large burgh with its neighbour Motherwell from 1920 until its dissolution when Scottish local authorities were restructured in 1975, and was then in Motherwell district within the Strathclyde region until 1996. The town is part of the Motherwell and Wishaw constituency. It has the postal code of ML2 and the dialling code 01698.
Cleland is a village near Motherwell and Wishaw in North Lanarkshire, Scotland,. As of 2018, it has a population of about 3,000. The village has a strong coal mining heritage, and is a typical example of a working class village in North Lanarkshire and the Glasgow area. Due to its location, despite being at the heart of North Lanarkshire, the village is isolated, geographically and culturally, from surrounding towns such as Motherwell, Shotts and Wishaw.
Wishaw Football Club is a Scottish football club based in the town of Wishaw, North Lanarkshire. The club currently competes in the West of Scotland League Third Division.
Uddingston is a small town in South Lanarkshire, Scotland. It is on the north side of the River Clyde, south-east of Glasgow city centre, and acts as a dormitory suburb for the city.
Airdrie and Shotts is a constituency of the UK House of Commons, located in central Scotland within the North Lanarkshire council area. It elects one Member of Parliament (MP) at least once every five years using the first-past-the-post system of voting.
The Shotts and Dykehead Caledonia Pipe Band is a grade 1 pipe band from Shotts, in the North Lanarkshire region of Scotland. The band has won the World Pipe Band Championships sixteen times. The current pipe major is Emmett Conway.
Harthill is a rural village split between North Lanarkshire and West Lothian in Scotland, with most of the village in North Lanarkshire. It is located about halfway between Glasgow, 21 miles to the west, and Edinburgh, 25 miles (40 km) to the east. It lies on the River Almond about 2+1⁄2 miles (4 km) west of the small town of Whitburn. The closest major towns are Bathgate, 6 miles (9.7 km) away, and Livingston, 10 miles (16 km) away. Major towns within North Lanarkshire, such as Wishaw, Airdrie, Motherwell, Coatbridge and Bellshill are all around 10 to 15 miles to the west. The M8 motorway bypasses the village and Harthill has a service station named after it.
Alex Duthart was a Scottish drummer. He is widely regarded as having revolutionised pipe band snare drum playing.
Cleland railway station is a railway station serving the village of Cleland, near Motherwell in North Lanarkshire, Scotland. Built on the Cleland and Midcalder Line it was originally named 'Omoa', after the nearby ironworks, until Cleland (Old) on the Wishaw and Coltness Railway closed in 1930.
Torbothie is a small area in the town of Shotts, North Lanarkshire. Shotts has an overall population of approximately 8,570. Torbothie has a mixture of properties including council-letted accommodations and private dwellings, a Salvation Army Corps, a graveyard, large areas of forestry, a football ground, and Stane Primary School, as well as a small man made loch called The Voe, also known locally and informally as 'Torbothie Beach.' Torbothie is close to Springhill, Stane and Dykehead, which are other areas of the town of Shotts. Torbothie means "the bothie on the hill".
The Diocese of Motherwell is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in Scotland.
Shottskirk, more commonly known as Kirk O'Shotts Parish Church, or affectionately "The M8 Church", is a local parish church located in Salsburgh, North Lanarkshire, Scotland, and serves the village of Salsburgh, the town of Shotts and the hamlets in between. The last dedicated minister for this church was Rev. Sheila Spense who retired in 2000.
Salsburgh is a semi-rural former coal mining village in greenbelt farmland within the district of North Lanarkshire, Scotland. The closest major towns to the village are Shotts, three miles southeast, and Airdrie three miles northwest.
Shotts Football Club was a 19th-century football club based in Shotts, Lanarkshire, Scotland. Although it only existed for 7 years, it twice reached the Lanarkshire Cup final and once reached the Scottish Cup quarter-final.
The Henderson Theatre is a 147 seat studio theatre in Shotts in North Lanarkshire. It was built in April 1982 by converting part of the former Calderhead Junior Secondary School, which was built in 1876 and closed in 1965 when it became Shotts Community Education Centre. The theatre is named in honour of notable local actor and drama teacher James Archibald Henderson and is currently owned and managed by the local authority, North Lanarkshire Council.
Newmains Football Club was a 19th-century football club based in Newmains, Lanarkshire, Scotland.