Saltcoats

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Saltcoats
Town
Saltcoats Prom - panoramio.jpg
North Ayrshire Heritage Centre, Saltcoats, North Ayrshire, Scotland.jpg
New Pier View - geograph.org.uk - 5772544.jpg
Normal White Horses, Saltcoats.jpg
Saltcoats, war memorial - geograph.org.uk - 1540517.jpg
From top, left to right: Saltcoats Prom, and townscape, the North Ayrshire Heritage Centre, Saltcoats Pier, Saltcoats sea front, Saltcoats War Memorial
North Ayrshire UK location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Saltcoats
Location within North Ayrshire
Population12,250 (mid-2020 est.) [1]
•  Density 3,489/sq km
OS grid reference NS245415
•  Edinburgh 77.6 mi (124.9 km)
Council area
Lieutenancy area
Country Scotland
Sovereign state United Kingdom
Post town SALTCOATS
Postcode district KA21
Dialling code 01294
Police Scotland
Fire Scottish
Ambulance Scottish
UK Parliament
Scottish Parliament
List of places
UK
Scotland
55°38′07″N4°47′23″W / 55.6352°N 04.7896°W / 55.6352; -04.7896

Saltcoats (Scottish Gaelic : Baile an t-Salainn; Scots: Saulcuts) is a town on the west coast of North Ayrshire, Scotland. The name is derived from the town's earliest industry when salt was harvested from the sea water of the Firth of Clyde, carried out in small cottages along the shore. It is part of the 'Three Towns' conurbation along with Ardrossan and Stevenston and is the third largest town in North Ayrshire.

Contents

History

Origins, 1200s

The history of Saltcoats can be traced back to when the monks of Kilwinning Abbey discovered easily accessible coastal coal seams at Saltcoats in the 1200s, it expanded from small scattering of buildings. The coal proved an efficient source of heat for evaporating saltwater for the manufacturing of salt, and by the 1500s, King James V-funded sheds along the shoreline, leading to a successful salt pans industry. This sector of the economy is where Saltcoats gets its name.

Burgh status, 1528

In 1528, Saltcoats was granted status as a burgh leading to the creation of a market. By the middle of the 1600s, Saltcoats' primary sources of income were the import of corn and butter, as well as the sale of cattle and fish (mostly herring) to Ireland. Local farmers produced cheese, butter, wheat, oats, and potatoes. Cottage labourers in the town were given access to hand looms so they could weave muslins for the Glasgow and Paisley markets. On the outskirts of the town, chemical operations that produce magnesium and Epsom salts ran on waste materials from the salt-panning business. [2]

In the late 18th century, several shipyards operated at Saltcoats, producing some 60 to 70 ships. The leading shipbuilder was William Ritchie, but in 1790 he moved his business to Belfast. In 1793, it was recorded that Saltcoats had around 400 houses, with 3 operational shipyards remaining. By 1820, this had climbed to 600 houses, with a population of 3,413 being noted. [3]

Recent history

By the early 19th century, the town had stopped producing ships. Saltcoats Town Hall, which dates back to 1826, is a Category B listed building. [4]

Saltcoats had various amenities, lodging, and entertainment required to develop into a prosperous seaside resort as a result of the vast, protected bay known as "South Beach" between Saltcoats and Ardrossan and a Beach Pavilion built in the 1920s. Its importance as a holiday destination declined with the onset of cheap air travel and mass summer migrations to the Mediterranean. [5]

Governance

Saltcoats is part of the North Ayrshire and Arran constituency in the House of Commons. From 2005, the seat was represented by Scottish Labour however, more recently in 2015, the seat was won by Patricia Gibson of the Scottish National Party. [6] She was returned in 2017 albeit a smaller majority, but in 2019 her majority increased.

Historically, Saltcoats 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 historically returned Conservative or Unionist MPs until 1987, when the constituency was won by the Labour Party.

For the devolved Scottish Parliament, the town is a part of the Cunninghame North constituency. This seat has been represented by Kenneth Gibson since the 2007 Scottish Parliament election, where it was the seat with the smallest majority at only 48 votes. [7] It was previously represented by Scottish Labour since its creation in 1999.

Transport

The harbour was designed by James Jardine in 1811, however no cargo or passenger services run from the harbour any more. [8]

Saltcoats is served by regular bus and railway services. Primary bus services are provided by Stagecoach West Scotland, while rail services are operated by ScotRail. These rail services are frequent and serve nearby Glasgow, as well as Largs, Ardrossan and Kilwinning.

Although Saltcoats currently only has a single railway station, the town was once served by a second railway station located in the north of the town, originally as part of the Lanarkshire and Ayrshire Railway. This station ceased regular passenger services on 4 July 1932, [9] and there is no trace of the station today bar a nearby bridge.

Notable people

Saltcoats Town Hall Saltcoats Town Hall (geograph 6011840).jpg
Saltcoats Town Hall

The activities of Glaswegians in Saltcoats during the Glasgow Fair are celebrated by Billy Connolly in his song Saltcoats at the Fair, first released on The Humblebums' First Collection of Merry Melodies album (Transatlantic TRA186, February 1969).

Related Research Articles

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Ayrshire is a historic county and registration county, in south-west Scotland, located on the shores of the Firth of Clyde. The lieutenancy area of Ayrshire and Arran covers the entirety of the historic county as well as the island of Arran, formerly part of the historic county of Buteshire. Its principal towns include Ayr, Kilmarnock and Irvine and it borders the counties of Renfrewshire and Lanarkshire to the north-east, Dumfriesshire to the south-east, and Kirkcudbrightshire and Wigtownshire to the south. Like many other counties of Scotland, it currently has no administrative function, instead being sub-divided into the council areas of East Ayrshire, North Ayrshire and South Ayrshire. It has a population of approximately 366,800.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North Ayrshire</span> Council area of Scotland

North Ayrshire is one of 32 council areas in Scotland. The council area borders Inverclyde to the north, Renfrewshire and East Renfrewshire to the northeast, and East Ayrshire and South Ayrshire to the east and south respectively. The local authority is North Ayrshire Council, formed in 1996 with the same boundaries as the district of Cunninghame which existed from 1975 to 1996.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cunninghame</span> Area of Scotland, comprising the northern part of Ayrshire

Cunninghame is a former comital district of Scotland and also a district of the Strathclyde Region from 1975 to 1996.

Campbell Martin is a Scottish journalist and former politician.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ayrshire Coast Line</span> Line within the Strathclyde suburban rail network in Scotland

The Ayrshire Coast Line is one of the lines within the Strathclyde suburban rail network in Scotland. It has 26 stations and connects the Ayrshire coast to Glasgow. There are three branches, to Largs, Ardrossan Harbour and Ayr, all running into the high level at Glasgow Central.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ardrossan</span> Town and sea port in Scotland

Ardrossan is a town on the North Ayrshire coast in southwestern Scotland. The town has a population of 10,670 and forms part of a conurbation with Saltcoats and Stevenston known as the 'Three Towns'. Ardrossan is located on the east shore of the Firth of Clyde.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stevenston</span> Town in Scotland

Stevenston is a town and parish in North Ayrshire, Scotland. Along with Ardrossan and Saltcoats it is one of the "Three Towns", all of similar size, on the Firth of Clyde coast; the easternmost parts of Stevenston are about 1⁄2 mile from western parts of Kilwinning, the A78 trunk road runs between the settlements.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North Ayrshire and Arran (UK Parliament constituency)</span> Parliamentary constituency in the United Kingdom, 2005 onwards

North Ayrshire and Arran is a constituency of the British House of Commons, located in the south-west of Scotland within the North Ayrshire council area. It elects one Member of Parliament (MP) at least once every five years using the first-past-the-post voting system of voting.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">West Kilbride</span> Village in North Ayrshire, Scotland

West Kilbride is a village and historic parish in North Ayrshire, Scotland, on the west coast by the Firth of Clyde, looking across the Firth of Clyde to Goat Fell and the Isle of Arran. West Kilbride and adjoining districts of Seamill and Portencross are generally considered to be a small town, having a combined population of 4,393 at the 2001 census.

Bute and Northern Ayrshire was a county constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1918 to 1983. It elected one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post voting system.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cunninghame North (Scottish Parliament constituency)</span> Region or constituency of the Scottish Parliament

Cunninghame North is a constituency of the Scottish Parliament (Holyrood) covering part of the council area of North Ayrshire. It elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) by the first past the post method of election. It is also one of ten constituencies in the West Scotland electoral region, which elects seven additional members, in addition to the ten constituency MSPs, to produce a form of proportional representation for the region as a whole.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cunninghame South (Scottish Parliament constituency)</span> Region or constituency of the Scottish Parliament

Cunninghame South is a constituency of the Scottish Parliament (Holyrood) covering part of the council area of North Ayrshire. It elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) by the first past the post method of election, and is one of ten constituencies in the West Scotland electoral region. The regions elects seven additional members, in addition to the ten constituency MSPs, to produce a form of proportional representation for the region as a whole.

The Lanarkshire and Ayrshire Railway (L&AR) was an independent railway company built to provide the Caledonian Railway with a shorter route for mineral traffic from the coalfields of Lanarkshire to Ardrossan Harbour, in Scotland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ardrossan Railway</span> United Kingdom legislation

The Ardrossan Railway was a railway company in Scotland, whose line was built in the mid-19th century. It primarily ran services between Kilwinning and Ardrossan, as well as freight services to and from collieries between Kilwinning and Perceton. The line was later merged with the Glasgow and South Western Railway, and is today part of the Ayrshire Coast Line.

The Largs Branch is a railway line in Scotland, serving communities on the north Ayrshire Coast, as well as the deep water ocean terminal at Hunterston. It branches from the Glasgow to Ayr line at Kilwinning.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ardeer, North Ayrshire</span> Human settlement in Scotland

Ardeer was a small town now officially incorporated into Stevenston on the Ardeer peninsula, in the parish of Stevenston, North Ayrshire, originally an island and later its extensive sand dune system became the site of Nobel Explosives, a dominant global supplier of explosives to the mining and quarrying industries and a major player in the design and development of products for the chemical and defence industries during the 20th century. The peninsula is now part of North Ayrshire's most important area for Biodiversity.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stevenston Beach</span>

Stevenston Beach is a Local Nature Reserve (LNR), located between Stevenston and Saltcoats in Scotland. It is situated on the coast, west of the Stevenston Burn. The park covers an area of 12 ha, and consists mostly of sand dunes, with an area of coal mining spoil derived from Auchenharvie Colliery No. 5 pit which produced Ladyha' coal. It is ranked as the fifth most important sand dune system in Ayrshire. The dunes are also designated as a wildlife site by the Scottish Wildlife Trust.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stevenston Canal</span>

The Stevenston Canal was a waterway in North Ayrshire, Scotland, built for Robert Reid Cunningham of Seabank and Patrick Warner of the Ardeer Estate, which ran to the port of Saltcoats from Ardeer, and Stevenston with a number of short branches to coal pits along the length of the cut. The canal opened on 19 September 1772, the first commercial canal in Scotland. It closed in the 1830s, when it was abandoned following the exhaustion of the coal mines and the rise of importance of Ardrossan as a harbour. At the time of its construction it was said to be the "most complete water system of colliery transport ever devised in Britain."

Elections to North Ayrshire Council took place on 5 May 2022 on the same day as the 31 other Scottish local government elections. As with other Scottish council elections, it was held using single transferable vote (STV) – a form of proportional representation – in which multiple candidates are elected in each ward and voters rank candidates in order of preference.

References

  1. ↑ "Mid-2020 Population Estimates for Settlements and Localities in Scotland". National Records of Scotland. 31 March 2022. Retrieved 31 March 2022.
  2. ↑ "Sense Of Place | Saltcoats | Places That We Know". www.placesthatweknow.org. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
  3. ↑ "Historical Timeline". www.ayrshireroots.co.uk. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
  4. ↑ Historic Environment Scotland. "Town Hall, Countess Street (LB40489)" . Retrieved 30 September 2021.
  5. ↑ "Saltcoats Feature Page on Undiscovered Scotland". www.undiscoveredscotland.co.uk. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
  6. ↑ "Ayrshire North & Arran parliamentary constituency - Election 2019 - BBC News" . Retrieved 17 April 2023.
  7. ↑ "BBC NEWS | Election 2007 | Scottish Parliament | Election Result: Cunninghame North". news.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 17 April 2023.
  8. ↑ "James Jardine: Overview of James Jardine". Scottish-places.info. Retrieved 1 May 2016.
  9. ↑ Stansfield, page 7
  10. ↑ "News and events - The University of Manchester - Jodrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics". www.jodrellbank.manchester.ac.uk. Retrieved 15 April 2018.
  11. ↑ "The Story Behind Colin Hay's "Maggie"". Milwaukee Public Radio Interview. 29 April 2009. Retrieved 1 August 2012.
  12. ↑ Steve (4 October 2010). "Bear Alley: Hugh Munro". Bearalley.blogspot.ca. Retrieved 1 May 2016.
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