Houston and Killellan
Encyclopedia
Renfrewshire
Renfrewshire is one of 32 council areas used for local government in Scotland. Located in the west central Lowlands, it is one of three council areas contained within the boundaries of the historic county of Renfrewshire, the others being Inverclyde to the west and East Renfrewshire to the east...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
containing the villages of Houston and Crosslee
Crosslee
Crosslee is a small village lying on the bank of the River Gryffe in the parish of Houston and Killellan, Renfrewshire. It lies around half a mile south of the old village centre of Houston and immediately west of Craigends, although residential development has removed any significant open space...
with a number of smaller settlements in its rural hinterland. Located in the Gryffe Valley, 5 miles (9 km) north of Paisley
Paisley
Paisley is the largest town in the historic county of Renfrewshire in the west central Lowlands of Scotland and serves as the administrative centre for the Renfrewshire council area...
, it borders the parishes of Kilmacolm
Kilmacolm
Kilmacolm is a village and civil parish in the Inverclyde council area and the historic county of Renfrewshire in the west central Lowlands of Scotland. It lies on the northern slope of the Gryffe Valley south-east of Greenock and around west of the city of Glasgow...
, Erskine
Erskine
Erskine is a town in the council area of Renfrewshire, and historic county of the same name, in the west central Lowlands of Scotland.It lies on the southern bank of the River Clyde, providing the lowest crossing to the north bank of the river at Erskine Bridge connecting the town to Old Kilpatrick...
and Kilbarchan
Kilbarchan
Kilbarchan is a village and civil parish in central Renfrewshire, in the west central Lowlands of Scotland. The village's name means "cell of St. Barchan". It is known for its former weaving industry.- History :...
.
Houston and Killellan no longer has a formal role in civic governance, but forms the community council
Community council
A community council is a public representative body in Great Britain.In England they may be statutory parish councils by another name, under the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007, or they may be non-statutory bodies...
area of Houston Community Council and is used as an ecclesiastical parish in the Church of Scotland
Church of Scotland
The Church of Scotland, known informally by its Scots language name, the Kirk, is a Presbyterian church, decisively shaped by the Scottish Reformation....
. The parish covers an area of 11.9 sq. miles (30.9 km2).
Killellan or Killallan is subject to a number of different spellings.
Origins
The ecclesiastical parish of Houston formed a union with the nearby rural parish and hamlet of Killellan in 1771, creating an effectively united parish centred upon one church in Houston. The civil parishCivil parish
In England, a civil parish is a territorial designation and, where they are found, the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties...
was given existence following the Poor Law (Scotland) Act 1845, which led to the creation of parochial boards with the responsibility for administering the poor law
Scottish Poor Law
The Scottish Poor Laws were the statutes concerning poor relief passed in Scotland between 1579 and 1929. Scotland had a different Poor Law system to England and the workings of the Scottish laws differed greatly to the Poor Law Amendment Act which applied in England and Wales.In 1579, the Scottish...
.
Houston
Houston is the main settlement of the parish and a substantial village
Village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...
. It also contains the residential settlement of Craigends
Craigends
Craigends is a residential area in the parish of Houston and Killellan in Renfrewshire, Scotland, UK lying south of the River Gryffe and on the banks of the River Locher. Craigends is on the south-eastern edge of the village of Houston, bordering the parish's other village, Crosslee...
, divided from the rest of the village by the River Gryffe to the north
Killellan
Killellan, whilst formerly a parish in its own right, did not have any single developed settlement. Its built environment consisted of numerous small farms with a few other enterprises such a mill and smithyForge
A forge is a hearth used for forging. The term "forge" can also refer to the workplace of a smith or a blacksmith, although the term smithy is then more commonly used.The basic smithy contains a forge, also known as a hearth, for heating metals...
, with the parish church providing a religious focus for the community.
Following the amalgamation of the Houston and Killallen parishes, the parish church - dedicated to St Fillan (Faelan of Cluain Moescna) - fell into ruin. Now a scheduled ancient monument, the remains of the church lie around four miles (6 km) from the centre of Houston on the High Road to Kilmacolm
Kilmacolm
Kilmacolm is a village and civil parish in the Inverclyde council area and the historic county of Renfrewshire in the west central Lowlands of Scotland. It lies on the northern slope of the Gryffe Valley south-east of Greenock and around west of the city of Glasgow...
at 55.88630°N 4.58759°W together with some other buildings which remain in use. Previously within the holdings of Elderslie Estates, in 2005 the church was gifted to the Kilallan Kirk Trust, a registered charity.
Toponymy
The name of Killellan derives from the Scots Gaelic term for 'cell' or 'church' of Fillan as a result of the dedication of its former parish church.Killellan or Killallan is spelled somewhat differently with usage remaining inconsistent. 'Killellan' is used by both the modern Gazetteer for Scotland
Gazetteer for Scotland
The Gazetteer for Scotland is a gazetteer covering the geography, history and people of Scotland. It was conceived in 1995 by Bruce Gittings of the University of Edinburgh and David Munro of the Royal Scottish Geographical Society, and contains 15,500 entries as of January 2008, making it one of...
, the Church of Scotland
Church of Scotland
The Church of Scotland, known informally by its Scots language name, the Kirk, is a Presbyterian church, decisively shaped by the Scottish Reformation....
and the Community Council, whilst 'Killallen' is favoured in the 18th and 19th century Statistical Accounts
Statistical Accounts of Scotland
The Statistical Accounts of Scotland are three series of documentary publications covering life in Scotland in the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries....
, 'Kilallan' in the name of the 2005-created Kilallan Kirk Trust and 'Kilellan' by Renfrewshire Council.
Barochan
Barochan is a hamletHamlet
The Tragical History of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, or more simply Hamlet, is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1599 and 1601...
and rural area to the north-east of Houston. The surrounding country contains Barochan House, a former tower house
Tower house
A tower house is a particular type of stone structure, built for defensive purposes as well as habitation.-History:Tower houses began to appear in the Middle Ages, especially in mountain or limited access areas, in order to command and defend strategic points with reduced forces...
dating back to the 16th century, and Barochan Hill which was the site of a Roman
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
fort and use for light anti-aircraft defences during the Second World War.
The hamlet surrounds the former Mill of Barochan on the Barochan Burn. Close-by was the original site of the Barochan Cross, a Celtic Christian cross
Celtic cross
A Celtic cross is a symbol that combines a cross with a ring surrounding the intersection. In the Celtic Christian world it was combined with the Christian cross and this design was often used for high crosses – a free-standing cross made of stone and often richly decorated...
possibly carved in the 8th century. It was moved a short distance in the late 19th century before being taken to Paisley Abbey
Paisley Abbey
Paisley Abbey is a former Cluniac monastery, and current Church of Scotland parish kirk, located on the east bank of the White Cart Water in the centre of the town of Paisley, Renfrewshire, in west central Scotland.-History:...
for preservation.
Government and politics
Houston and its parish form part of the RenfrewshireRenfrewshire
Renfrewshire is one of 32 council areas used for local government in Scotland. Located in the west central Lowlands, it is one of three council areas contained within the boundaries of the historic county of Renfrewshire, the others being Inverclyde to the west and East Renfrewshire to the east...
council area. For the 2007 local authority elections in Scotland, Houston was entered into a new four-councillor ward, Ward 9, alongside Crosslee and the town of Linwood
Linwood
Linwood is a small town in Renfrewshire, Scotland, 14 miles south-west of Glasgow.Linwood is a commuter town, with proximity to Glasgow International Airport and the M8 motorway to Glasgow and Edinburgh...
(Ward 9).
With the decline of the importance of civil parishes for local government in Scotland, Houston and Killellan has found itself replaced for this purpose by the Houston Community Council area.
Transport
Houston and Killellan was served by Houston railway stationHouston railway station
Houston railway station was a railway station serving the villages of Brookfield and Houston, Renfrewshire, Scotland, originally as part of the Bridge of Weir Railway and later part of the Glasgow and South Western Railway.- History :...
(formerly 'Crosslee' and 'Crosslee and Houston'; closed 1983) near to Crosslee and the nearby village of Brookfield
Brookfield, Renfrewshire
Brookfield is a small dormitory village in west central Renfrewshire, Scotland. It lies on the north of the A761 road, which runs through a number of towns and villages to join Port Glasgow and the city of Glasgow, via Paisley, and is roughly equidistant to the nearby settlements of Houston, Bridge...
, and Georgetown railway station
Georgetown railway station
Georgetown railway station was a railway station serving the village of Houston, Renfrewshire, Scotland, originally as part of the Glasgow, Paisley and Greenock Railway and later owned by the Caledonian Railway.-History:...
(formerly 'Houston'; closed 1959) which, for much of its history, primarily served ROF Bishopton
ROF Bishopton
The Royal Ordnance Factory Bishopton was a UK Ministry of Supply, World War II, Explosive ROF. It is sited adjacent to the town of Bishopton, Renfrewshire, in Scotland....
. Both of these stations were in the rural area surrounding the parish rather than any specific settlements.