New Kilpatrick
Encyclopedia
New Kilpatrick, is an ecclesiastical Parish
and former Civil Parish
in Dunbartonshire
. It was formed in 1649 from the eastern half of the parish of Kilpatrick (also known as Kirkpatrick), the western half forming Old Kilpatrick
. New Kilpatrick is also a disused name for the town of Bearsden
.
Originally spanning a large area from Strathblane
in the North to Baldernock
and Summerston
(on the River Kelvin
) in the East, down to Anniesland
in the South and Yoker
and Duntocher
in the West, a quarter of the parish was once in the county of Stirlingshire
. The geography of the area has supported mining, iron-working and quarrying in the past, but these are no longer economically viable, and much of the area functions as suburbs of Glasgow. Local government of the area was once the responsibility of the kirk, but is now administered by East Dunbartonshire
, Glasgow
and Stirlingshire
councils. The name New Kilpatrick was dropped from general civil use in 1958 when Bearsden Burgh was formed. The previous extent of New Kilpatrick can be seen quite clearly on old maps, but current maps no longer show the former parish.
As the population of the area grew, the ecclesiastical parish reduced in area as smaller parishes were separated off and the parish now covers only a fraction of the town of Bearsden. The parish church was built in 1649 from local stone, and was replaced in 1807 with a larger building.
by Maldowen
, Earl of Lennox
. The name Kilpatrick is an Anglicised form of the Gaelic Cille Phàdraig - literally "Patrick's Churchyard". The alternative anglicised form "Kirkpatrick" is occasionally used in old texts. It is therefore reasonable to assume that a church dedicated to St Patrick gave the area its name before the transfer to Paisley Abbey. The parish remained under the supervision of the Abbey until the Reformation in 1560.
At the Dissolution, the Church property fell into the possession of Lord Sempill. Eventually the lands were conferred on
Claude Hamilton
(a boy of ten), founder of the Abercorn family. His son James Hamilton
was created Lord Abercorn on 5 April 1603, then on 10 July 1606 he was made Earl of Abercorn and Lord of Paisley, Hamilton, Mountcastell and Kilpatrick.
Kilpatrick was split into two parishes - Old (Wester or West) and New (Easter or East) by an Act of Parliament on 16 February 1649. This division is of note because this was a split of both the ecclesiastical and civil parishes and the wealth and stipend of the original parish was shared between the two new parishes. It was more common for new parishes to have "daughter" status, with wealth retained by the central, or cathedral church.
Since 1649 a succession of parishes have been separated from the original, with Drumchapel
, Jordanhill
, Knightswood
and Temple
now within the City of Glasgow
, while Milngavie
and Baldernock lie in Dunbartonshire and Strathblane in Stirlingshire.
where individuals could be publicly shamed. This was originally situated in a corner of the church building but in 1694, it was moved to below the pulpit to increase its prominence.
The church session was also assigned the duty of care for the poor, and in 1672, part of this duty was transferred to the heritor
s of the parish. These wealthy landowners made a list of the poor and shared them out amongst themselves. The care shown to the poor included the provision of accommodation and maintenance, and any failure of the better-off to provide these could have led to legal proceedings against them. In 1845, the relief of poverty was transferred to the Parochial Board, although the kirk continued to provide assistance on a case by case basis.
Until 1872, the provision of education had been the responsibility of the kirk session, but this was transferred to a School Board (from 1873 to 1919) for building and running schools in the area. Temple Primary School (1901–2007) now in Glasgow, is an example (see photo). In 1895, the Parochial Board became the Parish Council, which had responsibility for town planning and housing, lighting, drainage. In 1930, the word "parish" was dropped, and New Kilpatrick became a District Council.
The boundaries of the civil parish
were modified by the formation of Milngavie Burgh in 1875, the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1889
and the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1929
. The district council was dissolved in 1958 on creation of Bearsden Burgh, which was itself dissolved in 1975. Control then passed to Bearsden and Milngavie
district within Strathclyde
Regional Council until 1996. The local government of the original parish area is now administered by East Dunbartonshire, Glasgow and Stirlingshire Councils.
heard a petition from John Douglas of Mains
to hold markets in the parish on 1 May and 21 October each year. The purpose of this was to encourage the local economy, and the bill was passed. John Douglas was a heritor of the parish and was the 11th Laird of Mains, registering his coat of arms in 1672.
The geology of the area runs East-West through the parish from Dunbarton to Maryhill and has supported various industries. Devonian
Old Red Sandstone
(415-360 million years old) is overlaid by the Carboniferous Limestone
series (360-300 million years old); in particular, the Hurlet Limestone and Hurlet Coal of the lower limestone group are prominently developed. A yellow sandstone of quite different character from the Old Red Sandstone extends from the Clyde at intervals to Netherton and Garscube. This stone easily chiselled, but hardens on exposure, making it a useful building material. Local industry has historically included some coal-mining and lime manufacture, and an iron works at Garscube. Coal was mined at Baljaffray until 1910 and used for burning limestone (also found there) to make lime. However, the presence of significant pyrite
deposits in the coal made it poor quality and unsuitable for further exploitation.
By 1911, the Encyclopædia Britannica described New Kilpatrick as a town in Dumbartonshire, 5.2 milew NW of Glasgow, with a railway station on the Milngavie branch line. Key public buildings are listed as the Schaw Convalescent Home, Buchanan Retreat (now Boclair House), house of refuge for girls, a library, and St Peter's College.
. For this to be the case, Colquhoun must have argued that the work in some way caused him to fear for his safety, and the workers would have had to place a deposit with the court, which would be forfeited if they continued. Colquhoun lost the petition, and the church was completed. The current New Kilpatrick Church was built in 1807, and subsequently enlarged in 1873-85 and in 1908. Electric lights were installed in 1923. The church for many years placed assistant ministers within the parish at Netherton
and Temple, Blairdardie, Drumchapel and Westerton.
In 1929, further housing developments and the union of churches in Scotland brought together the growing congregations of Beardsen North (Free Church) and South (United Presbyterian) churches into the Church of Scotland
in Bearsden. It was therefore deemed appropriate to divide the remaining parish area, leaving the original New Kilpatrick church with oversight of an area with boundaries at Canniesburn, Burnbrae and the Baljaffray-Stockiemuir crossroads.
's Military Survey of the Scottish Lowlands 1747-1755 does not show the parish boundary, but does depict "New Kirk of Killpatrick" at the site of the church.
John Thomson's
Atlas of Scotland (1832) shows the parish boundary. Milngavie, Summerston and Kessington are shown in the county of Stirlingshire, with the remainder of the parish in Dunbartonshire.
The Ordnance Survey
One Inch Second Edition Sheet 30 (revised 1895) also shows the parish boundary. Neighbouring parishes (clockwise from North) are Killearn, Strathblane, Baldernock, Cadder, Barony, Govan, Renfrew and Old Kilpatrick.
Parish
A parish is a territorial unit historically under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of one parish priest, who might be assisted in his pastoral duties by a curate or curates - also priests but not the parish priest - from a more or less central parish church with its associated organization...
and former Civil Parish
Civil 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...
in Dunbartonshire
Dunbartonshire
Dunbartonshire or the County of Dumbarton is a lieutenancy area and registration county in the west central Lowlands of Scotland lying to the north of the River Clyde. Until 1975 it was a county used as a primary unit of local government with its county town and administrative centre at the town...
. It was formed in 1649 from the eastern half of the parish of Kilpatrick (also known as Kirkpatrick), the western half forming Old Kilpatrick
Old Kilpatrick
Old Kilpatrick is a village in West Dunbartonshire, Scotland.The village is on the north bank of the River Clyde immediately to the north of the Forth and Clyde Canal, three miles from Clydebank on the road to Dumbarton. The Great Western Road runs through Old Kilpatrick, and the next village to...
. New Kilpatrick is also a disused name for the town of Bearsden
Bearsden
Bearsden ) is a town in East Dunbartonshire, Scotland. It lies on the northwestern fringe of Greater Glasgow, approximately from the City Centre, and is effectively a suburb, with housing development coinciding with the introduction of a railway line in 1863, and from where the town gets its name...
.
Originally spanning a large area from Strathblane
Strathblane
Strathblane is a village and parish in the registration county of Stirlingshire, situated in the southwestern part of the Stirling council area, in central Scotland. It lies at the foothills of the Campsie Fells and the Kilpatrick Hills on the Blane Water, north of Glasgow, east-southeast of...
in the North to Baldernock
Baldernock
Baldernock is a small parish in East Dunbartonshire , Scotland, ten miles to the north of Glasgow's city centre.-Geography:...
and Summerston
Summerston
Summerston is a residential area of Glasgow, Scotland. There is a riding school used by Strathclyde Police Mounted Branch. John Paul Academy, one of Glasgow's 11 Roman Catholic secondary schools is in Summerston. 4th Glasgow Beaver Colony and Cub Scout Pack are based in Summerston in Caldercuilt...
(on the River Kelvin
River Kelvin
The Kelvin rises on watershed of Scotland on the moor south east of the village of Banton, east of Kilsyth - . At almost 22 miles long, it initially flows south to Dullatur Bog where it falls into a man made trench and takes a ninety degree turn flowing west along the northern boundary of the bog...
) in the East, down to Anniesland
Anniesland
Anniesland is a district in the Scottish city of Glasgow. It is situated north of the River Clyde, and centres around the junction of the Great Western Road and Crow Road; also known as Anniesland Cross....
in the South and Yoker
Yoker
Yoker is a western district of Glasgow, in Scotland, UK, lying on the northern bank of the Clyde to the east of Clydebank. It is located approximately 5 miles west of the City Centre. From the fourteenth century a ferry has linked Yoker with the burgh of Renfrew on the south bank...
and Duntocher
Duntocher
Duntocher is a village in Dunbartonshire, Scotland.Although it is a far older settlement and still considered a village in its own right, it is administratively part of nearby Clydebank along with the neighbouring village of Hardgate and is now part of the West Dunbartonshire local authority area...
in the West, a quarter of the parish was once in the county of Stirlingshire
Stirlingshire
Stirlingshire or the County of Stirling is a registration county of Scotland, based around Stirling, the former county town. It borders Perthshire to the north, Clackmannanshire and West Lothian to the east, Lanarkshire to the south, and Dunbartonshire to the south-west.Until 1975 it was a county...
. The geography of the area has supported mining, iron-working and quarrying in the past, but these are no longer economically viable, and much of the area functions as suburbs of Glasgow. Local government of the area was once the responsibility of the kirk, but is now administered by East Dunbartonshire
East Dunbartonshire
This article is about the East Dunbartonshire council area of Scotland. See also East Dunbartonshire .East Dunbartonshire is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland. It borders onto the north-west of the City of Glasgow. It contains many of the suburbs of Glasgow as well as containing many of...
, Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
and Stirlingshire
Stirlingshire
Stirlingshire or the County of Stirling is a registration county of Scotland, based around Stirling, the former county town. It borders Perthshire to the north, Clackmannanshire and West Lothian to the east, Lanarkshire to the south, and Dunbartonshire to the south-west.Until 1975 it was a county...
councils. The name New Kilpatrick was dropped from general civil use in 1958 when Bearsden Burgh was formed. The previous extent of New Kilpatrick can be seen quite clearly on old maps, but current maps no longer show the former parish.
As the population of the area grew, the ecclesiastical parish reduced in area as smaller parishes were separated off and the parish now covers only a fraction of the town of Bearsden. The parish church was built in 1649 from local stone, and was replaced in 1807 with a larger building.
History
The parish system was introduced to Scotland in the 13th century. In about 1227, the church and lands of Kilpatrick were gifted to Paisley AbbeyPaisley 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:...
by Maldowen
Maol Domhnaich, Earl of Lennox
Mormaer Maol Domhnaich was the son of Mormaer Ailín II, and ruled Lennox 1217–1250.Like his predecessor Ailín II, he showed absolutely no interest in extending an inviting hand to oncoming French or English settlers...
, Earl of Lennox
Earl of Lennox
The Mormaer of Lennox or Earl of Lennox was the ruler of the long-lasting provincial Mormaerdom/Earldom of Lennox in the Medieval Kingdom of the Scots. The first Mormaer is usually regarded as Ailin I , but the genealogy of the Mormaers gives earlier names...
. The name Kilpatrick is an Anglicised form of the Gaelic Cille Phàdraig - literally "Patrick's Churchyard". The alternative anglicised form "Kirkpatrick" is occasionally used in old texts. It is therefore reasonable to assume that a church dedicated to St Patrick gave the area its name before the transfer to Paisley Abbey. The parish remained under the supervision of the Abbey until the Reformation in 1560.
At the Dissolution, the Church property fell into the possession of Lord Sempill. Eventually the lands were conferred on
Claude Hamilton
Duke of Abercorn
The title Duke of Abercorn was created in the Peerage of Ireland in 1868 and bestowed upon James Hamilton, 2nd Marquess of Abercorn.This article also covers the Earls and Marquesses of Abercorn, all named after Abercorn, West Lothian, in Scotland.-History:...
(a boy of ten), founder of the Abercorn family. His son James Hamilton
James Hamilton, 1st Earl of Abercorn
James Hamilton, 1st Earl of Abercorn PC .-Biography:He was the eldest son of Claud Hamilton, 1st Lord Paisley , and of Margaret, daughter of George Seton, 7th Lord Seton....
was created Lord Abercorn on 5 April 1603, then on 10 July 1606 he was made Earl of Abercorn and Lord of Paisley, Hamilton, Mountcastell and Kilpatrick.
Kilpatrick was split into two parishes - Old (Wester or West) and New (Easter or East) by an Act of Parliament on 16 February 1649. This division is of note because this was a split of both the ecclesiastical and civil parishes and the wealth and stipend of the original parish was shared between the two new parishes. It was more common for new parishes to have "daughter" status, with wealth retained by the central, or cathedral church.
Since 1649 a succession of parishes have been separated from the original, with Drumchapel
Drumchapel
Drumchapel , known to locals and residents as 'The Drum', is part of the city of Glasgow, Scotland, having been annexed from Dunbartonshire in 1938. It borders Bearsden to the east and Clydebank to the west . The area is bordered by Knightswood and Yoker in Glasgow. The name derives from the...
, Jordanhill
Jordanhill
Jordanhill is an affluent area of the West End of the city of Glasgow, Scotland. The area consists largely of terraced housing dating from the early to mid 20th century, with some detached and semi-detached homes and some modern apartments....
, Knightswood
Knightswood
Knightswood is a suburban district in Glasgow, containing 4 areas: Knightswood North or High Knightswood, Knightswood South or Low Knightswood, Knightswood Park and Blairdardie. It has a golf course and park, and good transport links with the rest of the city. Garscadden and Scotstounhill railway...
and Temple
Temple, Glasgow
Temple is a district of Glasgow, in the north of the city, bounded by Anniesland to the south, Knightswood to the west and Kelvindale to the east. Netherton lies to the North...
now within the City of Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
, while Milngavie
Milngavie
Milngavie , is a town in East Dunbartonshire, Scotland. It is on the Allander Water, at the northwestern edge of Greater Glasgow, and about from Glasgow city centre. It neighbours Bearsden....
and Baldernock lie in Dunbartonshire and Strathblane in Stirlingshire.
Local government
For many years, the civil and ecclesiastical functions of the parish overlapped. For example, the kirk session dealt with minor misdemeanors, such as a man from Kirkton (New Kirk) fined for "swearing wickedly and doing actual violence to his mother" in 1701. Other offences included the hanging out of laundry on the Lord's Day and many instances of infidelity. One of the penalties that could be applied was the Stool of RepentanceStool of Repentance
The Stool of Repentance in Presbyterian polity, mostly in Scotland, was an elevated seat in a church used for public penance of persons who had offended against the morality of the time, often through fornication and adultery...
where individuals could be publicly shamed. This was originally situated in a corner of the church building but in 1694, it was moved to below the pulpit to increase its prominence.
The church session was also assigned the duty of care for the poor, and in 1672, part of this duty was transferred to the heritor
Heritor
Heritor, was a privileged person in a Parish in Scots Law. In its original acceptation, it signified the proprietor of an heritable subject, but, in the law relating to Parish government, the term was confined to such proprietors of lands or houses as were liable, as written in their title deeds,...
s of the parish. These wealthy landowners made a list of the poor and shared them out amongst themselves. The care shown to the poor included the provision of accommodation and maintenance, and any failure of the better-off to provide these could have led to legal proceedings against them. In 1845, the relief of poverty was transferred to the Parochial Board, although the kirk continued to provide assistance on a case by case basis.
Until 1872, the provision of education had been the responsibility of the kirk session, but this was transferred to a School Board (from 1873 to 1919) for building and running schools in the area. Temple Primary School (1901–2007) now in Glasgow, is an example (see photo). In 1895, the Parochial Board became the Parish Council, which had responsibility for town planning and housing, lighting, drainage. In 1930, the word "parish" was dropped, and New Kilpatrick became a District Council.
The boundaries of the civil parish
Civil 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...
were modified by the formation of Milngavie Burgh in 1875, the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1889
Local Government (Scotland) Act 1889
The Local Government Act 1889 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which was passed on 26 August 1889. The main effect of the Act was to establish elected county councils in Scotland...
and the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1929
Local Government (Scotland) Act 1929
The Local Government Act 1929 reorganised local government in Scotland from 1930, introducing joint county councils, large and small burghs and district councils...
. The district council was dissolved in 1958 on creation of Bearsden Burgh, which was itself dissolved in 1975. Control then passed to Bearsden and Milngavie
Bearsden and Milngavie
Bearsden and Milngavie was formerly one of nineteen local government districts in the Strathclyde region of Scotland, north of the City of Glasgow....
district within Strathclyde
Strathclyde
right|thumb|the former Strathclyde regionStrathclyde was one of nine former local government regions of Scotland created by the Local Government Act 1973 and abolished in 1996 by the Local Government etc Act 1994...
Regional Council until 1996. The local government of the original parish area is now administered by East Dunbartonshire, Glasgow and Stirlingshire Councils.
Economy and geography
In 1672, the Scottish ParliamentParliament of Scotland
The Parliament of Scotland, officially the Estates of Parliament, was the legislature of the Kingdom of Scotland. The unicameral parliament of Scotland is first found on record during the early 13th century, with the first meeting for which a primary source survives at...
heard a petition from John Douglas of Mains
Douglas of Mains
The Douglases of Mains are a branch of the Clan Douglas, related to the Lords of Douglas through Archibald I, Lord of Douglas. The first Laird obtained land through marriage into the Galbraith family, which had been granted land in New Kilpatrick by Maldowen, Earl of Lennox...
to hold markets in the parish on 1 May and 21 October each year. The purpose of this was to encourage the local economy, and the bill was passed. John Douglas was a heritor of the parish and was the 11th Laird of Mains, registering his coat of arms in 1672.
The geology of the area runs East-West through the parish from Dunbarton to Maryhill and has supported various industries. Devonian
Devonian
The Devonian is a geologic period and system of the Paleozoic Era spanning from the end of the Silurian Period, about 416.0 ± 2.8 Mya , to the beginning of the Carboniferous Period, about 359.2 ± 2.5 Mya...
Old Red Sandstone
Old Red Sandstone
The Old Red Sandstone is a British rock formation of considerable importance to early paleontology. For convenience the short version of the term, 'ORS' is often used in literature on the subject.-Sedimentology:...
(415-360 million years old) is overlaid by the Carboniferous Limestone
Carboniferous limestone
Carboniferous Limestone is a term used to describe a variety of different types of limestone occurring widely across Great Britain and Ireland which were deposited during the Dinantian epoch of the Carboniferous period. They were formed between 363 and 325 million years ago...
series (360-300 million years old); in particular, the Hurlet Limestone and Hurlet Coal of the lower limestone group are prominently developed. A yellow sandstone of quite different character from the Old Red Sandstone extends from the Clyde at intervals to Netherton and Garscube. This stone easily chiselled, but hardens on exposure, making it a useful building material. Local industry has historically included some coal-mining and lime manufacture, and an iron works at Garscube. Coal was mined at Baljaffray until 1910 and used for burning limestone (also found there) to make lime. However, the presence of significant pyrite
Pyrite
The mineral pyrite, or iron pyrite, is an iron sulfide with the formula FeS2. This mineral's metallic luster and pale-to-normal, brass-yellow hue have earned it the nickname fool's gold because of its resemblance to gold...
deposits in the coal made it poor quality and unsuitable for further exploitation.
By 1911, the Encyclopædia Britannica described New Kilpatrick as a town in Dumbartonshire, 5.2 milew NW of Glasgow, with a railway station on the Milngavie branch line. Key public buildings are listed as the Schaw Convalescent Home, Buchanan Retreat (now Boclair House), house of refuge for girls, a library, and St Peter's College.
Current church and related parish
The original parish church was built in 1649 from local stone. This can be confirmed by the passing of an Act of the Scottish Parliament (in July 1649) in favour of the parishioners of New Kilpatrick and against one of the parish heritors, Sir Umphra Colquhoun of Balvie (now Mains). It seems that Colquhoun had agreed to the quarrying of stone from his land to build the church, but at some point during the building process (at least halfway), he had confiscated the workmen's tools and prevented the work from continuing by charging the workers with lawburrowsLawburrows
Lawburrows is a little-known civil action in Scots law initiated by one person afraid of another's possible violence.-Lawburrows Act 1429:The 1429 Act remains in force and says-Civil law and the rights of individuals:...
. For this to be the case, Colquhoun must have argued that the work in some way caused him to fear for his safety, and the workers would have had to place a deposit with the court, which would be forfeited if they continued. Colquhoun lost the petition, and the church was completed. The current New Kilpatrick Church was built in 1807, and subsequently enlarged in 1873-85 and in 1908. Electric lights were installed in 1923. The church for many years placed assistant ministers within the parish at Netherton
Netherton, Glasgow
Netherton is a district of Glasgow, in the north of the city, bounded by Temple to the south, Knightswood to the west while Westerton in Bearsden lies to the North and East. Netherton appears in Joan Blaeu's 1662 Atlas of Scotland and many subsequent old maps...
and Temple, Blairdardie, Drumchapel and Westerton.
In 1929, further housing developments and the union of churches in Scotland brought together the growing congregations of Beardsen North (Free Church) and South (United Presbyterian) churches into 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....
in Bearsden. It was therefore deemed appropriate to divide the remaining parish area, leaving the original New Kilpatrick church with oversight of an area with boundaries at Canniesburn, Burnbrae and the Baljaffray-Stockiemuir crossroads.
Maps of the area
William RoyWilliam Roy
Major-General William Roy FRS was a Scottish military engineer, surveyor, and antiquarian. He was an innovator who applied new scientific discoveries and newly emerging technologies to the accurate geodetic mapping of Great Britain....
's Military Survey of the Scottish Lowlands 1747-1755 does not show the parish boundary, but does depict "New Kirk of Killpatrick" at the site of the church.
John Thomson's
John Thomson (cartographer)
John Thomson , was a Scottish cartographer from Edinburgh, celebrated for his 1817 New General Atlas, published by himself in Edinburgh, John Cumming in Dublin, and Baldwin, Cradock, and Joy in London.The title page described it as...
Atlas of Scotland (1832) shows the parish boundary. Milngavie, Summerston and Kessington are shown in the county of Stirlingshire, with the remainder of the parish in Dunbartonshire.
The Ordnance Survey
Ordnance Survey
Ordnance Survey , an executive agency and non-ministerial government department of the Government of the United Kingdom, is the national mapping agency for Great Britain, producing maps of Great Britain , and one of the world's largest producers of maps.The name reflects its creation together with...
One Inch Second Edition Sheet 30 (revised 1895) also shows the parish boundary. Neighbouring parishes (clockwise from North) are Killearn, Strathblane, Baldernock, Cadder, Barony, Govan, Renfrew and Old Kilpatrick.