Chapter 7 TWENTIETH CENTURY During the period between the Second Statistical Account and the publication of the Third Statistical Account (a little over one hundred years) Maybole had risen from an impoverished little country town to become a thriving place of industry which produced boots and shoes for all districts in Britain and agricultural implements, from the famous works of Jack & Son, for all countries in the world. The last half of the nineteenth century was the boom period for Maybole and its townsfolk prospered exceedingly well. There was work for all and while wages were small (considered by present day standards) they were sufficient to meet all daily needs and leave a little over for pleasure. This is evident by the great love of sport in the town about the last decade of the nineteenth century and the first decade of the twentieth century when Maybole had a sports ground which equalled any in Scotland at that time, and many of the local men were famous as runners and cyclists throughout Britain. At that period there was also a very fine silver band, and a choral society, and concerts were given often by Frame, Lauder, Hamilton and other well-known Scottish artistes in Wyllies Hall, Jacks Hall and the Town Hall, when invariably every seat was filled. About 1908, however, one of the larger shoe factories (Grays) closed down and gradually the industry dwindled and Maybole again returned to hard times. It is said over 2,000 of the townsfolk emigrated around 1910 many of them going to Hamilton in Ontario, Canada, where there is still a district known as "Wee Maybole". By the time the Rev. A. Williamson wrote his article the population had fallen from 5,500 in 1891 to around 4,200 in 1931 and had gradually increased again to about 4,800 in 1947. He describes the situation of the town in similar terms to that given by the previous writers which is natural as geographical features do not change much in three hundred years. Housing is dealt with very fully and he details the total number of houses in the town as numbering 1,250, of which 40 were villas, 115 cottages, 32 in terraces and the remainder of the tenement type, mainly of two storeys, a few with three and one with four storeys. Of the total of 1,250 the Town Council had built and let 318 by 1950 but this number has been greatly exceeded since then and in May 1971 the 1000th Council House was formally opened. Overcrowding was prevalent in the 1940s and over 20% of the council owned houses had more than one family living in them. Most houses in the town had gardens attached and the usual services of water, sanitation, cleansing, gas and electricity were amply provided and Maybole compared favourably with any other town of equal size in Scotland. Mention is made of the Castle and the Tolbooth as in previous accounts and the only new building erected in the twentieth century of any note were the Carnegie Library in 1906 and Post Office in 1913. It is interesting to note in the Third Statistical Account the detail of the tradespeople in the town and to compare it with the list given a little over one hundred years previously. In 1950 the shops and businesses in the town consisted of: 3 Bakers. It will be noted that easy access to the county town of Ayr and to Glasgow had changed the trend of shopkeeping in Maybole and the ladies would appear to have taken their custom to the larger towns as fifteen milliners and a staymaker had gone out of business since the previous census of shops etc. had been taken. The townspeople had become more temperate and made do with two Hotels and seven Public Houses in 1950 compared with three Hotels, twelve Public Houses and thirty Ale Houses in 1837. Health must have improved' with modern sanitation, etc. as four doctors sufficed for 4,800 people against the six required a hundred years earlier for a much smaller population, while half the number of lawyers could deal with legal matters. Blacksmiths had practically disappeared but were replaced by motor engineers, and taxi hirers and a radio dealer had started business with the advent of cars and wireless while two picture houses had displaced the former concerts and "penny geggies" which were set up from time to time in the Town Green. The boot and shoe industry still existed to a certain extent but: the great days when there was full employment in this trade had passed. About the turn of the century the Ladywell and Lorne factories were in full production and the trade which had been started by the foresight of John Gray and Charles Crawford in the nineteenth century and expanded by James Ramsay, John Lees, Robert Crawford, John McCreath and others had passed its heyday and by 1950 only the factories owned by Lees & Co. at Townend and McCreath in Society Street were still in existence. Maybole specialised in heavy footwear and the decreasing demand for this and the tariffs imposed by fire (where a great amount of the local footwear had been marketed) did much to kill the local trade and in 1950 only 3,500 pairs of boots and shoes were produced weekly against a total of 20,000 pairs weekly 1 Optician. 1 Chiropodist. 3 Lawyers. 2 Picture Houses. early in the century. The Millar Tanning Company, (which had taken over the former Ladywell Shoe Factory) was busy at this period however and tanned leather from it was sold all over Britain. Unfortunately this connection with the boot and shoe trade has also gone from the town as the tannery closed down in 1969 and there is now no connection in the town with the great boot and shoe industry which made it such a thriving community for nearly a hundred years, with the exception of the firm of Hanison & Goudie which employs a few workers and strives to keep some connection with the boot and shoe trade in Maybole. At the same time as the footwear industry prospered in the town the making of agricultural implements was greatly increased by Alexander Jack and Sons and by the beginning of the present century their implements were famous throughout the world. The agricultural implement industry was started in the latter half of the nineteenth century by the two firms of Alex. Jack and Thomas Hunter and gave employment to many of the towns- people. The two firms united early this century and continued until the 1950s when, like the footwear factories, trade diminished and finally the agricultural works closed down. At one time in the agricultural world the name of "Jacks" carried a guarantee of excellence in materials and workmanship. The government of the town had changed since the previous Statistical Account and in 1857 the old Burgh of Barony had become an ordinary Police Burgh with a Town Council of twelve members, including the Provost and two Bailies. In 1950 the officials consisted of a, part-time Town Clerk and Treasurer (who was also Housing Factor) and a full-time Burgh Surveyor. The J.P. Court for the district was held in the local Court House which was formerly the Tolbooth and this was also the meeting place for the Carrick District Licensing Court. The District Council members met in the District Office (formed in part of the town's old "Poorhouse") and these courts still continue to make their decisions in the old burgh. Once again the ministerial writer of the Statistical Account wrote fully on ecclesiastical matters. In 1950 there were four churches belonging to the Church of Scotland, those being the Old and West Churches (both Barish Churches) the Cargill (once the Free Church) and the Kincraig (the U.P. Church). At that time the Cargill and the Kincraig Church were used separately although united under one minister, but shortly after- wards the two congregations combined in what was formerly the Cargill Church (which became known as the Cargill-Kincraig Church) and the Kincraig Church was sold to a local builder who demolished it and built private houses on the site. The combined congregations of the four churches totalled around two thousand members. In addition to these there were places of worship for the Episcopalians, Plymouth Brethren, Baptists and the Salvation Army, while the Roman Catholics, with a member- ship of three hundred had their own church at the foot of Coral Glen. A few townspeople who were Christian Scientists and Spiritualists travelled to Ayr for their services and it would appear religious observances occupied a fair share of public attention. The Rev. Williamson, like his predecessors, remarked on the tremendous indifference of the townspeople in their attendance at church services and it would seem the Minniebolers have never pleased their ministers in this respect. About 1571 the parish churches of Maybole and Kirkbride (near Dunure) were combined and the list of ministers since then who served the community makes interesting reading and shows that Maybole had many brilliant men who made their mark in church affairs, among them being two who were Moderators to the General Assembly. The following list gives the names of the parish ministers since 1571. 1571 Alexander Davidson. (Reader at Kirkbride). Education was still of prime importance to the townspeople in 1950, as it had been for over two hundred years, and within the burgh there were (and still are) three well equipped schools, the Carrick Academy, the Cairn School and the Roman Catholic School, with two primary schools in the parish at Minishant and Fisherton. The Carrick Academy is the main school where all children are transferred after they have completed their primary training at the other schools, and is a well built modern Academy with every facility for a complete secondary training. Carrick Academy was one of the first schools in Ayrshire to provide a mid-day meal for the pupils and its advanced outlook on scholastic matters gives it a high ranking among the County Schools. The Cairn School is entirely primary and although the buildings are much older they had been completely modernised by 1950, and since then many improvements have been carried out and the playground has been enlarged. St. Cuthbert's Roman Catholic School is an elementary school and most of the pupils from St. Cuthbert's normally go to St. Margaret's in Ayr to complete their schooling. .Evening classes were held in all schools during the winter months and over 200 persons attended each session to be taught needlework, cookery, woodwork, country dancing, art, drama, etc. These classes still continue and are well attended. The Statistical Account points out that townspeople are well provided for in opportunities of recreation and in the Memorial Park, formed after the 1914-18 war, there is, the nine hole golf course, four tennis courts and a bowling green all for the use of the townspeople and visitors. In addition there is one of the oldest private bowling greens in Scotland situated in Cassillis Road, formerly solely a men's club but in recent year ladies have been admitted as members. In the 1940s a junior football club was started and the old football ground, which had been the pitch for the local team who played Glasgow Rangers in a Scottish Cup tie just before the first World War, was reformed and became known as Ladywell Stadium. Many of the towns- people were keen anglers and there was always a great demand for membership in the local angling club which had the right to fish part of the River Girvan.- There was also a strong Curling Club whose members usually played in Ayr Ice Rink but who took every opportunity to enjoy the game outdoors when there was keen frost, and the local curling pond at the "Beggar's Rest" was a busy place at such times with curlers and skaters of all ages enjoying their sport. With the exception of the Curling Club, which is now defunct, these recreational facilities are still enjoyed by the townsfolk and the golf club and bowling club are well patronised although the tennis courts are not so popular with the young people as they were in the 1940s. Around 1950 there was a great upsurge of social life which was enjoyed by all after the dreary years of the second World War and nearly every week whist drives or dances were held in the Town Hall or one of the smaller halls in the town. There were also many guilds, clubs and societies with good memberships and in the winter months a full social life was enjoyed by most of the townsfolk. About this time wireless enjoyed a great vogue and in 1949 one thousand one hundred wireless licences were issued from the local Post Office while the two picture houses in the town were usually well filled every week night and had queues waiting to get in every Saturday night. With the advent of television the picture houses became more or less redundant and now one has been taken over as a warehouse and the other converted into a Binge Hall and there are no picture houses in the town nowadays. In summer nearly every organisation had outings for their members and trips were often made to Aberdeen, Blackpool, etc. and indeed a favourite venue for a day trip was the Isle of Man. The Rev. A. Williamsorr again stressed in his article for the Statisical Account the fact that Maybole was an exceedingly healthy place to live in and it is curious each writer made much of this point. It would seem there was a stereotype way to write a Statistical Account but probably this was because the instructions regarding it were given under certain headings which have been more or less similar in each case. Finally the writer ends his article by emphasising that Maybole is a friendly and couthy little town with a distinct feeling of unity among the townsfolk and what better description could be |
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given for any town?