Girvan
1846
GIRVAN, a busy sea-port, market-town, and parish, in the district of
Carrick, county of Ayr, 29 miles (N. N. E.) from Stranraer, and 97 (S. W. by
W.) from Edinburgh; containing 8000 inhabitants. Girvan is supposed to have
derived its name from the river on which it is situated, and which, on
account of the rapidity of its course, was called the Griffan, from two
Celtic words descriptive of its character. Few circumstances of historical
importance are connected with the place, and its origin and early history
are not distinctly recorded. The town is beautifully seated at the mouth of
the river, which here discharges its waters into a spacious bay; and
commands an extensive and interesting view of the sea, the rock of Ailsa,
the mull and promontory of Cantyre, the islands of Sanda, Arran, and Little
Cumbray, part of the Isle of Bute, and the coast of Ireland in the distance.
It appears to have risen
into note from the grant of a charter to Thomas Boyd, of Ballochtoul, which
was recited and confirmed to Sir Archibald Muir, of Thornton, provost of
Edinburgh, in 1696, by William III., who bestowed on it all the privileges
of a burgh of barony; and from the advantage of its situation on the coast,
and in a large manufacturing district, it gradually increased in population
and extent, and ultimately became the seat of trade and manufacturing
industry. The number of inhabitants has been greatly augmented since the
introduction of cotton-weaving by the settlement of numerous weavers from
Ireland, for whom many small houses have been built in the town and suburbs.
A public library is maintained by subscription, and two circulating
libraries have been recently established, which are well supported; there is
also a library belonging to the agricultural society of the district. Not
less than 2000 looms are employed in weaving cotton for the Glasgow and
Paisley manufacturers, who have agents settled here for conducting that
business; and many of the inhabitants are engaged in the several trades
connected with the port, and requisite for the supply of the neighbourhood
with various articles of merchandise.
The Girvan is frequented by salmon, and a considerable fishery was formerly
carried on, under the protection of the charter, by the proprietors on both
sides of the river; but it has been greatly diminished by laying down
stake-nets. The bay abounds with white-fish of every kind, the chief of
which are cod, haddock, whiting, mackerel, soles, flounders, turbot, and
lobsters; but, not withstanding, very little attention was paid to this
valuable fishery till of late, when some steps were taken to render it more
available to the trade of the place. A considerable business is also carried
on in the shipping of grain, of which about 1200 bolls of wheat are sent off
quarterly, on the average; and the trade of the town would be much extended
by the construction of a rail-road from the collieries in the district. The
harbour, till recently, was in a totally unimproved condition, admitting
only vessels of very small burthen; but a quay, though at present only on a
small scale, has been constructed, which has much facilitated the
exportation of potatoes and coal; and when further improvements have been
made, the harbour will be one of the most commodious on this part of the
coast. There are at present upwards of twenty vessels belonging to Girvan,
of from 100 to 300 tons' burthen; and ship-building is carried on with
spirit. Branch banks have been established, and also a post-office: the
market, which is amply supplied with provisions of all kinds, is regularly
held, once a week; and fairs, to which black-cattle are brought for sale,
are held on the last Mondays in April and October, chiefly for the hiring of
servants.
Facility of intercourse
with all places of importance in the district is afforded by excellent
roads, of which that from Glasgow to Portpatrick passes along the west side
of the parish for nearly nine miles; and there are good inland roads
traversing the parish in all directions. The burgh, under its charter, is
governed by two bailies and a council of twelve burgesses, assisted by a
town-clerk, treasurer, and other officers; four of the council retire
annually, but are capable of re-election by the majority of the burgesses;
and the bailies are annually elected by the council. The other officers of
the corporation are appointed by the magistrates; the senior bailie is, by
virtue of his office, a member of the council, and the junior bailie takes
the office of senior magistrate for the ensuing year. The jurisdiction
extends over the whole of the burgh and the barony of Ballochtoul; and a
bailie's court is held weekly, on Wednesday, in the town-hall, for the
determination of civil pleas to the amount of £2, and for the trial of petty
offences, which are generally punished by the imposition of fines not
exceeding £1, and with imprisonment for non-payment. The average number of
civil cases appears for some years to have been gradually diminishing, and
at present is under fifty. All persons wishing to carry on trade must enter
as freemen, for which a fee of £2 on admission is paid to the common fund.
The police is under the management of the magistrates; and sixty of the
inhabitants are annually appointed constables for the preservation of the
peace. The town-hall is a neat building; and attached to it is a prison for
petty offenders in default of payment of their fines, and for the temporary
confinement of others previously to their being sent to the gaol of Ayr.
The parish, situated on the coast, is nine miles in length, and extends
about four miles in mean breadth, though of very irregular form, varying
from two to seven miles. It is bounded on the west for nearly the whole of
its length, by the sea, and comprises about 19,000 acres, of which, with the
exception of a small portion of woodland and plantation, the greater part is
arable land and moorland pasture, and the remainder waste. The surface,
which in no part is very level, is diagonally intersected by a boldly
elevated ridge, of which the highest point is 1200, and the mean height 900,
feet above the level of the sea. The lands are watered by three rivers, of
which the Girvan is the principal; the Lendal, a comparatively small stream,
falls into the sea at Carleton bay, and the Assel, after flowing through the
parish, falls into the Stinchar in the parish of Colmonell. There are also
two lakes; but, though of great depth, they only cover a very inconsiderable
portion of ground. The soil is generally fertile, and in the lower lands
well adapted for the growth of wheat; in the higher parts the lands are
coarse, and comparatively unproductive. The crops are, wheat, oats, barley,
and bear, potatoes, beans, peas, and many acres of turnips for the sheep;
the system of husbandry is improved, and draining has been practised on the
lands requiring it, recently to a great extent. Sea-weed, found in abundance
on the shore, is very generally used as manure, though not altogether to the
exclusion of lime: the farm houses and offices in the parish have been
almost all rebuilt within the last fifty years, and are in general
substantial and commodious; and some, of more recent erection, are inferior
to none in this part of the country. Great attention is paid to live stock,
though from a greater quantity of land having been improved and rendered
arable, the number of cattle pastured has proportionally diminished. The
dairy-farms are well managed; the cows are of the Ayrshire breed, and about
500 are kept on the several farms, and 300 head of young cattle pastured
every year. The sheep are chiefly of the larger black-faced breed, with a
few of the Cheviot; 2200 are annually reared, and about 400 bought in and
fed on turnips for the markets. The rateable annual value of the parish is
£12,845.
There is very little natural wood, and the plantations are on a limited
scale. The substrata are mostly limestone, red freestone, whinstone of a
bluish colour, and graystone in detached masses; the limestone has been
extensively quarried for the supply of the neighbouring district. Copper has
been found on some of the lands; and it is thought that there are abundant
veins of ore at Ardmillan. Indeed, attempts have been made to ascertain the
fact, but upon too inefficient a scale to warrant any just conclusion: what
ore was obtained was found to be of rich quality, and in searching for it
several beautiful specimens of asbestos were discovered. Along the coast,
the rocks are chiefly of the conglomerate kind; and huge masses are seen,
piled upon each other, and in some instances so nicely poised on the slender
props which sustain their prodigious weight as to fill the beholder with
fearful apprehensions.
The parish is in the
presbytery of Ayr and synod of Glasgow and Ayr; patron, the Crown. The
minister's stipend is £269. 12., with a manse, and a glebe valued at £12 per
annum. The church, situated in the centre of the town, and close to the
Glasgow and Portpatrick road, was erected about the year 1780, when the
population was scarcely a fourth of the present number; it is adapted for a
congregation of 850 persons, but is altogether inadequate to the wants of
the parishioners. There are places of worship for Burghers, Wesleyan
Methodists, the Free Church, and Seceders from the Free Church. The
parochial school is well conducted; the master has a salary of £34, with £50
fees, and an allowance of £20 in lieu of a house and garden. He also
receives the interest of £1000 bequeathed by Mrs. Crauford, of Ardmillan,
for the education of forty children without fees, of whom ten are taught
church music by the precentor of the church, to whom she left £12 per annum
for that purpose. Another school is supported by subscription, for teaching
children to read the scriptures, and for instructing them in their
catechism. A savings' bank has been established, and some benevolent
societies have contributed to diminish the number of applications for
parochial aid. Vestiges remain of numerous small circular camps; and there
were formerly many cairns, but most have been destroyed to furnish materials
for fences: on removing one of these, a stone coffin of thin slabs was
found, and an urn of earthenware, rudely ornamented, containing ashes.
From: A Topographical
Dictionary of Scotland (1846)
and .co.uk