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Publications

e-mail
Rosie
Updated 24 June 2008
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On this page
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Publications about Armadale
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Publications by
Armadalians
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Publications about
Armadalians
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Armadale Writers (brief biographies)
under construction
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West Lothian Writers
- Publications about
West Lothian Subjects
- Armadale-related CDs / DVDs / Films / Videos
- Interested in Scottish Archaeology? Here are
some Useful History Texts
- Extracts from 1980s magazines (Armadale and area)
courtesy of Ron Dingwall
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Publications about Armadale
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History of Armadale Association have produced many publications
about Armadale over the last seventeen years. Their list of
publications is now only on their dedicated webpage.
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Please note that the following is not a
comprehensive list, but merely what I have encountered so far.
If you know of an Armadale-related publication that would interest
other visitors to the site, please let me know.
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Update May 2008: Latest books
about Armadale and area
Armadale in Minutes by Robert Kerr, produced by
The History
of Armadale Association,
price £5 (+ postage and packing for those outside Armadale). A dust-jacketed hardback of 219 pages with 56 photos/illustrations
and 3 maps.
It
can be purchased locally or ordered from Betty Hunter, Secretary of The
History of Armadale Association:
HAAsecretary armadale.org.uk .
Why not visit the
HAA
page to read about their activities?
Some of the
surnames included in the book's text:
Addie, Aitken, Anderson, Archer, Arthur, Baillie, Baird,
Ballantyne, Bamburgh, Barnard, Baxter, Bell, Beveridge, Binning, Bishop,
Black, Borza, Boyd, Brock, Brown, Bryce, Bryden, Byers, Caesar,
Cairns, Calder, Calderhead, Cameron, Campbell, Carr, Chalmers, Cherry,
Clark, Clarkson, Cochran, Cochrane, Collie, Conner, Corsie, Cowan, Craig,
Crawford, Cunningham, Currie, Cuthbart, Dalling, Daves, Davidson,
Davie, Davis, Dennistoun, Donald, Donaldson, Donnelly, Douglas, Druce,
Drummond, Drysdale, Duncan, Easton, Edwards, Elder, Farquhar,
Ferrier, Finlay, Finnlay, Fleming, Forrester, Forsyth, Frew, Gall,
Gardner, Gartshore, Geddes, Gentleman, Gibb, Gibson, Gilchrist, Gillespie,
Gillon, Gilmar, Gordon, Gorman, Gowans, Graham, Gray, Gregor, Greig, Grey,
Hailstones, Hall, Hamilton, Harrower, Harvie, Hickman, Honeyman,
Hope, Howatt, Hunter, Hynd-Brown, Inglis, Kelly, Kerr, Kirk,
Lawson, Learmonth, Lees, Leggat, Leishman, Liddell, Longmuir, Love,
MacAdam, MacDonald, MacDougal, Mackay, MacLachlan, MacLellan, Mallace,
Marcella, Marr, Marshall, Matheson, Maxwell, McDonald, McDougal, McDowall,
McGarrie, McGowan, McGregor, McHardy, McIntosh, McKinnon, McLachlan,
McMillan, McNab, McNair, McNicol, McPhail, Millar, Miller, Milne, Moffat,
More, Morrison, Muir, Newton, O'Donnell, Parker,
Paterson, Pollock, Prentice, Quin, Ramsay, Ranken, Rankin,
Readman, Reid, Rennie, Roberts, Robertson, Rodger, Rodgers, Rosebery,
Russell, Sharp, Shaw, Shearer, Sibbald, Sim, Simpson, Sinclair,
Smith, Snedden, Sneddon, Steel, Stevenson, Stewart, Swan, Syson,
Teape, Temple, Tennant, Thomson, Turner, Walker, Wark, Watson,
Waugh, Wetherspoune, White, Williams, Wilson, Wood, Wylie, Wyper, Young.
.....................................
Also recommended:
Old Armadale and Blackridge by
John Hood, price £7.99, see
Stenlake
. It’s a paperback of 52 pages, but it has 55 photos of Armadale and
Blackridge on its covers and inner pages.
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Have you read...? If you are
well-acquainted with Armadale, you may be interested in The
Observations by
Jane Harris (named by the book industry, on Thursday 19 May 2007, as one
of the 25 authors who are seen to be the future of British writing).
One of the sources for her first novel is Armadale's Past and Present.
Unfortunately, the name of the author of Armadale's history is quoted
incorrectly in the novel's acknowledgements. It should be
R. Hynd-Brown.
January 2008 Update: We're grateful to Sarah
Savitt from Faber for letting us know that the error has been corrected. Can you identify the local references in the novel? |
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Armadale Gala Day Programme 2007:
If you were in the the 2nd Year (1967-8) with Mrs Mulholland at Armadale
Academy; in 2a (1976 - 1977) with Mrs Forsyth at Armadale Primary School; in
4a (1979 - 1980) with Mrs Gray at Eastertoun Primary School; in Primary 5
(1983 - 1984) with Mrs Connerton at Armadale Primary School, you will be
interested to see the photos in the Gala Day programme.
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Our Town, Our Team
ARMADALE......! researched by Stuart
Borrowman, John Lee and Jimmy Smeaton in aid of Armadale Thistle Supporters'
Club, printed by Inprint, published by Armadale Thistle Supporters' Club
with financial assistance from West Lothian Council, available from
stuartborrowman btinternet.com or
JOHNLEE1940 aol.com £2.50
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Gowff - Golf The Boys Fae The Dale,
researched and written by Andy Anderson, May 2004
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Armadale: Past and
Present by R. Hynd-Brown,
1906, printed by F. Johnston & Co., proprietors of Linlithgowshire
Gazette, online since 2002 courtesy of Jim McGregor
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Armadale Today 1982, an expanded version of the 1978 booklet, Directory of Organisations in
the Armadale Area, produced by the Community Centre and the
Community Council, (Comment from Rosie: a wonderful snapshot
of Armadale's life in the early 1980s, with community advice and
organisations and also full of poems by local people)
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Armadale Town Guide 1989,
produced by Armadale Community Council
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Armadale Public House Society Ltd, October 1901 - October 1951,
(booklet)
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Armadale in Old Picture Postcards, by William F. Hendrie,
1998, published by European Library, Zaltbommel, The Netherlands (Comment from Rosie: an interesting
collection of photos with accompanying commentary)
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Nursing at Tippethill in the 1940s,
Booklet of Reminiscences of Mary (Falconer) Flynn (booklet),
published
by West Lothian Council : Local History Library
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A News-Sheet Outlining Some of the Important
Events of the year 1881 in Armadale, Linlithgowshire, researched and written
by Jan Malloch as part of study for Certificate in Scottish Family History
Studies 1998
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Armadale Small Area Statistics,
Census 1991, General Register Office for Scotland
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A Look at the Armadale Works of United
Fireclay Products, article reprint, Euroclay, Jan/Feb
1979
Please note: The
considerable research of Robert Kerr is shown in a separate section below
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Publications by
Armadalians |
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Poems - A Puckle Mair by Davie Kerr Review in
Scots Tung Wittins
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A Puckle Poems by Davie Kerr,
2000, printed and bound by Essential Print, Whitburn.
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People's Stories: A Study of Everyday
Literacies in Armadale (Read the
background
to the project)
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Poetry of the Dell
(Being Sketches of the Poets
and Poetry of the District of Woodend, Torphichen, Linlithgowshire), re-printed from the
West Lothian Courier,
1887, Laurence Gilbertson, Jubilee Hall, Bathgate.
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My Daily War Diary 1940 - 1946,
written and published by Tom Fleming, 2003, printed by Athenaeum Press Ltd,
Gateshead
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Once in Every Lifetime
by Tom Hanlin, 1945, Nicholson and Watson
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Yesterday Will
Return
by Tom Hanlin, 1946, Nicholson & Watson
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The Miracle at Cardenrigg
by Tom Hanlin, 1949, Victor Gollancz Ltd, London
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NEW SECTION:
Publications by Robert Kerr
Armadalian
Robert Kerr has produced many manuscripts, study papers and books over the
years, and so it seemed fitting to give him his own section!
All of
Robert Kerr's writing and maps of the West Lothian area can be seen by
contacting West Lothian Library Headquarters, Connolly House, Hopefield
Road, Blackburn, West Lothian, EH47 7HZ
Information courtesy of Sybil Cavanagh |
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Armadale in
Minutes, A Chronological
History by Robert Kerr,
2008, HAA Launched 12
March 2008 - available from Armadale Library, Post Office and Woolshop
at £5 Postage for the book is
approx. £1.42 (UK) and £6.52 (Overseas)
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A History of Armadale, West Lothian, (86
pages), 1996
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A History of Barbauchlaw, (2 pages)
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A History of Bathville, (5 pages), 1996
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A History of Bathville II, (6 pages), 1996
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A History of the Ancient Barony of Ogilface
in the Parish of Torphichen, 1993
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A Revised History of the Ancient Barony of
Ogilface: Giving owners or lessees of lands of Barony, 1994
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A History of the Land Occupied by the
Ancient Barony of Ogilface in the Parish of Torphichen, Manuscript 1994
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A History of the Estate and Lands of Cathlaw,
(2 pages), 1996
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A History of the West Lothian Town of
Armadale and Surrounding Area, manuscript, 1992
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A History of the West Lothian Town of
Armadale and Surrounding Area, manuscript, 1994
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A History of Westfield and District near
Armadale, (3 pages), 1994
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A History of Woodend, near Armadale, West
Lothian, single sheet, 1995
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Bridgecastle and Bridgehouse, (2 pages),
1998
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Gowanbank: Notes on Gowanbank, north of
Blackridge, (½ page), 1998
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Plan of Lands of Hardhill and Lands of
Harestanes in the Ancient Parish of Bathgate: Showing boundaries of the
two estates, and the farms and other notable sites they included, 1990
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Sketch map showing the boundaries of Couston,
Bridgecastle, Barbauchlaw, Hardhill and Polkemmet Estates, sketch
map, 1990
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Sketch maps of Armadale c1850 and of
surroundings c1773 and 1820, sketch map, 1990
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A History of Blackridge, Woodend and the
Lands of Ogilface, 1995
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Bedlormie House, West Lothian, (2 pages),
1998
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A History of Balbardie, Ballencrieff,
Barbauchlaw, Bathgate, Boghall and Boghead Estates, 1995
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A History of Bathgate, manuscript, 1993
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A History of Bathgate, typescript, 1994
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A History of Bathgate, typescript, 1996
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A History of Bathgate, (78 pages) 1997
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A History of Bathgate, (edited by Robert
Harkness), 2006
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A History of Lochcote Estate and Lands, (6
pages), 1996
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Historic Map of Bathgate, sketch map, 1990
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Sketch map of Bathgate: farms and estates,
with dates, sketch map, 1990
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Sketch map of Bathgate: industrial: mainly
industrial places of employment (pits, quarries, etc.) c1850, sketch
map, 1990
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Sketch map of Bathgate c1898: Historic
places in and near Bathgate town, overlaid on road and rail system of
c1898 (with dates), sketch map, 1990
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Sketch map of the farms and estates of
Bathgate district - with dates: Historic Maps, map 1
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Sketches of Bathgate Buildings: S3
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A History of Places within and near
Beecraigs Country Park in West Lothian, to be read with the historic map
of the park, 1997
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Lochcote - Miscellaneous Information and Map
of Lochcote Estate
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Historic map of Beecraigs Country Park, West
Lothian: Scale c 6 inches:1 mile, 1997
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Sketch map of Beecraigs Country Park, West
Lothian: Showing boundaries of earlier farms of Whitebaulks, Hillhouse,
Balvormie lands and many of the old field names, A3 sketch map, 1997
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A History of Blackburn, Stoneyburn, Seafield
and District, 1994
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A History of Bo'ness and District,
manuscript, 1994
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A History of South Queensferry, Kirkliston
and district, 1995
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A History of South Queensferry, Kirkliston,
Winchburgh and the Parishes of Dalmeny and Abercorn, 1994
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A History of Broxburn, Uphall and
Ecclesmachan, 1995
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A History of the Parishes of Strathbrock,
Uphall and Ecclesmachan (including Broxburn), 1994
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A History of Fauldhouse, Longridge and
District, 1994
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A History of Fauldhouse, Longridge and
District, (3 pages), 1995
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A History of Whitburn, East Whitburn and
District, 1994
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A History of Linlithgow, (29 pages), 1994
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A History of Linlithgow, (44 pages), 1995
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A History of Livingston Parish, 1994
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A History of Livingston New Town Area, 1994
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A History of Livingston New Town Area, 1995
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A History of the Three Calders and
Kirknewton Parish, 1994
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A History of Torphichen, West Lothian: the
first 4 thousand years, photocopied manuscript, 1991
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A History of Torphichen, West Lothian: Book
2, pages 13 - 20, brothers, knights and preceptors, 1992
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How James Sandilands became Lord Torphichen.
Also the first tenants and farms of Torphichen Parish.
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Assorted Information on Torphichen's
History, (10 pages)
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Persons Buried in Torphichen Kirk Graveyard,
handwritten
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The Estate and Lands of Wallhouse, (5
pages), 1996
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The Well, the Square, Torphichen, (2 pages),
1998
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Torphichen's First Council Housing Scheme at
Greenside, (2 pages), 1996
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A History of West Lothian (County and
District), manuscript, 1995
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Glimpses of West Lothian Past, (8 pages),
1998
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Glimpses of West Lothian Past, 2006
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Notes on West Lothian Place Names,
manuscript
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Robert Kerr's Histories of West Lothian
Towns and Villages: Vol 1, typescript
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Robert Kerr's Histories of West Lothian
Towns and Villages: Vol 2, typescript
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Robert Kerr's Histories of West Lothian
Towns and Villages: Vol 3, handwritten
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Publications about
Armadalians |
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Annie Drummond's Treasured Memory
by Pamela Blevins in The Ivor Gurney Journal, 1997, (love affair of Annie
Drummond, an Armadale nurse, and Ivor Gurney, poet and composer and patient
in Bangour War Hospital, 1917)
Annie Drummond
d 1959, of Armadale, nursed
Ivor Gurney,
poet and composer, at
Bangour Hospital.
After Annie Drummond McKay's death
in 1959, her daughter discovered her mother's treasured possessions, which
included a copy of Poems of Today inscribed 'To Nurse Drummond with
thanks for joy and best wishes for all things to come, September 1918, From Ivor
Gurney, S. Albans' Also a score of The Western Playland, which he
had dedicated to her.
From October 1917 to March 1918,
they were close, but a break ensued.
Although an intermediary tried to
contact Annie on his behalf, and sent her The Western Playland, Annie did
not reply. By this time she was happily married to James McKay in Boston,
Gurney having been certified insane 3 weeks after Annie's marriage.
Gurney died in an asylum in 1938 and
Annie was also affected by mental illness later, dying in Medfield State
Hospital in 1959.
See The Ivor Gurney Journal
1997, Annie Drummond's treasured memory by Pamela Blevins.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
List of Tom Hanlin's papers held by
the National Library of Scotland
Tom Hanlin,
by Hugh Macpherson in Scottish Book Collector, Edinburgh, 1989
Pithead Metaphysics:
Tom Hanlin's 'Once in Every Lifetime',
by Manfred Malzahn in ScotLit (Aberdeen: Association for Scottish
Literary Studies), 1992
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Armadale Writers (brief biographies)
under construction |
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DR ANDERSON: The
Sport of Pigeon Racing (1947) |
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JAMES BALLANTYNE |
FRANCIS BARNARD
Francis Barnard was born in May 1834 in the hamlet of Devon Square,
Clackmann, moving later to Airdrie and eventually to Bo'ness and
Grangemouth.
When he married, he moved to Woodend. Shortly after his arrival, he
contributed poetry to Scottish newspapers. In 1875 his poetry was
published in a collection entitled Sparks from a Miner's Lamp.
In 1889 his Chirps frae the Engine Lum was published.
He was a keen observer of nature and a passionate lover of Scottish 'makars'.
He is also known for Sweet Armadale and The Voices I' the
Glen. |
ANDREW BARNARD
Andrew Barnard was born in 1860, son of Francis Barnard..
After leaving school, he worked for one year as a coalminer before he
suffered a knee injury. Later he was employed as an engineer with W. Muir
& Sons, Bathville.
When he married, he built a cottage situated between Woodend and Armadale.
He wrote the poem, The Sparrows that Bide in the Lum. |
WILLIAM BROCK
Farmer Brock of Barbauchlaw Mains wrote a poem about the severe frost of
1817, which ruined the Hairst. |
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WILLIAM CAMERON
1801: born in Dunipace, Stirlingshire, son of a woollen
manufacturer of Denny.
c1818:
his father died and he had to find employment.
1826: he was appointed as Armadale's first schoolmaster. He
lived at Whitockbrae.
1833: he moved to Glasgow and became a merchant. He wrote many nostalgic
poems about his time in the Armadale area. Some of his finest songs were
set to music by Matthew Wilson. William Cameron died in 1877.
Below: Birthplace of Jessie Harvie of
Barbauchlaw Mill. She inspired Armadale's first schoolmaster to
create a poem, Jessie o' the Mill, later published as the popular broadside ballad
Jessie o' the Dell.
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JC: Sweet Armadale
(1940); Doun the Auld Wheatock Brae (1940) |
TOM FLEMING
Tom Fleming was born in at Beech Cottage, West Main Street, Armadale in
1921, the youngest of six children, to Charles and Jane Fleming.
He worked for United Collieries as a Despatch Clerk, until his appointment
as a Mine Surveyor. His book My Daily War Diary 1940 - 1946, records his
experiences with 168 (City of London) Light Field Ambulance attached to
8th Armoured Brigade. |
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J. GORMAN |
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TOM HANLIN b1907 d 1953

An exhibition about Armadale's novelist, Tom Hanlin, at Armadale Library,
April - May 2008.
Tom Hanlin showed promise at school and was interested in becoming a
writer from an early age. However, he had to leave school at fourteen
years of age to begin work. He worked on a farm for a year, and then he
worked down the mines for the next twenty years, until 1946. As a result
of an accident, he spent three months in the Royal Infirmary. During that
time he wrote five stories, which he was able to sell. One of them, Sunday
in the village, won the annually awarded Sheffield University Prize,
available to those who were 'manual workers in or about a coal mine, or
have been injured when so employed'.
Later, he won the Big Ben prize of £500 for his long story, which became
his first novel, Once in every lifetime, popular in Europe and
Scandinavia, translated into more than a dozen languages, and eventually
in a BBC radio version.
In 1945, he became a full-time writer and his story Bright and cheerful
is the day (which includes what is believed to be an overview of
Armadale) appeared in the Virginia Quarterly magazine that autumn. In
1946, his second novel, Yesterday will return, was published.
He was a dedicated, conscientious writer who was interested in the process
and in the business of writing. One notable essay, written in the 1940s,
considered the impact of television and the cinema. Once in every
lifetime was serialised in Woman's Home Companion. It was a
popular story of a man in hospital falling in love with a nurse, and how,
despite an unfulfilled relationship, her influence guided him (a familiar
story to those aware of Ivor Gurney's relationship with his Armadale
nurse, Annie Drummond).
In 1949, his novel The Miracle at Cardenrigg was published. His
move to London was followed by the publication of his short stories in
magazines such as Atlantic Monthly, Lilliput, The Strand Magazine,
as well as Virginia Quarterly. He was offered lucrative work in
Hollywood, but he rejected it as he did not want to lose his independence.
In his late 40s, he developed heart and breathing problems, which led to
his death in 1953, leaving behind over thirty short stories, as well as
novels and essays, and eight radio plays, two of which were broadcast.
One commentator summed up his work as 'motive and pressure and destiny
made plain' because his fascination with detail and the overall design of
things is often demonstrated in his portrayal of wider issues through the
minutiae of daily life.
Essay (won the Arthur Markham Memorial prize awarded by Sheffield
University): Sunday in the village
Articles: The novel is doomed; Tension-snap-relief
Novels: Once in every lifetime; The Miracle of Cardenrigg;
Nor is the night starless; Yesterday will return;
One
summer is all
Short stories: Temper the wind; Bright and cheerful is
the day; My shadow on the side of the tunnel; And always
will be; Strange the way
Plays including: One more chance; Beneath the surface
See National Library of Scotland: MSS.27417 - 27425
Also: Scottish Writers: Tom Hanlin by Hugh Macpherson in the
Scottish Book Collector, No.10, Feb. 1989, PG19-20
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Mrs. M. HUNTER
Tae Rabbie; Yesterday;
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WILLIAM JEFFREY
William Jeffrey, son of manager of Woodend, died in Glasgow in 1946. |
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DAVID KERR
A Chapter's
Close; A Puckle Poems; Poems - A Puckle Mair |
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ROBERT KERR
He was born in
Armadale in 1927, son of James and Mary KERR. He was educated at Armadale
Primary and the old Bathgate Academy before continuing his studies at Glasgow
School of Art and Herriot Watt College. He worked in the various parts of
the building industry, initially as an apprentice architect with Thomas Roberts,
Architects, of Bathgate and latterly as a draughtsman / surveyor for West
Lothian Council. His interests included the Scouts movement; playing in
the Armadale and Whiterigg Pipe bands; sports, leading to his training as a
football referee; politics and Scotland's heritage and culture. He has
produced a considerable library of manuscripts, research papers and books about
Armadale and the West Lothian area since his retirement in 1991. A few of
the many publications are shown on this page. |
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THOMAS LEARMONTH |
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LIZ MARCELLA |
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J. MORRISON |
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Mrs MULVEY |
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Mrs MURGATROYD: Armadale Glen
(1950);
Auld Russell's Raw Sweet Armadale (Parody on Bonnie Strathyre)
You can sing o' the hielands and hillsides sae
braw,
Aye o' dark Lochnagar and the Comries an' a'.
But I'll sing of the beauty surrounding the vale
That lies on the north side of sweet Armadale.
I see in the distance the Ochils in view,
Asleep in the silence and saft, hazy hue.
And a sigh of content in my breast I inhale
When I'm roving the north side of sweet Armadale.
Doon the auld Wheattock Brae lies the road to the Glen,
Where echoes the blackbird in yon shady den.
And the Scottish bluebell ever tender and frail,
You'll find on the north side of sweet Armadale.
The Barbauchlaw runs past, it reflects on the trees,
And the bright butterfly flits awa' in the breeze.
And the red setting sun sets a glow o'er the vale,
That lies on the north side of sweet Armadale.
By the late Mrs. M. Murgatroyd of Unity Terrace,
Armadale |
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THOMAS SHARP |
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West Lothian Writers |
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Ironstone, a celebration of
new writing from West Lothian, issue one, edited by Magi Gibson, published
by West Lothian Council, 2005
Ironstone, a celebration of
new writing from West Lothian, issue two, published by West Lothian
Council, 2005
Versions, A Third Anthology
of Poems by members of Quill (West Lothian) (Quill members meet every
second Monday at Bathgate Community Centre to write and help with each
other's poetry. Details from Secretary Donnie MacNeill, 01506 431389) |
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Publications about
West Lothian Subjects, or including West Lothian Subjects |
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Scots Words and their Meanings as
used in West Lothian, produced by The West Lothian Broadly
Scots Society, 2nd edition, 2001
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Where were you, when spitfires
flew? Life on the Home Front, A collection of stories by 40 West
Lothian residents who kept the home fires burning, compiled by members of
West Lothian History and Amenity Society, produced under the Home Front
Recall scheme, funds provided by the Big Lottery Fund.
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Caunle, Caunle, Birning Bricht,
Candle making in the Scottish Shale Oil Industry, by David Kerr,
2005, West Lothian Local History Library.
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The Wee Bangour Express,
booklet written by Rev. A.D. Stirling, 2000, West Lothian Council Libraries,
Local History Library.
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The Winchburgh Murders,
booklet produced by The Local Studies Department, WL Council Library
Services
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County Survey Report, West
Lothian County Planning Authority, 1970
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Capital of Silicon Glen. West Lothian:
transformed for good?, written by Stuart
Borrowman, published by Drumduff Publications, December 2000, printed by
Hugh K. Clarkson and Sons, West Calder
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Foundlings - West Lothian's Abandoned
Children (booklet), published by West Lothian Council Libraries:
Local History Library 2000
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Routes Across West Lothian, A Transport
History Map, produced by West Lothian History and Amenity Society, printed
by Nimmos, Edinburgh
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Linlithgow in Early Victorian Times, A
study based on the 1841 Census of the Royal Burgh, by Andrina Baillie,
published by West Lothian Council : Local History Library, 2006
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The Gemme's a Bogey, Traditional Scots
Rhymes collected by Mary Ferrie, reprint courtesy of Awards for All,
Heritage Lottery Fund, May 2003
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Blackridge (A Census
Analysis) by Jimmy Borrowman
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Behind God's Back, A History of Blackridge in
West Lothian, by Stuart Borrowman, published
by West Lothian Council, November 2005
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Blackridge Yesteryear (a
local history), by Jimmy Borrowman, 1988
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A History of Blackridge
by Stuart Borrowman, 1981
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Discovering West Lothian, by W.F. Hendrie,
published by John Donald Publishers Ltd, August 1997
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West Lothian, An Illustrated Architectural Guide,
by Richard Jaques and Charles McKean, published by The Rutland Press, September 1994
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West Lothian Place Names, by John Garth
Wilkinson, published by Torphin House, August 1992
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Whispers from the Back of Beyond;
Your Guide to Researching Family History in West Lothian, Scotland, written
and published by Matthew Fry, August 2000
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Monumental Inscriptions in West Lothian
(pre-1855), by John Fowler Mitchell,
published by Scottish Genealogy Society, December 1975
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The Poets and Poetry of Linlithgowshire,
Alex M. Bisset, John Menzies and Co, Edinburgh and Glasgow, 1896
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Torphichen
by Jack Smith, 1997
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The Buildings of Scotland,
Lothian except Edinburgh, by Colin McWilliam, published by Butler and
Tanner Ltd, Frome and London, 1978
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Place Names of West Lothian,
by Angus MacDonald, published by Oliver and Boyd, 1941
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Mining The Lothians by Guthrie Hutton,
Stenlake Publishing, 1998
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From Starlaw to Burngrange, West
Lothian Mining Deaths and Disasters, 1870 - 1947, produced by West
Lothian District Libraries Local Studies Department, 1996
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West Lothian Slavery and the Slave
Trade, produced by West Lothian Local History Library, 2007
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50 Glimpses of West Lothian Past
and Present, by McGonagal 2nd
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Lothian, A Historical Guide,
by Mark Collard, 1998
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Airdrie Weans and Bathgate Bairns
by Isobel Simpson, published by J. J. Simpson, 1997
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Model Lodging Houses of West
Lothian, produced by The Local Studies Dept of West Lothian District
Library HQ
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West Lothian Wildlife, Annual
Review 96, West Lothian Natural History Report, ed Martin
Collinson, 1996
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West Lothian Wildlife, Annual
Review No. 2, West Lothian Natural History Report, ed Martin
Collinson, 1997
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Forts, Farms and Furnaces,
Archaeology in the Central Scotland Forest, RCAHMS
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Torphichen Kirk by Jack
Smith, 2006
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Standing Witnesses, An Illustrated Guide to the
Scottish Covenanters, by Thorbjörn Campbell, Saltire Society,
Edinburgh 1996
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Scottish Collieries, An Inventory of the
Scottish Coal Industry in the Nationalised Era, by Miles K Oglethorpe,
RCAHMS and The Scottish Mining Museum Trust, June 2006
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Memories of West Lothian Boxers and Their Times
by Jim Duffy
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The First Edinburgh-Glasgow Royal Mail Coaches -
3. Middle Route (Paper) by Bill Cochrane (with useful references for
further reading/research)
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The Third Statistical Account of Scotland Vol XXI,
The County of West Lothian, ed by Patrick Cadell, Scottish Academic
Press, Edinburgh, 1992. Note that this volume reflects
the county before the 1975 reorganisation of local government.
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Twixt Forth & Clyde by AG Williamson,
published by Putnam, London, first pub 1942
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Jails, Clinks and Lock-ups; crimes and punishment
in West Lothian. Text of the Bennie Museum Spring lecture, May 1998.
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RCHMS: Tenth Report with Inventory of Monuments
and Constructions in the Counties of Midlothian and Westlothian,
Edinburgh 1929
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The Bathgate Book Maps, Up-to-date survey
and maps drawn by Dorothy Slater
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Scots Words and their Meanings as used in West
Lothian, produced by The West Lothian Broadly Scots Society, printed
by Hot off The press, Livingston, 2008
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Armadale-related CDs / DVDs / Films / Videos |
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A Daunder Round Armadale,
produced by The History of Armadale Association, is a video produced in
the hope that it will stimulate interest among walkers and other community
groups, in some of the historic countryside walks around our town. 1999 |
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Etna
Brickworks 16mm film showing production of bricks at the works. |
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Etna Brickworks Advertisement, supported by the Scottish Museums
Council and the Heritage Lottery Fund, between October 2002 and March
2004, which involved children and parents in the creation of multimedia
advertisements for products and services represented in the museum
collection. |
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Looking at the Dale: Armadale in Old Photographs,
CD devised and
produced by Zoe Wright for West Lothian Libraries. |
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NEW Interested in Scottish Archaeology?
Here are some Useful History Texts |
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The Landscape of Scotland, A
Hidden History by C R Wickham-Jones, Tempus, 2001
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But the Walls Remained, A
survey of unroofed rural settlement depicted on the first edition of the
Ordnance Survey 6-inch map of Scotland, RCAHMS and Historic Scotland,
2002
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The Castles of Scotland by
Martin Coventry, Birlinn, 2006
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Scottish Prehistory by
Richard Oram, Birlinn, 1997
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Castles and Tower Houses of the
Scottish Clans 1450 - 1650 by Stuart Reid, illustrated by Graham
Turner, Osprey Publishing, 2006
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The Forts of Celtic Britain
by Angus Konstam, illustrated by Peter Bull, Osprey Publishing, 2006
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Extracts from 1980s magazines
(Armadale and area) courtesy of Ron
Dingwall |
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Dale News + Views, first
edition, Editorial Board: Bobby Laidlaw, YOPs
Supervisor; Grace Harris, Armadale; Linda Emms, Armadale; Paula Watson,
Armadale; 3 YOP trainees (Identifications variable).
8 pages, which include: an
editorial; congratulations to Bill Bailey on title choice; an article on
local history; Armadale Venture Scout Unit report; Armadale Ranger Guide
Unit advertisement; Your Own Say (a local article by Bill Bailey);
advertisements on behalf of local businesses. |
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It seemed only appropriate for the first
edition to include an account of early Armadale as well as a 'renewal'
poem that seems appropriate now in light of the imminent changes to
facilities in the town. |
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"HOW
ARMADALE BEGAN
Originally the
land on which Armadale is built was said to have been a hunting ground for
lords and the king. Boar was the animal that was hunted the most
therefore Boarbocklaw later becoming Barbocklaw. In 1734 Frederick
the Prince of Wales granted the estate, of which Barbocklaw was a part, to
Harry Cochran. It was sold and resold to different people for
different things such as death of the previous owner or bankruptcy.
The town came into
being when a new road from Edinburgh to Glasgow was built in 1786.
This formed a junction with the country road near the east end of the
estate. A tollbar was built and a tollman's house. The toll
was licensed to sell spirits and ale until an Act of parliament on May 15
1855 stopped it.
After the building
of the road, Carron Iron company set up mines to dig for the coal that had
originally been worked by the locals. Miners were brought in, but as
accommodation was scarce many built huts for themselves. John
Russell, a joiner, noticed the demand for housing. He secured feu
near the cross where he set up a workshop and a house. The feu was
granted by Sir William Honeyman, Bart of Armadale on the 4 August 1795.
The town was born." |
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"Armadale
Primary School by Mrs. Hadden
In Queen Victoria's Golden Age
Our School wis just the thing
Weans wrote on slates, had wooden plates
Wi a brass school bell to ring.
The heating system in the school
Wis the very latest one,
By love, it worked wi gusto
On coal, ten bob a ton.
This may come as quite a shock,
Auld Queen Vic's expired
The roof leaks, the woodwork creaks,
The auld grey walls are tired.
All over Lothian Region
There are new schools by the score,
Even here in Armadale
We're the only auld yin o' four.
Big renavations were agreed
The teachers jumped wi' glee,
An' aw the mammys o' the weans
Wir glad this wis tae be.
Then the plans wir "cut" again
It really made us sick.
Right in the middle o' the holidays
Whit a dirty trick!
We then tried a Petition,
Ye must have thought us daft.
But if need be in the years tae come,
We'll no be half as saft!
We're no askin' fer fancy things,
Nor wantin' tae be pampered,
All we want is that our school
Should meet a decent standard.
All the weans in Lothian
Should be treated just the same
An' if we git wir fair share,
We'll haud naebody tae blame.
Here's good news! our upgrading
Has started now at last.
Let's hope the worries of the school
Will be burried in the past."
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Dale News + Views, Christmas
Edition 1982.
8 pages, which include: an
editorial; a recipe for Cabbage and Potato Pie; an article about local
history; a poem by a local poet; an advertisement aimed at 16 - 21 year
olds on behalf of the Youth Employed Club offering 'Snooker, Table Tennis,
Trips away, Badminton, Basketball, Football' at Armadale Community
Education Centre; advertisements on behalf of Armadale Pre-school
Playgroup, Armadale Adult Unemployed Group, the 28th West Lothian Scout
Group, the Gunbro School of Dancing, and local businesses; Isobell Bell's
Music Review. |
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I chose the following extracts because
there is a lively interest from this website's visitors in the community
that used to stay at Woodend as well as in the current archaeological
investigations of the area. |
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"OGILFACE CASTLE
On a promontory of
land above the Barbauchlaw Burn at Woodend Farm, there once stood a castle
which guarded and overlooked the route from the religious places of
Torphichen and Monklands. If you stand on this spot you can imagine
why it was chosen as it has an unbroken view both to the east and west.
No one could pass without being seen - or could they? have a look
and let your imagination wander.
We have to go back
a long way to approximately the year 1120 when the barony of Ogilface came
into existence although it is first on the records in 1165. A castle
was probably built sometime between these dates.
The name Ogilface
goes further back as it is believed to come from two words UCHEL =
HIGH and MAIS = FIELD which it certainly is.
After the Norman
Conquest of England in 1066 there was a very gradual penetration into
Scotland particularly when the Canmore Kings, Edgar, Alexander and David
encouraged them by granting lands and giving power to combat the power of
the Celtic chiefs. It was this factor that brought the DE BOSCO
family (Armadale's first known resident?), north to take up the barony of
Ogilface and build a castle on the site which, to quote the 18th Century
Statistical Account "must have been a place of some strength though no
great size".
Early details are
difficult to come by, but if we return to 1320 an important year in
Scottish History, we find that Thomas De Bosco granted a charter to the
monks of Newbattle which allowed them to cross to Monklands. Looking
at a physical map of the area it is easy to see why this spot is important
as it would have been the junction of the two ancient routes (a)
Torphichen - Monklands and (b) East - West route.
Perhaps we can get
an insight into those people from the records where it tells us that
Robert de Livingston, Keeper of the Palace of Linlithgow from 1434 - 1449
who possessed the land of Ogilface and Middle Binning, was found guilty of
the crime of LESE-MAJESTIE in 1449 and executed. So what intrigue
and high treason did the owner of Ogilface take part in to end up on the
chopping bloc? (answers as soon as it is discovered).
After this point
in history, Ogilface Castle was becoming ruinous as the owners were
staying in more sumptuous surroundings such as Bridge Castle.
However, the lands were bestowed on the Earl of Douglas and then in 1593
it was known that Alexander, 1st Earl of Linlithgow had a charter for the
possession of the Barony of Ogilface.
Thereafter the
lands of the Barony were broken up and the Barony ceased to exist, but the
name can still be found to this day in Blackridge, a street named Ogilface
Crescent." |
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"Many poems
have been written about Armadale and Woodend as well as the scenery along
the Glen scenery which we as Armadalians fail to appreciate. This poem was
written by Mr. James Ballantyne of Woodend.
THE FAIR MAID OF WOODEND
Poets hae sung o' maidens fair,
Wi' rosy cheeks and gouden hair,
But there is nane can half compare
Wi' Woodends bonnie lassie.
She's aye sae modest trig an' clean,
O' maidens fair she is the queen,
I'm shair the like was never seen,
O' Woodends bonnie lassie.
Not e'en the "Maid o' Birkinshaw",
Nor "Jessie o' the Dell" sae braw,
Wha wi' her Willie strolled the twa,
Apuin' nits fu' cheery.
The bard who sang his merry lays,
Amang Barbauchlaws bonnie braes,
Whaur aft he pu'd in bygone days,
Primroses for his dearie.
The maiden fair of whom he sang,
Till a' the hills an' valleys rang,
When strollin' the sweet flo'ers amang,
Wi' her, his bonnie Jessie.
So like him noo I fair wad sing,
My byre, though feeble in the string,
Till a' the meads an' valleys ring,
In praise o' Woodends lassie.
She's sweet and worthy higher praise,
Than my puir muse is fit tae raise,
But sing I will my humble lays,
Tae Woodends bonnie lassie.
An' if it e'er should be my lot,
Tae tak' a wife an' big a cot,
Ye guiding powers refuse me not,
My ain', my bonnie lassie."
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The TRIANGLE, April 1988: The community newspaper serving Armadale Blackridge
Westfield
Local election runners; local business
advertisements; notices on behalf of community groups such as the
Blackridge Community Action Group; Armadale Playscheme; Armadale Good
Neighbour Network; Armadale Strollers 50+ group; the Sunshine Club;
Armadale Community Enterprise's Seminar for local unemployed; Indoor
Bowling Club results Articles about: YTS; lack of facilities for young
people in Armadale; Westfield Community Centre Steering Committee; School
in the Community; Grant Knox and Armadale Bowling Club; Armadale Academy
Cross Country Review; Review of The House Martins 1987 Tour; Whither
Blackridge? (extract from the last article below) |
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Since a number of website visitors have
expressed interest in mining in the area and also in the activities of
Armadale Academy, here is another publication reflecting community issues,
with an emphasis on community losses and gains. |
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"Whither
Blackridge? (J. Borrowman)
As a native of Blackridge - if asked - I would say that probably the best
thing that happened in my lifetime in the village was the building of
council houses particularly the first big scheme - The Clachan. It freed
many tenants from the inadequacies of the miners' rows and the political
and economic control of the United Collieries. Picture it for example
where I was brought up. The Top Terrace. Outside, dry lavatories, with the
consequent epidemics of scarlet fever and diphtheria raging periodically,
or overworked women doing massive washings in a tub on the outside
pavements.
...demand for coal was the basic reason for the development from a
scattered farming population of 94 in 1841 to a fairly stable population
of predominantly miners and their families of 2147 to 2126 in 1951. Today
we have 1629 (1981).
As a youngster and as a youth we had at least 3 local pits (all United
Collieries) Westrigg, Standhill, and The Craigs (new
pit) with Netherton Mine, Blairmuckhill and Woodend
fairly adjacent. We had three quarries, Westcraigs, Blairhill
and (shortlived) Ogilface.
Westrigg pit was the flagship of the United Collieries with its washery,
workshops, stables, blacksmith shop, rent office (for non mining tenants),
coke ovens. It also produced the electricity for most of their houses.
Known locally as the sprays many a young lad took his first illicit dip in
its waters.
Indeed when one is young one tends to ignore the bad things and remember
the more pleasant time....."
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"School
in the Community
Over the last year a number of local adults
have been involved in activities at Armadale Academy. At present the
daytime involvement of adults within the school has been confined mainly
to the Craft, Design and Technology Department, where around 18 - 20 men
are actively involved 2 afternoons per week on Tuesday and Thursday
afternoons.
Projects being undertaken range from making
wooden toys, furniture to wrought iron gates and planters, instruction on
basic woodworking and metalworking skills are available and credit should
go to the staff at Armadale Academy who have supported adult
involvement......" |
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