Polmont North Parish Church

1844 to 1969

Polmont in the 1840's
The official census conducted from 8 to 10 June, 1841 (chief enumerator Mr Girdwood) showed that the population of the parish had grown from the 3,107 counted by the Kirk Session in 1835, to 3,584; and that the mix of occupational types had remained largely the same. The statistics are, in summary, that in what was termed "Polmont", i.e. north of the Linlithgow Turnpike / Main Street, there were 572 people (307 male, 265 female); in "Bennetston", i.e. south of Main Street, 808 (492 male, 316 female); in Redding, 748 (419 & 329); Reddingmuirhead, Newlands and Westquarter, 504 (240 & 264); and in the remainder - Shieldhill, Wallacestone, Brightons, Rumford, Whitesideloan, Roughhaugh, the Divoties and Polmont Square, 952 (500 & 452).

Broadly speaking, the Parish was a network of farms with their cottages; big houses, with their grounds or estates; garden cottages, mainly for skilled workers; miners' rows; poorer cottages for labourers; and "divoties", made of turf and wood, for the poorest of the miners, labourers and their families. In the Church of Scotland's "New Statistical Account", composed by Mr Ker in March, 1839, revised 1841, he chose the following features as representative of the Parish of Polmont:

The principal Heritors were Sir Thomas Livingstone, Bart., of Westquarter, Wm. Logan, of Clarkstone, Thos. Walker of Polmontbank, James Milne of Haypark, Wm. Johnstone of Meadowbank; and also those of Polmont Park, Parkhill, Polmont House, Millfield (all of which had recently changed hands, or were about to), and of Whyteside, Kersiebank, Gilston, Weedingshall and Blairlodge (the Earl of Zetland not mentioned).

Labourers' wages were 1s 8d to 2s (8.3p to 10p) per day (i. e. 3 to 4 times their level in 1757); and for farm servants, £7 to £10 per half year, plus bed and board.

The state of the land was "very good, much tile drainage having been carried out".
There were now two brickworks in the parish (unidentified).
The nearest Post Office was in Falkirk (the Penny Post was introduced in 1840).
There were 39 paupers, among whom the sum of £84.70, provided by the Heritors, was divided annually - 15 to 25p each, per month.
The church's freewill offerings totalled £84.68 in 183 8 (around £20,000 in 1995 terms).

The Parish contained 3 inns at Bennetston and 1 at Polmont Kirk, plus "a large number of taverns or public houses". (Note: an "inn" was a good-quality hostelry with sleeping accommodation; the "taverns" were in many cases run by widow-women, whose possibly only source of income was from the sale of spirits from their houses).

The teacher of the Parish school (other schools not reported) received the "maximum" salary of £34 - 4s - 41/2d (£34.22); there were 140 pupils, and the teacher had to pay his assistant out of his own salary.

These are all informative comments about the kind of community Polmont Parish was around 1840 - at least, through the eyes of the minister - and readers may find it of value to add to the picture by noting the information provided by 1841 census itself This is given below, but it is thought that some further guidance would be helpful to assist its interpretation:

Addresses were not nearly so precise as we know them to-day. Streets were not named and houses not numbered, so the nearest we get to specification is the title of the neighbourhood, e.g. "Polmont Kirk";

Ages given to individuals were approximate to within, say, 5 years. Thus Miss Helen Speirs of Polmont Park gave, or was given, her age as 65 in 1841, but as 84 in 1851; and her sister Isabella, 60 in 1841, as 78 in 1851.

In order to show changes and movements in the population, we have provided information from the 1851 census also, where relevant. Detailed observations on the 1841 census for Polmont Parish are as follows.

At Polmont Kirk - Thomas Girdwood, Schoolmaster, age 70; in 1851 he was still in the schoolhouse, retired, with his wife Margaret, 20 years his junior, his sister-in-law and one boarder / school pupil.

Also Miss Margaret Kincaid - of whom much more will be heard later - aged 50 (but 55 in 1851). Her cousin Mary Walker, 35; plus schoolteacher John Russell, Mr Girdwood's assistant and would be successor for a couple of years - aged 25, his wife Jane and two daughters, aged 3 and 1.

At Clarkston Wm. Logan, Esq., 81, "of Independent Means", his two sons - an advocate and a Writer to the Signet respectively - Mr Abel Gower, "Merchant, London"; and the Rev. John Ker, 40, his wife Margaret, 40. Mr Logan died the day after the 1841 census was taken (see next entry).

At The Manse (now Kinneil House) the only person reported was female servant Janet Law, 45; we know from other sources that extensive work was being done to the Manse at this time.

At Polmontbank Dr Thomas Walker, 55, "Independent Means", his wife Charlotte Augusta, 30, 2 daughters and 2 sons, from 11 years to 3 months; plus 5 female servants ( much more is related about Dr Walker in our "Post Script"). By 1851 Polmontbank was the residence of Miss Mary McAlpine, 61, "Gentlewoman", from Tulliallan, her sister Margaret, 60, three cousins and three servants.

Polmont Park: Miss Mary Speirs, 70 "Independent Means", from Elderslie, Renfrewshire; her sisters Helen, 65, and Isabella, 60, niece Miss Iona Murray, 25, and 8 servants. The Misses Speirs were the daughters of none other than the fabulously wealthy Alexander Speirs of Elderslie, one of the four greatest Tobacco Lords of Glasgow. By 1851 the eldest sister Mary had passed on, but her two juniors and niece had been joined, perhaps temporarily, by their cousin, James Buchanan, of Glasgow, and his wife, Lady (?) Buchanan, of Thurso Castle, Caithness. Still 8 servants, but their distinguished gardener of 1841 David How, and his wife Catherine and son David, 10 months, had apparently departed. Polmont Park was a fine classical, almost Palladian, mansion-house.

Polmont House was temporarily occupied by Mr John Walker, 70, Railway contractor. Mr Walker had won the tender to construct the Polmont section of the Edinburgh & Glasgow Railway. He would shortly move to Parkhill and stay there until the contract was complete. By 1851 Polmont House was occupied by bachelor James Smith, 61, ship owner, of Polmont, his nieces Margaret & Jean Kincaid, 33 and 28, and two servants. Mr Smith died in 1853.

Millfield: residents were a Mrs Borthwick, 50, a local lady of "Independent means", and her five spinster daughters, from 20 to 11. In 1851 the owner was Mr James Miller, 45, Civil Engineer to the Edinburgh& Glasgow Railway Company. Mr Miller, from Ayr, had no political aspirations, as will be seen, and his household comprised his wife Isabella, two children, two temporary visitors, a governess, a secretary, a butler, a footman, and six other servants.

In Bennetston, William Thorburn, 45, the stonemason who built the new church of Polmont, his wife Marion, 35, and daughter Agnes, 20. From the 1851 census we learn that Mr Thorburn came from Kirkconnel, Dumfries-shire; that his house was actually in Front Row, and that he employed 10 masons, 2 apprentices and 3 labourers. Clearly a man of great natural capability.

Fraser Robertson, 25, "Criminal Officer", who must have a claim to be Polmont's first policeman; his wife Alison, 20, and daughter Elizabeth, 1. John McLaren, 42, whom we know to be proprietor of the Black Bull Inn at the time; his wife, and six children.

At Polmont Cottage, i.e. on the corner of what is now Grandsable Cemetery, next door to Sable Cottage and the former site of the Salmon Inn: Mr Alexander Graham, Surgeon, and his wife Ann, both 40, three girls and a boy, all of Polmont. Although not clear from the 1841 account, in 1851 Sable Cottage was the home of John Austin, 27, Colliery Manager presumably at Redding, from Fettercairn, Kincardineshire, his sister, brother, and a servant. (By 1851 Polmont Cottage's occupants were widower Wm. Shaw, a G.P. from Crieff, his sister, 3 children and a servant).

Parkhill House was temporarily unoccupied, but in the servants' quarters was Daniel McIntosh, the house's skilful and successful gardener (who had succeeded the equally skilled John Ingram); Mr McIntosh, who would not have enjoyed the title "Mr." in 1841, being "only" a gardener, lived at Parkhill with his wife Agnes, 20, and baby son. By 1851, Parkhill was owned by Mr John P. Henderson, 46, reportedly from England, his wife Elizabeth, 44, 3 daughters and 2 sons. Mr Henderson evidently had the means appropriate to living at Parkhill, as the household also contained a governess and 5 servants as well as the two lodge-keepers and their families.

At Haypark, Mr James Milne, 73. His occupation is given as "Merchant Seaman", but we can take this as meaning that he was a seafaring merchant. Other residents were his wife Mary, 60, son Andrew, 25, and five daughters - Jane, Janet, Ann, Helen and Mary. The last - named's age is given as 13, and four elder sisters are all stated to be 20! Mr Milne senior was dead by 1851, and Mrs Milne, from Bo'ness, is described as an "Annuitant" and son Andrew as "Justice of the Peace and Proprietor". By this date, four daughters remain, aged from 28 down to 20.

At Whyteside Cottage there was no longer any sign of the Bennets, the residents being Mr John Glassford Hopkirk, Writer to the Signet, 50, and Miss Susan Hopkirk, 20. By 1851 the house had changed hands again, this time to Mr Wm. Clark, 32, "Advocate in Practice", from Edinburgh, his wife Georgina, age 19, and her sister, Charlotte Dalziel, 22.

We know from one of the fine stained-glass windows in our church that Gilston Cottage was before 1841 the home of the Scott family; by 1841 the family there were the Oswalds: Mr James Oswald, who also farmed the land at Millhall, 50, wife Margaret, 30(?), son James, 20, and daughter Margaret, age 15. They had two female and four male farm-s servants. By 1851 Mr Oswald senior was dead, and James Oswald was described as "a farmer of 115 acres, employing 4 labourers".

Blairlodge House, Newlands, was not occupied at the time of the census (from 1843 on, it was a school, established by the Rev. Robert Cunningham and eventually to become H.M. Institution, Brightons); nor was Sir Thomas Livingstone in residence at Westquarter house. It is not known where he in fact was, but by 1851 he was back in situ, aged 81 with his five servants, his occupation given as "Admiral, RN, half-pay, J.P.", and born in Torphichen. At any rate, in 1841 the only occupants were listed as Robert Cleland, gardener, and his five children.

The 1841 census returns were less precise than those of 1851, and some of the better-known properties and their occupants cannot be identified with certainty. It is quite possible that many of the residents named in 1851 were there also in the 1840's. A few of them are therefore given below
At Nether Polmont
John Paton, 30, Schoolmaster (Mr Girdwood's successor), born in Arbroath; wife Helen, 25, from Polmont, son David, 6 months, and sister-in-law, plus lodger Christian Nielson, Seaman, from Norway. - George Robb, 35, from Dalmeny, gardener, gravedigger and beadle; wife Jean, father-in-law George Betts ( previous beadle ) aged 85, and eight children.

Also the Misses Kincaid-"Proprietor of Land and Houses" - and Walker.
At North Park, John Clarke, Landed Proprietor, unmarried, aged 68, from Falkirk, plus two servants.
At Polmont Nook, Jessie Gilchrist, a 46-year-old widow and annuitant, from Tranent, her son William and one servant.
At Little Kerse, Elizabeth Hardie, 65, Farmer of 65 acres, 2 daughters of 38 and 28, and son of 36, plus three labourers.
At Kersiebank House ( Inchyra ), Henry Ball, 54, Landed Proprietor from Ireland, wife, daughters (2), brother-in-law and three servants.
At Reddoch, James Thomson, 57, Retired Farmer, wife Agnes, 55, and 3 daughters; and also Lillias Clarke, "Retired Farmer's Widow" and her 3 daughters.
At Avon Bridge Toll, Thomas Kincaid, 60, Tollkeeper.
At Polmont Railway Station ( opened 1842 ), Joseph Paul, 55, from Greenock, Railway Agent, his wife and four children.

It should be added that, although at non-specific addresses, there were in the 1840's great numbers of occupational types in the Parish: railway officers, overseers, rail-layers and labourers, blacksmiths, mechanics, masons, wrights (joiners), bakers, saddlers, fleshers (butchers), shoemakers, tailors, miners, quarrymen, canal boatmen, painters, glaziers, slaters, some tambour-workers; and paupers. These working folk were concentrated at Bennetston, Redding, Shieldhill and Wallacestone. In the summer months there were also big numbers of Irish labourers on the farms (for example, over 2 dozen at Northfoot in June, 1841).

As will have been noticed, Polmont in the 1840's was, therefore, a rich mixture of all kinds of people. They were overwhelmingly working folk, about whom individual information is unfortunately sparse; the owners of the big houses, however, were typically men who had made their fortunes in various enterprises or professions elsewhere, and who had retired to Polmont to live the genteel, comfortable life of the landed gentry (or had made it possible for their widows and children to do so). As far as one can tell, these retired men did not in general originate in Polmont (excepting Dr. Walker of Polmontbank and Sir Thos. Livingstone of Westquarter) but rather from many other parts of the kingdom; and they evidently saw Polmont as a very desirable place in which to live and, after the coming of the railway, well-situated for matters of business and pleasure too.

Gardening
Mention was made earlier of the increasing interest of local residents in the pastime of gardening. This was meant as an indication of the growing affluence and leisure-time of ordinary folk, but it must be understood that as well as these keen amateurs there must have been active interest on the part of the big house owners, for they virtually all had full-time professional gardeners who achieved some startling results.

The growth of horticulture is evidenced by the formation of Polmont Horticultural Society in 1843 (before which date many local men had been active in the Falkirk Society). The prowess, and hard work, of Polmont gardeners, and the rare results they received, are amply illustrated by the following newspaper reports of the 1840's, which also reveal some interesting career moves among the big estates:
2 June, 1843, - Falkirk Horticultural Society Show, held at The Red Lion Inn - 1st Prize for Violets - David How, Polmont Park (and also for pelargoniums, calceolarias, China roses and cucumbers); 1st prize for Pears - Daniel McIntosh (also 2nd Prize for Grapes, and 1st for Turnips).

22 September, 1843 - also Falkirk H. S. - chief prizewinners were Daniel McIntosh, "gardener to Mrs Warden of Parkhill", followed by David How, Polmont Park. (It is worth noting that at the F.H. S. show in 1838, chief prizewinners were John Ingram of Parkhill, and Daniel McIntosh - at that time of Polmont Park).

On 26 September, 1845 the "Grand Horticultural Show at Polmont", held in the greatly-crowded parish schoolroom, was reported. President Dr. Thomas Walker of Polmontbank regretted the poor weather for the year, but warmly congratulated the Prizewinners. Chief among them, on the Professional Gardeners' list, were, for example, Best Melon - Wm. Booth, of Meadowbank; Best Bunch of Grapes - David How, Polmont Park; Best Six Peaches - James Don, of Hay Park. On the Cottagers' list, Wm. Thorburn dominated (Best 6 Apples, 6 Dahlias, 6 Pansies, 6 Marigolds, Best Curled Parsley ), although honourable mention was given to John McLaren, of The Black Bull Inn.

On Friday, 4 September, 1846, again in the grossly over-crowded schoolhouse of Polmont, one of the judges was John Ingram (formally of Parkhill), now gardener at Middleton Hall, Wooler. Prizewinners noted were Daniel McIntosh and David How, plus George Veitch, of Parkhall(?), James Don, Haypark; Alex McFarlane ( Whyteside ), George Knox ( Avondale) and James Wilson (Millfield).

The most zealous of the professional gardeners even tested their skills far afield. On Tuesday, 8 June, 1847, the following results were achieved at the annual show in Glasgow of the Scottish Pansy Society (one wonders whether it exists under the same name to-day?): Best 18 blooms - 4th place, D. McIntosh, Parkhill; Best 12 blooms - 4th place James Don, Hay Park, 6th place, Jas. Wilson, Millfield; best 6 blooms - 1st James Don, 2nd D. McIntosh.

The Railway
We have already noted that the railway brought many jobs and people to Polmont, and also brought the Parish into the new, national system of transport and communications:

"Edinburgh & Glasgow Railway"
On Saturday, 26 June, (1841) the great body of workmen employed on the Polmont section of this great national undertaking presented their venerated master, Mr Walker, with a valuable silver snuffbox and a handsome mounted staff. His son also received an elegant silver box.... The scene of this days' doings was a spacious field at Meadowbank, and upwards of 700 men were present, also local gentlemen and some directors of the Company. The inscription on the snuffbox read 'To John Walker, Esq., of Dunkeld, contractor to the Edinburgh & Glasgow Railway Company, as a token of esteem to his worth as a man and his liberal conduct as a master.... June, 1841'. The presentation was made by Mr James McLaren, of Perth, and his speech was greeted with much applause. Drink ad libitum followed, but we are pleased to report that peace and sobriety prevailed, and that a merry dance on the green to the strains of bagpipes terminated the day.

There are many points of interest in this brief newspaper report of the time, but one important conclusion to be drawn is that the Polmont section of the railway appears to have been completed on time, thanks almost certainly to the professionalism of Mr Walker, who, we will recall, took up residence at Polmont House, then Parkhill while involved in the contract.

The Edinburgh & Glasgow Railway was formally opened on 18 February, 1842, amidst a great deal of pomp and ceremony and involving all the directors of the company and the elected dignitaries of both cities. The locomotives of the day were clearly not yet properly developed, for the first part of the journey, out of Queen Street Station, Glasgow, required the whole train to be cranked up the long incline as far as Cowlairs! And although the railway would undoubtedly revolutionize transport, trade and the lives of ordinary people in due course, its beginnings cannot have had an immediate impact on the working population at large: the single 3rd-class fare from Polmont to Glasgow was 2s 3d - roughly equivalent to a 1995 cost of at least £22.50 (1st-class fare was exactly double); and the fare to Edinburgh was 2s (£20). Nevertheless, the effect of the railway on those who could afford it must have been enormous. In 1848, rail travel from Glasgow to London was advertised, the journey via Edinburgh stated as taking 18 hours: this is a long time by to-day's standards, but a tremendous reduction in the several days that it formerly took by road.

And so Polmont was now linked by fast, regular transport links to both Glasgow and Edinburgh. It was not long before the Parish was integrated into the rail system that has endured to the present day, for on 7 November, 1845, notice was advertised of the application by the Stirlingshire Midland Junction Railway to Parliament for the construction of a link from Polmont to Larbert, creating a direct line from Edinburgh to Stirling. This link was opened in 1847.

We have looked in a little bit of detail at two particular aspects of Polmont in the 1840's, and a further insight will be gained in the next section when we consider the whole process of building the new Parish Kirk. However, research into the newspapers and some other documents of the times has unearthed another few indications of life 150 years ago:
"Friday, 26 February, 1847 - "Grand Ploughing Competition, held at Millhall, occupied by Mr James Oswald, of Gilston." 32 ploughs competed, and local pride was upheld by John Bowie, of Parkhall (Parkhill), who gained third place. 6 September, 1840 - "The Reverend John Ker, Minister at Polmont, was assaulted by three scoundrels for money. The Felons were quickly caught and jailed.

6 April, 1843 - "Polmont - Mark of Respect. On Friday last, 31st ult., a number of friends of Mr Binning, Saddler, entertained him to a public dinner, as a mark of their respect for him. Dr Graham, Polmont, ably discharged the duties of chairman. Amongst the company were Dr Webster, Bo'ness, Mr McNaughton, contractor, Mr Paul, clothier, Glasgow, and Mr Graham, painter, Edinburgh. The company enjoyed some eloquent speeches and fine singing. Mr Binning is about to commence business in Stirling, whither he goes at the term. The dinner, which was excellent, took place in Mr John McLaren's Black Bull Inn."

28 December, 1843 - "Mrs. Ann Johnston or Graham, residing at Grandsable, Parish of Polmont, relict of Alexander Graham, Surgeon, Polmont Cottage, is declared executrix dative qua relict to her said husband."

1843, December 7 - "Dr. Boag, of Polmont Cottage, attended John Jamieson, miner at one of the Duke of Hamilton's pits at Redding. The man's injury was very severe, resulting from a fall of part of the underground roof, weighing approximately one ton. Sadly this is but one of the innumerable accidents occurring in the coal-pits."

22 February, 1844 - "Poor's Coal: this season, as usual, the poor of Polmont and Laurieston have received nearly 100 carts of coal, arising from annual donations from the Earl of Zetland, Sir Thomas Livingstone, Wm. Forbes, Esq., M.P., Miss Buchanan and Miss Walker."