Ardrossan - On This Day In History

[George Ardrossan]

17 JUNE

EXPLOSIVES FACTORY ACCIDENT
Three Men Killed and Two Injured at Ardeer
FIVE HUTS BLOWN UP
Noise Heard Twenty Five Miles Away - Men's Escape in Thirty Feet Deep Pit
Three workmen were killed and two seriously injured when a series of explosions occurred yesterday at Nobel's Explosives Factory, Ardeer, Ayrshire. The men were working in the corning house of the black powder section of the works where blasting powder is prepared for quarrying purposes. Five huts were blown up, while the sound of the explosions was heard a distance of twenty-five miles from the scene of the accident. Up till a late hour last night, the bodies of the victims had not been recovered. Apparently, there were a series of four explosions and workmen in the vicinity who attempted to run after the first explosion, after having been thrown to the ground, were again thrown to the ground and had to crawl to places of safety. Seven men employed in a thirty feet deep pit at the Garnock sewage scheme, over a mile from Ardeer Works, had a narrow escape when the sides of the pit caved in following the explosion. The ground surrounding the excavation reverberated as a result of the concussion and the sand at the sides started pouring into the cavity. Ordered out of the trench, the workmen just reached the surface when the sides collapsed. The following are names the workmen who were killed: George McCulley, fitter, 49 Sydney Street, Saltcoats
James Rainey, 30, process man, 3 Canal Street, Saltcoats and
Robert Niblock, process man, 3 School Road, Kilwinning.
The injured, who were taken by ambulance to the Western Infirmary, Glasgow, are:
James McNay, 32, 17 Hill Street. Ardrossan –condition serious – and
James Paterson, 33, 6 Station Square, Stevenston - severe burning injuries.
It is understood that Niblock, one of the men killed, was to have been married this month. James Rainey was a prominent junior footballer in the West of Scotland and leaves a wife and two young children. His uncle was killed in an explosion at Ardeer in 1914. MGulley, the other victim, was unmarried and had been employed at Ardeer for about two years. Two hours after the accident, the following official statement was posted at the gates of the factory. “It is regretted that an accident occurred in the black powder section of the Ardeer Factory shortly before 11 o'clock today. Unfortunately, three workers were killed and two were seriously injured. The cause of the accident is being investigated.” A later statement issued by Imperial Chemical Industries said “The men were working in the corning house of the black powder section when the explosion occurred. It is in the corning house that blasting powder is prepared for quarrying purposes”. Five out of six huts were involved in a series of four explosions, flames leaping from one building to another. The rumble of the explosion was heard over a twenty-five mile radius and people from the surrounding districts hurried to the factory to ascertain the reason for the thunderous noise. A workman, who was within fifty yards of the hut where the first explosion happened, started to run to safety but was thrown to the ground by the concussion. He rose again and attempted to run but the earth trembled so violently that he was again thrown to the .ground. The man finally buried himself in the sand while fragments of timber, mortar and corrugated iron flew around him. Several other workmen had similar experiences but were able to crawl to places of safety, some seeking refuge in emergency tunnels. Immediately following the accident, officials sent for medic assistance to Stevenston and in a short time, doctors arrived at the factory. At the request of the company, the LMS Railway Company was asked to stand by with an ambulance train in readiness to transport the injured to Glasgow but this was later cancelled and the injured were taken by the company's ambulance waggon to the Western Infirmary, Glasgow. Before being conveyed to the city their injuries were dressed in the works hospital. A roll-call of all the employees was made following the explosion and work was suspended for the day. Residents and holidaymakers from the districts surrounding the factory hurried to the work gates after hearing the first blast. Those who were in the streets of Stevenston saw huge clouds of black smoke and flames issuing from the affected buildings. A curious feature of the explosion was that, contrary to the experience of previous accidents, no windows in nearby houses were shattered. People on the island of Arran, alarmed by the noise, telephoned to the mainland to inquire the reason for the disturbance. “The first indication of the accident" stated a Stevenston resident to a representative of The Scotsman, "came when I heard four distinct and loud explosions. They are using a new explosive called black powder which is a highly dangerous material. Owing to the nature of the explosion, I was surprised that not more people had been involved. The first report was a warning to the other workers to scatter out of their huts to places of safety. Rumours were current in the town at first that the death-roll was much higher than that officially announced. A Kilwinning woman characterised the explosion as one of the fiercest she had heard during her residence in that town. "There were four explosions, three of which shook the pictures on the walls. I thought my house was going to be blown about my ears. The earth trembled and I was absolutely terrifıed”. At Irvine, which, as the crow flies, is only a short distance away, the inhabitants were scared by the repeated explosions which shook the town. In some houses and shops, articles were displaced on shelves and counters but no material damage was reported. Large crowds of workers and others on the outskirts of the town had an uninterrupted view of the explosions which they described as being accompanied by flames and dense smoke.
The Scotsman, 17 June 1937

SCOTLAND TO IRELAND - OPENING OF DAYLIGHT SERVICE - AN IDEAL PLEASURE CRUISE
Now that the holiday season is with us again, the travelling facilities between Scotland and Ireland will no doubt be well taken advantage of and in this respect it may be assumed that. the daylight service provided daily by the Burns and Laird Lines Limited from Ardrossan to Belfast will prove as popular as ever. The call of Ireland as a holiday centre is meeting with more and more response every year and its beauty of scenery, together with modern facilities for transport, sight-seeing and recreation, combine to make the Emerald Isle an ideal pleasure ground. There is no better start to a holiday there than by a sail from Ardrossan, offering, as it does, the opportunity of fully enjoying the beautiful panorama of the Clyde estuary as well as of the shores of Belfast Lough and that this short journey - just under four hours from port to port - is being more and more appreciated by holiday-makers is evident from the fact that the Burns and Laird Lines are increasing their passenger traffic every season. The daylight service was inaugurated on Monday of this week, a date which coincides with the opening sailing services last year of the new vessels Royal Scotsman and Royal Ulsterman from Glasgow and Belfast, respectively, every night. The speedy daily service from Ardrossan and back is again being undertaken by the Lairds Isle, which is already well known to travellers, and the manner in which she made the opening double run, together with her amenities and comforts for passengers, gives the assurance that holidaymakers are again- to be well catered for throughout the season. Every week until 11 September she will perform the round trip and even with the hour's run by train from Glasgow to Ardrossan, those bound for a holiday in Northern Ireland will not find the occasion exhausting and can rely on reaching their destination on the same day. For others again, at a loose end for a day, the sail to Belfast and back, with fully two hours in that city, is one of the most attractive and pleasure-giving means of spending that day. Besides her daily service, the Lairds Isle will, as usual, make a series of Sunday cruises from Ardrossan and Ayr to Larne et cetera during the summer season, the first of which takes place next Sunday. A party of guests of the Company, including a representative of The Scotsman, travelled to Belfast from the Broomielaw on Monday night by the Royal Scotsman and after a delightful motor tour through the Glens of Antrim and back to Belfast by the coast road, joined the Lairds Isle on Tuesday afternoon for her second homeward run of the season. They were accompanied by Mr J M Robertson, passenger manager and Mr D J Hepburn. London.
The Scotsman, 17 June 1937

PETERHEAD POSTMASTER FOR ROTHESAY
Mr R J Sim, Justice of the Peace, Head Postmaster, Peterhead, has been appointed Head Postmaster at Rothesay in succession to Mr A Pow, who has been appointed to Ardrossan. The Sim family has a remarkable record of Post Office service dating back to the reign of George IV.
The Scotsman, 17 June 1942

George

[Penny Tray]

GLASGOW HERALD
18 JUNE 1884

SCOTCH BANKRUPT
SEQUESTRATION

JAMES BICKETT, formerly residing at 2 St. Kilda Cottage, Ardrossan Road, Saltcoats, now at Bush Glen, near West Kilbride.

Creditors to meet in the George Hotel, Kilmarnock, 26th June, at one o’clock – William S. N. Patrick, solicitor, Main Street, Dalry, agent.

[Penny Tray]

GLASGOW HERALD
18 JUNE 1884

ARDROSSAN – NEW PARISH CHURCH

A meeting of the male heads of families connected with this congregation was held in the church on Monday evening last, for the purpose of electing a trustee in room of the late Provost Barr. Mr A. D. Bryce Douglas presided.

On the motion of Mr Thomas Kirkhope, write, seconded by Mr H. L. Barr, baker, Mr A. G. Macdonald, South Crescent, was unanimously appointed to the vacancy.

In the course of the evening the chairman referred to the extensive repairs which the church had recently undergone, and indicated that further improvements were in contemplation.

[George Ardrossan]

18 JUNE

IDENTITY DISC FRAUD
On pleading guilty at Kilmarnock Sheriff Court yesterday to charges of having defrauded nineteen persons in Saltcoats and Ardrossan of sums amounting to £1 19s 6d and attempting to defraud three persons in Ardrossan of sums amounting to 6s 6d, a woman of Crawford Street, Largs was sentenced to twenty-one days imprisonment. The Fiscal said she pretended that she had been authorised to sell identity discs on behalf of the Government and that possession of such a disc was now compulsory and had taken the place of identity cards.
The Scotsman, 18 June 1940

George

[Penny Tray]

GLASGOW HERALD
19 JUNE 1891

BOWLING
BELFAST v. ARDROSSAN

The annual bowling match between these two clubs was played on the ground of the former on Wednesday evening.

Following is the result: - Belfast, 97; Ardrossan, 78.

[Penny Tray]

GLASGOW HERALD
19 JUNE 1888

ARDROSSAN – A CROP OF ACCIDENTS

Yesterday afternoon no fewer than four accidents occurred in the neighbourhood of the new dock – one man was hurt by a fall of stone, another was knocked down by a truck and run over, while a third was damaged by a fall, and a fourth in Messrs Goodwin’s foundry by the sheer legs.

At eight o’clock last night as a workman named Brown was employed loading a steamer with pig iron a bar caught hold of his apron and threw him into the hold, severely injuring his head.

Doctor McDonald has been in attendance on the wounded men continuously since mid-day.

[Penny Tray]

GLASGOW HERALD
20 JUNE 1910

ARDROSSAN – WEATHER

The weather continues to be superb, although since yesterday afternoon the sun seldom shone brightly through the haze. There has been practically no wind for several days, and the firth is smooth.

The barometer stands at 30:15 and is steady.

[Penny Tray]

GLASGOW HERALD
20 JUNE 1881

DEATH

RUSSELL: At Castle Craigs, Ardrossan, on the 18th instant, aged 80 years, JANET CURDIE, relict of Archibald Russell.

[George Ardrossan]

20 JUNE

SCHOOLBOYS’ ATHLETIC FEATS
HIGH JUMPER WHO SHOULD WIN SCOTTISH TITLE THIS WEEK – ABERDEEN LAD’S FAST SPRINT
“There is not much wrong with the boys of today when they can go year after year setting up such records” said Mr A Martin, President of the Scottish Schools Athletic Association at the conclusion of the inter-scholastic sports at Goldenacre, Edinburgh, on Saturday (18 June 1938) when four records were established. Some outstanding performances were expected but at least two of the new records were truly remarkable. W Stevenson, a fifteen-year-old Aberdeen lad doing the 100 yards in 10.2 seconds and W Murray, Ardrossan Academy, clearing the bar at 5 feet 10 inches in the high jump. Murray’s performance was really amazing and it must be anticipated now that he will win a Scottish championship for which he is entered at Hampden Park on Saturday (25 June 1938). His record jump, which was accomplished with comparative ease, is the same height as won the S A A A (presumably Scottish Amateur Athletics Association) title last year for P L Tancred, a Queenslander who is two inches ahead of all others and is not entered this year. In this seventeen-year-old Ardrossan lad, it would seem that Scotland has at last a potential expert in this highly specialised event. His performances at Goldenacre had to be seen in order that their true merit could be realised.
The Scotsman, 20 June 1938

ARDROSSAN AND SALTCOATS GOLF COMPETITION
About a hundred competitors played over the Ardrossan and Saltcoats course on Saturday (18 June 1938) in the annual contest for the Kemp Trophy. The results were:
Kemp Trophy – G Bryce, Ardeer (9), 63
Scratch Prize – J Lamont, Ardrossan and Saltcoats, 72
Other scores were:
J Somerville, Ardeer, (12), 67; J R Rae, Ardrossan and Saltcoats, (7), 69; J Templeton, Ardrossan and Saltcoats (12), 69; K Wilson, Ardrossan and Saltcoats, (11), 70; G Bradie, Ardrossan and Saltcoats, (10), 70; J Lamont, Ardrossan and Saltcoats, (2), 70; J Walker, Portland Glass, (12), 71; M Robertson, Irvine Ravenspark, (8), 71; D Fulton, Irvine Ravenspark, (7), 71; E Randall, Ardeer, (5), 71; R McGillivray, Ardrossan and Saltcoats, (2), 71; R Shearer, Ardrossan and Saltcoats, (12), 72; J A Goodwin, Ardrossan and Saltcoats, (12), 72; J Govan, Irvine Ravenspark, (4), 72; J Cowan, Ardrossan and Saltcoats, (5), 72; W Woodside, Irvine Ravenspark, (7), 72.
The Scotsman, 20 June 1938

George

[Penny Tray]

GLASGOW HERALD
21 JUNE 1852

NEW VESSEL FOR SALE

Now building, at Ardrossan, by Messrs Barr & Shearer, approaching completion, and could be very shortly got ready for sea, to be classed A 1 at Lloyd’s for 10 years, and barque-rigged, of the following dimensions:-

Length of keel and fore-rake, 114 feet; breadth of beam, 25 feet 2 inches; depth of hold, 16 feet 8 inches. To measure 350 tons o.m. and 385 tons n.m.

For further particulars apply to PATRICK HENDERSON & Company, 4 Bothwell Street, Glasgow.

[George Ardrossan]

21 JUNE

FUNERAL OF ARDEER VICTIMS
The three workmen who lost their lives in the explosion which occurred at Nobel's Explosives Factory, Ardeer, were buried on Saturday (19 June 1937). Large crowds watched the funerals, and the mourners included representatives of the employers, the Army, the Freemasons, and the sporting clubs and other organisations with which one or other of the men was associated. The bodies of the two Saltcoats men - George McCulley and James Rainey - were conveyed from their homes to Ardrossan Cemetery, while that of the third victim, Robert Niblock, was interred in Kilwinning Cemetery. The two men who were injured in the explosion - James Paterson and James McNay - are making favourable progress in the Western Infirmary, Glasgow.
The Scotsman, 21 June 1937

NORTH AYRSHIRE TROPHY WINNER
The annual competition for the Kemp Jubilee Trophy was played over Ardrossan and Saltcoats course on Saturday (19 June 1937). The competition is open to members of North Ayrshire clubs with a handicap of twelve or under. There was an entry of eighty-nine. The results were:
Trophy and first prize - J D McIntosh, Ardrossan and Saltcoats (7), 66
Scratch prize – H McInally, Ardeer, (2), 68
Second prize was tied between J Merrie, Ardrossan and Saltcoats, (7), 69 and
H M Marshall, Irvine Ravenspark, (3), 69
Other scores were
J Cowan, Ardrossan and Saltcoats (5), 70
G C Brodie, Ardrossan and Saltcoats, (8), 70
T Hamilton, Ardeer, (10), 70
D Kerr, Ardrossan and Saltcoats, (10), 70
J Gilmour, Ardeer, (12), 70
W W Gemmell, West Kilbride, (1), 71
G Kerr, West Kilbride, (3), 71
G Barclay, Ardrossan and Saltcoats, (5), 71
W Fotheringham, West Kilbride, (11), 71
T H Norwood, Ardeer, (11), 71
R McGregor, Largs, (12), 71
J Goodwin, Ardrossan and Saltcoats, (12), 71
J McCubbin, Ardrossan and Saltcoats, (7), 71
R Maxwell, Ardrossan and Saltcoats, (7), 71
J M Nairn, West Kilbride, (scratch), 72
W Haswell, Irvine Ravenspark, ((scratch), 72
A Gray, Ardrossan and Saltcoats (4), 72
A Donnachie, Ardeer, (3), 72
W Murray, Irvine Ravenspark, (9), 72
J Marshall , Irvine Ravenspark (7), 72
The Scotsman, 21 June1937

George

[Penny Tray]

GLASGOW HERALD
21 JUNE 1888

ARDROSSAN EVANGELISTIC ASSOCIATION

The annual meeting of this association was held in the Good Templars’ Hall, Glasgow Street, on Tuesday night, and it drew together a large company of Christian friends.

Mr Andrew Brown, draper, presided, and at the close of the social meeting delivered an admirable address, replete with hints.

The treasurer’s report showed that the balance was on the right side, after setting aside a sum for missionary purposes.

Feeling allusion was made by Mr Boyd to the deaths of Mr Kennedy, missionary, Saltcoats, and Mr Steel, of Biggar.