Saltcoats - On This Day In History

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GLASGOW HERALD
16 JUNE 1886

THE GENERAL ELECTION – NORTH AYRSHIRE

A meeting of the local committees of Saltcoats, Ardrossan, and Stevenston Conservative Association was held in the Saracen’s Head Inn Hall, Saltcoats, on Monday night.

There was a good attendance, and Captain Boyle presided.

The following resolution was passed:-

“That this meeting agree to the resolution passed in London that Unionist Liberals be cordially supported as against any Gladstonian Home Ruler who may be opposed to them.”

And,

“That each local committee at the approaching election work for the return of Mr. Elliot as a Unionist candidate.”

The resolutions were carried almost unanimously.

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GLASGOW HERALD
17 JUNE 1890

DEATH

GRIMWOOD: At Raise Street, Saltcoats, on the 15th instant, aged 83, Janet Watt, widow of John Grimwood.

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GLASGOW HERALD
17 JUNE 1895

MARRIAGE

At Craigspark, Saltcoats, on the 14th instant, by the Rev. W. Rossie Brown, minister of the parish, John Crawford, junior, Knockewart, Ardrossan, to Annie, third daughter of John Millar, Craigspark, Saltcoats.

[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

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GLASGOW HERALD
18 JUNE 1894

BOWLING
SALTCOATS v. ARDROSSAN

The annual match between these clubs resulted in a win for Ardrossan by 19 shots.

Result – Ardrossan, 119; Saltcoats, 100.

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GLASGOW HERALD
18 JUNE 1890

BIRTH

SMITH: At 2 Hamilton Terrace, Partick, on the 16th instant, Mrs. John Smith, junior, of 5 Montgomerie Crescent, Saltcoats.

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GLASGOW HERALD
18 JUNE 1892

DEATH

MILLER: At Manse Street, Saltcoats, on the 16th instant, aged 61 years, Edward Miller, late builder.

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GLASGOW HERALD
18 JUNE 1894

MARRIAGE

RITCHIE – YOUNG: At the Lennox Temperance Hotel, Dumbarton, on the 13th instant, by the Rev. A. Scott Matheson, William Ritchie, writer, to Maggie, daughter of the late Captain Young, Saltcoats.

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GLASGOW HERALD
18 JUNE 1898

MARRIAGE

MAIN – MACAULAY: At 1 Robertson Crescent, Saltcoats, on 17th instant, by the Rev. Francis Halden, Thomas Main, Stevenston, to Annie Gordon Allan, second daughter of Aulay Macaulay, senior, late of Glasgow.

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GLASGOW HERALD
19 JUNE 1893

BOWLING
SALTCOATS v. ARDEER

These clubs met at Ardeer to play their annual match. There were six rinks engaged, and the game resulted as follows: -

Saltcoats, 119; Ardeer, 135.

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GLASGOW HERALD
19 JUNE 1896

DEATH

EWING: At Tilbury Docks, London, on board S.S. “Lancashire,” on the 16th instant, Catherine Robertson, aged 30 years, beloved wife of Captain Ewing, Saltcoats.

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GLASGOW HERALD
20 JUNE 1890

BOWLING
SALTCOATS v. KILWINNING

Played at Saltcoats and resulted as follows – Saltcoats, 107; Kilwinning, 126.