A Stroll round 1960s Saltcoats

[Scott McCallum]

Wrong again. It was RockyPark Court, sorry.

Scott McCallum - Glasgow

[Penny Tray]

Just for the record, whilst we're considering places the Vics played or might have played, at their meeting on 9 March 1953, Saltcoats Town Council accepted a recommendation by The Shores and Improvements Committee that, provided physical and legal difficulties could be overcome, the construction of a sports stadium at Glebelands should be considered.

They also agreed that the Council, along with a representative of Saltcoats Victoria Football Club should visit the Glebelands and the Public Park, on which sites the Burgh Surveyor would peg out a football pitch, and decide which would make the more suitable football field.

Obviously nothing came of it!

[abla43]

Were they dancing in the streets of raith, do you think PT?

[Penny Tray]

Alba43,

There are probably only a few of us sufficiently old enough and sufficiently interested in sport to understand what you're meaning.

The man who suggested football fans were dancing in the streets of Raith following a celebrated victory by Raith Rovers was probably the same one who read out results for Street Johnstone and Street Mirren .

[down south]

It's always possible I suppose that Rockyknowe was used to refer to a wider area in the days before everywhere round there was more built up.

But time to move on now I think. And if recreation was always one theme of this marginal land on the borders of Saltcoats and Stevenston, and indeed still is, so also was industry. Look back at this map of the 1850s and you find, as well as the brewery, and an archery ground which we've mentioned in the past: a ropeworks stretching along the shoreside ( they had to be the full length of the rope, which explains its long thin shape ); limekilns; and the remains of many old mine-workings.

http://maps.nls.uk/os/25inch/view/?sid= ... &layers=BT

And by the 1890s coal-mining in the area was back in full swing with the Auchenharvie Pit; I didn't realise it came so close to town, or had actually been revived to continue at such a late date. And alongside it also, a brickworks and a magnesia works close at hand, with all the further industries of Stevenston as well beyond the scope of the map.

http://maps.nls.uk/os/25inch-2nd-and-la ... &layers=BT

But all this has vanished now as though it had never been; there's just one real relic of the borderland's industrial past remaining, and that dates back to some of the earliest times: the Old Engine House. We're quite close to it here outside Campbell Park:

http://www.google.com/maps?q=Saltcoats, ... 12,45,,1,0

Though to me the most familiar view was from the main road of it looming starkly across the wasteland between, against the backdrop of the embankment and the sky; it always made a particular impression on dark early mornings when it stood out so black and lonely.

It housed a Newcomen beam engine, first installed in 1719 and only the second in Scotland, which was used in attempts to pump water out of the coal mines; but as we learned in school history lessons, they weren't very efficient. Don't remember anyone ever telling us that we had had one of them right on our doorstep though, which is a shame.

Susan

[down south]

And a wasteland it indeed was back in the sixties, that stretch of land between Saltcoats and Stevenston; with large parts of it occupied a by noisome and smelly rubbish coup, heavily infested with seagulls.

But things were about to change. The coup was nearly full, and thoughts were beginning to turn to new uses for the ground. And even before that , development arrived in the early seventies in the shape of the Sandylands Caravan Park, occupying the tongue of land between the two railway lines: the main line and the old Caley line on its embankment. Which of course is still there today.


CARAVAN SITE WILL BENEFIT TOWN

The allure of a holiday on the Black Sea and the prospect of holidaying in sun-soaked Majorca could not compete with Saltcoats at a recent "Planning Your Holiday" exhibition in Glasgow.

The reason for such holiday favourites as the Riviera being put in the shade by Saltcoats was the stall set up at the exhibition to publicise the Sandylands Coastal Grove caravan site which has been established in the town.
Already more than 70 luxury caravans are sited at Sandylands and by the summer another 200 are expected to be 'bought in what the site estate director, Mr Peter McInally describes as phase two of the project. As quickly as caravans are provided, buyers from Glasgow, Paisley and Greenock are keen to purchase a home from home by the seaside.

The caravan site, which opened last year, will eventually stretch for a mile between Stevenston and Saltcoats and by 1975 there will be 740 caravans permanently sited on the estate. Plans are already under way for the provision of an entertainments centre, supermarket, general store, coffee shop, laundrette and children's play areas. Saltcoats should be able to boast the biggest caravan site in Scotland when the subject is finished.

The caravans — some of them bungalows in miniature — are either six or eight-berth and come complete with mini-kitchens, properly equipped bathrooms, and other "mod cons." There is mains water, electricity and drainage. Landscaping and tarmacadamed roads complement the siting of the caravans which are arranged in colours.

Mr McInally told our reporter that the local towns, particularly Saltcoats, would benefit from the influx of thousands of tourists in the summer season. The caravans will be rated,which will provide thousands of pounds to the local authority each year.

The estate, formerly waste ground, will have easy access to a comparatively quiet part of the beach between Stevenston and Saltcoats by means of a bridge over the adjacent railway line.

Ardrossan and Saltcoats Herald,12th January 1973

Susan

[brian f]

Shandylands caravan park had a bar (The Clansman) which was handy for us workers next door at the abattior.

[down south]

It's a wonder the developers of the caravan site weren't put off by the coup being still in operation; but then to start with the railway embankment did hide it from view. But with the closure of the Caley line in 1968, that had become redundant, and the question of whether to demolish it arose. Sorry to say, Stevenston and Saltcoats had great differences of opinion on this, and had quite a squabble when Stevenston wanted to demolish it and Saltcoats to retain it, as this article from the Herald in 1972 describes:

COUNCIL ROW OVER FUTURE OF EMBANKMENT

The disused Caledonia Railway embankment within the boundary of Stevenston is to be flattened and used to fill in Ardeer quarry to reclaim 73 acres of land.

Treasurer James Clements said this at the council meeting on Monday when he described a proposal by Saltcoats Town Council to retain the embankment as "infantile" and designed for Saltcoats' own ends.

The treasurer was reporting on a joint meeting between Stevenston and Saltcoats which discussed the development of Brewery Park, opposite Auchenharvie.

He said the meeting had been disappointing as Saltcoats had insisted on Stevenston co-operating with them. Stevenston and Saltcoats had co-operated on many issues successfully such as the new swimming pool and Auchenharvie Playingfields but they also had had distinct differences and the recent meeting had not been the first time they had discussed the reclamation of Brewery Park and the caravan site.

"Now Saltcoats want to retain the railway embankment which runs through Stevenston," he explained. "They want to make it an elevated walk for old age pensioners. Is that practical? If old folk got on one end they would never get off the other end. What they are really after is a shelter and a windbreak for their proposed new caravan site at Sandylands. "

A plan to reclaim the quarry had been submitted to the Scottish Development Department in January, said the treasurer, and he claimed that Stevenston had been among the first authorities to apply for a grant for such work.
The proposal to use the railway embankment to fill in the quarry had met with the approval of the department. The council were waiting for the district valuer to put a price on the ground and British Rail had promised to sell to the council the part of the embankment which ran through Stevenston.


He said that the development department considered the plan as ideal because embankment and quarry were so close that filling in the quarry would be economical. He added that a walk which would be more appropriate for old people would be provided when the embankment was levelled.

"I repeat publicly," Treasurer Clements said, "that the embankment would act as a screen for Saltcoats' new caravan park. We have been kind to Saltcoats in the past but I think everyone can see the folly of their idea. Let Saltcoats get their priorities right."

He said the reclamation scheme would qualify for an 85 per cent grant of the capital cost.

Earlier Dean of Guild Samuel Gooding said that both towns visualised Brewery Park being made into a recreation ground and playingfields although they had disagreed about the embankment.

He commented that people would be saying that Stevenston Town Council went to Saltcoats for their orders but Stevenston had never done so and would not start now.

Councillor Thomas Murphy agreed with Treasurer Clements, saying that at the joint meeting he had got the definite impression that Saltcoats wanted the railway embankment for their own ends only. He thought Stevenston's plan was beneficial for the community.

Provost Archie Lambie said it would be very hard to support any argument which said Stevenston should leave the embankment because of the grant decision and the amount of land recoverable.

Bailie James Forde told the councillors that they had taken the unusual step of making an issue public before it had been reported in committee.

He pointed out that Saltcoats probably had not known Stevenston had reached the extent of purchasing the railway embankment and had a grant, but added that nobody in their right senses would say the quarry should not be proceeded with under a scheme of such magnitude.

Bailie Forde reminded the council that the two councils had jointly bought Brewery Park and would devise a scheme together. Referring to dictating by Saltcoats he said that in two years there would only be one representative covering both towns on the new local government authority in Glasgow which meant there would be no need for fighting between the two towns.

"The sooner we go ahead with schemes of such magnitude as the quarry," he went on, "within the next two years the better it will be for us. There is no open war between Saltcoats and Stevenston. They can put forward proposals as long as I have the opportunity to put a proposal on behalf of Stevenston people. "

Provost Lambie concluded that the only quarrel was in regard to the embankment.

Ardrossan and Saltcoats Herald, 7 April 1972

Susan

[down south]

Saltcoats and Stevenston seem to have plenty of other little disagreements about their joint responsibility for the borderlands, like where to put the new rubbish coup. But one thing they did agree on was that the land of Brewery Park should be developed for recreation, and in the early seventies they commissioned a study into how that might be carried out. The results are in the article and accompanying sketch-plan below.( I take it by the way that the " in-gaun'ee " mentioned was the feature known as the Cheese Wedge ? )

And lo and behold, Brewery Park was eventually transformed, if not in quite such ambitious ways as some of the suggestions; the main feature created being Auchenharvie Golf Course.

Susan


COUNCILS CONSIDER PLANS FOR BREWERY PARK

The possibility of turning Brewery Park - the 65 acres of waste ground opposite Auchenharvie - into an attractive park containing boating lake. nature reserve and recreational facilities. will be the subject of a meeting between Saltcoats and Stevenston Town Councils on Monday.

The councils' joint committee will consider suggestions contained in a study by internationally-known landscaping architects, Derek Lovejoy and Douglas Sampson, for the reclamation and development of Brewery Park where Stevenston refuse coup is sited and most of the remaining ground is waterlogged and overgrown with weeds.

In their study of the site problems, the architects proposed that the open flat character of the area required re-shaping and reducing to smaller areas; the ponds should be retained if possible; consideration should be given to negotiating an access from the site to the beach via the caravan site; improvements at Brewery Park should include
improvements to the embankments behind Auchenharvie Academy; and possible future uses of the site should be considered before the plans were completed.

As a guidance for the councils the architects suggested canoeing and dinghy-sailing training, bowls, roller skating, and all-weather football, as possible sports which could be carried out. They also suggested an adventure playground, pitch and putt course, tennis courts, keep-fit course, perimeter cycle track, donkey or pony paddock, allotments and gardens, and natural wildlife area as possible features of the site.

The study stated that it was possible to imagine Brewery Park cleared of all rubble, flattened and developed as green open space with the possibilities of creating positive attractions rather than merely cleaning-up the site, or developing the surrounding sites as well as the park.

The architects explained that with the demolition and removal of the adjacent railway embankment the visual boundary would change dramatically, opening up a view to Sandylands Caravan site, Campbell Park football ground and residential and industrial properties.

They pointed out that it was extremely desirable to retain part of the embankment which at present was being removed by Stevenston Town Council, as the first main basis of landscaping.

"The embankments are at present the one strong feature ", the study stated, "but they are not attractive. The urgent need is not to remove this but to use it and make it an attractive asset." Auchenharvie playing fields and open space were considered in the architects' study. It was suggested that Auchenharvie could form an important natural extension to Brewery Park with treeplanting on Auchenharvie embankments.

It was proposed that Sandylands Caravan Site could be linked with the Saltcoats-Stevenston Road at Auchenharvie by a road through Brewery Park. It was also suggested that the public might eventually have access to the beach from Brewery Park through the caravan site. "The possibility of direct access to the beach" the study added, "raises for consideration the present condition and future improvement of the sand dunes. These are in a worn condition and it is suggested that some investigation be undertaken to determine whether there is cause for concern or need to take measures for protection and repair."

"Apart from the dunes themselves, this coastal area is in a near-derelict condition as a result of coal mining, and this whole section might be considered for reclamation."

Referring to the water at Brewery Park, the study stated that the present main pond area was spoiled by steep side banks and refuse tipping, but the water appeared to be relatively clean and had been adopted by swans. There seemed to be regular drainage into and out of the pond.

The architects suggested reshaping the. ponds as an important asset of the site which would not only be an attractive feature but have considerable possibilities for recreation, and for fish and bird life.

"There is a need to collect into one main surface water-sewer, various of the drains on both sides of the Saltcoats-Stevenston Road," the study added. "Many of these drains may be an indirect source of the water "which at present flows into the pond and without it the ponds could become stagnant and unpleasant."

The study stated that there appeared to be a real opportunity for limited boating, canoe and dinghy-training on the ponds, as an extension to the present activities of Auchenharvie Swimming Pool and community centre.

Fishing was also suggested in the study which stressed that a firm decision was needed by the councils that it was worth considering the ponds for such purposes.

The past industrial use of Brewery Park has left two main ruins — the "in-gaun e'e' to the mine, and the engine house — and the architects have considered their future use.

They would not intend to retain the "in-gaun e'e" which has "little visual attraction," but would possibly re-shape it and make some use of it as an artificial hill.

The engine house, described in the study as more unique in archaeological terms", although in a bad state of decay and apparently "leaning," could be retained amidst the landscape.

Because Brewery Park was surrounded by Saltcoats and Stevenston housing schemes and flanked by Auchenharvie Academy, the study pointed out that the needs of the nearby residents and school should partly determine the type and range of facilities which could be provided at the site.

Ardrossan and Saltcoats Herald, 27th September 1974

[Scott McCallum]

Might it be a bit indelicate a subject to remind people that the burgh buried the carcass of at least one dead whale underneath the site marked as 'picnic area'.

Scott McCallum - Glasgow

[down south]

I realise to my embarrassment that I'm quite wrong about Auchenharvie Golf course being no longer in operation; so far from that, it was where our very own Threetowners held the golf tournament at the last reunion !! My only excuse is that I was sure I read something somewhere ( and even made a note of it ) about it closing in 1987....maybe that was only an unfulfilled threat or something.

Anyway I've edited my post accordingly and instead I'll ask a different question; did the council add any other other recreational facilities in the area round the golf course, or was that all there was ?

Also worth adding the detail that as mentioned in this week's Herald Files, the caravan park , as well as the pub, also eventually boasted its own swimming pool and shopping parade.

Susan

[down south]

The other side of the main road also saw big changes in the early seventies. Seabank House, better known by our day as Auchenharvie House,ancestral home of the pit-owning Cuninghame family, which had come into community use, was demolished around 1970:

and replaced by Auchenharvie Academy, which opened in August 1971:

http://www.threetowners.net/forum/viewt ... 188#p74188

Also alongside it was built a new indoor swimming pool, which opened in March 1973:

http://www.threetowners.net/forum/viewt ... 159#p93159

And in March 1988 it was joined by a state-of-the-art ice rink complex, described in the Herald Files here.

Then in more recent years the recreational facilities of Auchenharvie Park have been further added to by the creation of a Skate Park next door ; though I understand that's currently under threat of closure. You can see roughly where its sits in the landscape in the picture here, with a distant view of the Old Engine House in the background:

http://www.rollernews.com/evolution-ska ... d_740.html

But we're straying over the border into Stevenston with all these , so just a brief mention had better suffice, and next time I'll be hastening to get back on track .

Susan