|
|
This is a picture of Glencairn Square looking towards the buildings of Glenfield &
Kennedy situated in Low Glencairn Street. The buildings were the offices of the
company but in 1982 they were demolished.
The site of the Glenfield & Kennedy offices is now occupied by Glencairn Industrial
Estate. This part of Glencairn Square looks very much the same today as it does
in the picture.
The land which makes up the Howard Park was given to Kilmarnock by the Howard
De Walden family. In the background you can see the Saxone shoe factory
which was situated in Titchfield Street. This factory has been replaced by the
Galleon Leisure Centre. The leisure centre opened in 1986. This replaced the
Corporation Baths which had been open since 1940.
The funds which were require to build the Dick Institute were provided by James
Dick, a former Kilmarnock man who was living in Australia.
The Dick Institute was opened in 1901. The building was severly damaged by fire
only eight years after it opened. Some of the museums collections were lost in the
fire. It reopened two years after the fire in 1911. The Dick Institute was used
as an Auxilary Hospital in 1917 during World War One.
Today the Dick Institute is used as a library, art gallery and museum.
Kilmarnock Infirmary which was situated in Portland Street opened in 1868.It opened
in order to meet the need of the growing population in Kilmarnock. The hospital was
extended at various times, usually paid for by fund raising events. The building later
became the nurses home. In the summer of 1994 the building was gutted by fire.
Before this time Kilmarnock Infirmary had been succeeded by Crosshouse Hospital
which was opened in 1982.
The George Hotel was built in the 19th century. It was situated on the land at the top
of Portand Street. (This land was once the home of Kilmarnock Bowling Club.) It was
one of the top hotels in the area. The George was Kilmarnock's 5-star hotel.
The hotel closed in 1920. There were plans for the hotel to be demolished when the
Town Council purchased the property, but the plans were changed. The same year as the
George Hotel closed part of the building was adapted and used as the George Cinema.
The three story building still remains today, the building still looks similar
to the way it did in the days of the George Hotel. Nowadays the building is used by Mason
Murphy as a furniture shop and the rest of the property is a disco.
John Finnie Street was opened in 1864. It has some of the finest architecture in
Kilmarnock. One of the specifications was that the buildings were to be constructed
of red sandstone. This still remains to this day with only two of the buildings
being white sandstone. The street is named after Kilmarnock born John Finnie who
put up the money for the street to be constructed.
The Cross looks completely different now, compared to the picture. The
heavy traffic in the town lead to the redevelopments which seen all traffic
through this area of the town being stopped completely.
A complete redevelopment of the town in the 1970's saw some of the streets
demolished, this included Duke Street and Regent Street. The statue of Jimmy Shaw
was at the Cross from 1848 - 1929, when it was removed and placed at London Road.
There were shops, the Burns Shopping Mall, Bus Station and Multi-storey Car Park
built during the development. Some of these shops are built over the top of the
Kilmarnock Water. In the town today there are statues placed to signify where
the water runs under the streets. There is another statue been placed at the
Cross now that it is free of traffic. The statue is of Robert Burns and John
Wilson.
King Street opened in 1804. King Street runs from the Cross over the Kilmarnock
Water and on to the junction with Titchfield Street.
Many of the fine buildings which were in King Street were destroyed during
the redevelopments in the 70's. These fine buildings were replaced by the characterless
flat roofed shops which stand in their place today.
Another two casualties of the redevelopments were the Town House and the King Street
Church. These were also demolished at this time.
Portland Street opened about 1805, not long after the opening of King Street.
In 1924 a bus service started operating in Kilmarnock, the tram service which had
served the townclosed in 1926, as it was no longer needed. In 1924 the bus station
was established in Portland Street, this continued to serve the town until it was
demolished in the 70's. There was a new bus station built during the redevelopment
and this is where it remains.
Portland Street had been completely demolished and rebuilt with new modern buildings
which have become shops, a bingo hall and a super pub.
Robert Burns was born in Alloway on the 25th January 1759. He came to Kilmarnock in
1786 to have his works printed, (the famous Kilmarnock Edition).
The Burns Monument, built of red sandstone was opened in 1879. The monument features
a statue of The Bard.
The monument is situated in the Kay Park, Kilmarnock.
Robert Burns died in 1796. A statue of Robert Burns and John Wilson, the printer
is situated in the middle of Kilmarnock Cross.
The statue of Sir James Shaw was situated at Kilmarnock Cross since 1848 until
28th March 1929. On this date it was moved from the Cross to a new location, it
is situated in the area of the Dick Institute just off London Road. It remains in this
location today.
The reason for the moving of the statue was due to the increase
in traffic around the centre of the town. Today the Cross is home to another statue,
of Robert Burns and John Wilson.
Bellfield House and Estate was opened to the public in 1888. It consisted of walled gardens,
rock gardens and ornamental pools. It was given to the people of Kilmarnock by the Buchanan
sisters. The rising costs for the upkeep of the housed forced its demolition. The house was
demolished in 1969. Around these times the housing estate of Bellfield, consisting of 1,800
council houses was built. This remains today.
Part of the Estate remains today, but changes have been made. The walled gardens are now the
home of the bowling green and situated next to it is the club house for Bellfield Bowling Club.
The football pitches are still in use but the pitch and putt and the tennis courts have closed.
The Kings Theatre opened in Titchfield Street in October 1904. When Cinemas opened in the
town the Kings Theatre was forced to become a cinema but they also still showed live
performances.
On the 17th December 1934 the Kings Theatre bacame the Regal Cinema. The cinema remained until
recently when it was forced to close due to the opening of a new cinema, The Odeon, situated
at the Queens Drive. The building which housed the Kings Theatre is currently empty.
