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About the members Frances writes :-
About ten years ago Strathclyde Community Education Department gave me the opportunity to tutor classes on "Living Memory" to an "Opportunities in Retirement" group. There were 16 enthusiastic people willing to share their memories of the past. Great fun was had at each session as they explored and compared past decades.
From these small beginnings emerged the committed members who rose to meet every challenge. Over the years they have recorded their memories in many stories and poems on audio cassettes and video tapes. This website is a natural progression as they are always keen to keep abreast of new technology.
Like the members of CLMG, I am not a local person but have worked with groups in the area for many years and increased my knowledge of Cumnock and Doon Valley’s local history. Even though I am retired and live in Ayr I have become a member of this forward-looking group – age knows no bounds! They are continually achieving new ways to keep the past alive – watch this space for their next triumph!!
Jean writes :-
I was born in New Cumnock in 1926. Five miles down the road, accessible by bus, train and bicycle, was Old Cumnock as it was then called. That was the place where I went for piano lessons on a Saturday morning, picking up freshly cooked pies and tarts from McGavin, the baker, on my way home. On summer days from 1936, I cycled to the newly opened Cumnock Swimming Pool, cavorted in the cold water until my fingers turned white and threatened to drop off, pushed my bike up the steep hill leading out of the town and eventually returned home.
In 1940, I started attending Cumnock Academy for the later years of secondary education and the town then became the place where all the action was!
My first job, starting in Nov. 1942, was in the Cumnock office of the Ministry of Labour and National Service, commonly know as the Buroo. Now I live a mile or so out of town in the village of Logan where I have occupied the same house since 1953. I may not be a Cumnockian by birth, but my life is inextricably linked with the town and my many friends there.
Maimie writes :-
Hello, my name is Maimie and this is a brief resume on places I have stayed. Firstly I was born in Campbeltown, Argyll,. When I was 6 years old the family moved to Coatbridge in Lanarkshire through my father’s work. Then when I was 10 years old we moved to Cumnock where I still reside. All in all I have lived in Cumnock for 67 years.
Betty writes :-
I was born in New Cumnock and spent most of my life there before coming to live in Cumnock in 1991. After schooling in New Cumnock and then in Cumnock followed by University and teacher training college, I taught in New Cumnock and then at Auchinleck Academy. After retirement and the death of my parents, the desire for a smaller house and a minimum-maintenance garden, brought me to Cumnock
Jimmy writes:-
The coal industry gradually went into decline, as old coal mines became exhausted, and there were no plans to sink new pits in the late 1950s. The pit I was employed in was in Lanarkshire and it relied on a neighbouring Colliery called Auchengeich for a ventilation boost – mainly by a safety road constructed during the war to join the two collieries. The idea being that if an air-raid damaged one pit the miners could escape through to the other. However, a disastrous fire in 1958 in Auchengeich in which 47 miners lost their lives caused the fumes and smoke to percolate into the colliery where I worked – called the Lumloch – effectively closing it down completely, and the workforce were thrown out of work. The neighbouring collieries could not take all the men and we that were left were offered work in other districts and I was offered work in Highhouse Colliery in Auchinleck, which I accepted. I worked there for a period of 20 years until I retired, having spent 45 years underground. I was housed by the Coal Board in Cumnock in 1962 and now regard myself as an Ayrshire man.
David writes :-
I was born in Tayport, Fife, and brought up in Dundee where I lived until 1967. The previous 2 years, I was a Divinity student at Glasgow University, then in 1967 I went to a Theological College in Edinburgh for 3 years and whilst there was a student/pastor at the United Free Church in Gordon, Berwickshire. My wife and family moved there with me. In 1970 I was ordained to the ministry and inducted to the United Free Church in Dunfermline, Fife, where I remained for 7 years. In 1977, I was called to be minister of St. Andrews United Free Church, Cumnock, and remained there until retiring in 1989. My home is still in Cumnock where I live with my wife Margaret. We have three grown-up children – all married – and we have been blessed with 5 grandchildren
Madge writes :-
My name is Madge and I was born and brought up in Glasgow, and until 1948 I had never heard of Cumnock. That year, the company I worked for bought a small knitwear factory in Catrine, which was about 5 miles from Cumnock, and I was asked to go there to work for one year. I found lodgings in Cumnock and stayed with a very nice family who treated me as one of their own. I immediately fell in love with Cumnock and its friendly people and I enjoyed travelling to Catrine by bus and passing green fields on the way instead of dreary tenement buildings. After my marriage in 1949, we put our name on the housing list in Cumnock and in 1954 were allocated a council house where we settled down nicely and raised a family. I must say I have no regrets about leaving Glasgow and, although I often visit friends and relatives in the city, Cumnock is definitely the place for me.
Morag writes :-
My name is Morag and I was born on a farm outside Cumnock. I went to school in Cumnock and am now retired and living outside Logan. I have recently joined the Group and am finding it very interesting.
George writes :-
As a local history enthusiast, I was invited to join the ranks of the Cumnock Living Memory Group. My advanced years may have helped me to qualify for this honour! Be that as it may, I have found my association with the Group to be both friendly and informative. To my great surprise, I discovered that not one of the Group had been born in Cumnock! To use a parochial phrase, - they were all “incomers”. I am therefore the only real Cumnockian - born and bred! Nevertheless I am delighted to appreciate the members` knowledge of our town`s history, and their desire to learn more. I lived most of my growing-up years in Lugar Street, until the War and its aftermath caused several changes in domicile, but I have again been resident in the town since 1957. I earned my daily bread by working, firstly, as a Local Authority officer, and subsequently as a Civil Servant. The township and its environs have always been of great interest to me, and my ever-ready book references are WARRICK’s “The History of Old Cumnock”, and STRAWHORN’s “The New History of Cumnock”.
Very sadly George died on Saturday 8th March 2008. He was a much valued member of the group - adding lots of interesting material to the Website. We are going to miss his input to our get togethers and our sympathy is extended to his family and friends.
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