Tag: kilbirnie

A #poem about the mountains around the #Garnock Valley #northayrshire

A poem about the mountains around the Garnock Valley north ayrshire
Some days the mountains speak to me
defending Truth and Love
like Angels climbing Jacob´s Ladder
to and from Above

With thoughts so clear and brightly shining
fields of grass and green
stretching to horizon´s line
and farms lying in between

Other days the mountains seem
an obstacle of view
which stop me seeing o´er the sky
and leave me feeling blue

Tis these weeks the hardest are
when shadows mark my way
when people´s words like arrows fly
and hinder all my days

To search for good in every thought
dispels the darkest night
for through the words and tempers flared
lie Angels in disguise

To take us higher in our thought
to bless us every day
find the Love in everyone
it is the only way.

Poem for Hugh

This poem was written to remember Hugh “Curly” Brannan, an elderly #Kilbirnie man 1912-1990

No Internet nor mobile phone
Just Sitting by the view
His bible held fast in his hands
This was dear old Hugh

A sweat bead forms upon his brow
Complains about the heat
Drinks another cup of tea
And stares down at his feet

With a creed unshakable
He reads another line
Whilst shuffling his greying hands
comes tales of older times

Yearning thoughts of his dear wife
Guided by Psalmist´s tears
Here sat a man with watered eyes
Memories of blessed years

And comes a thought of happiness
Of meeting her and friends
On shores afar, his mind does go
and finds his time well spent

Guided by the written Word
He went on Wisdom´s way
He gave triumph to the Truth
His fears did melt away

May our gaze be ever dear
to Principle held true
living always by our Faith
Just like my dear friend Hugh

The Rowan Tree – A Poem

This one is about the Rowan Tree which was in my Grandfather’s garden in Castle Drive, Kilbirnie It is likely still there.

I wanted the poem to catch that idea that some people  relish the shade but then complain about the darkness 🙂

In the shade of Grandpa’s house
There stood a Rowan Tree
Where my Brother tried to climb
With Rosalyn and me

Every day my Grandpa came
Admired it´s towering boughs
While we as children playing there
Saw darkened twigs and crows

Shadows hung upon his life
With towering darkened power
Yet we as children plain could see
Their withering every hour

Its leaves held back the sunshine light
Its branches stern with years
Sitting with his chair and pipe
It calmed away his fears

Yet we as children playing in sight
Saw only twigs and leaves
Revealing more of sky to us
Than he could ever see

We pointed up at shafts of light
Throughout the darkened power
Whilst he preferred the shaded glade
To pass the wakened hour

We saw sun and endless days
Upon his chair he sat
Despite the passing years it stood
The tree was sound at heart
 

Glengarnock Steel Staff Magazine May 1922 – Peter Adamson Abernethy

A Steel work Employee who came from Linwood.

Other Names in this page:

West, Busby, Calder, Ferguson, McGhie, Aitken, Stewart, Drysdale, McBride, Graham, Clifford, Baxter, Clark, Vann, Kean, McBride, Anderson, Henderson, Martin, Robertson, Watson,

Picture of Leslie Martin, Miss H H Barclay, E C Stuart, W H Aiton.

Other names, McMinn

Leslie P Martin, HH Barclay, EC Stuart, WH Aiton.

 

 

 

Glengarnock Gleanings (February 1920) | Colvilles Staff Magazine

Original February 1920 issue of Colville’s Magazine – Glengarnock Gleanings section. Includes a feature on long-serving employee Charles Logan, local football and welfare league activity, and a report on athlete David M. Parker. Fully transcribed and preserved below – original scan is above, including a picture of Charles Logan.

Continue reading “Glengarnock Gleanings (February 1920) | Colvilles Staff Magazine”

Glengarnock Steel, Staff Magazine 1920s – James Vann Whitelaw

Article about James Vann Whitelaw 1907 – 1979 (Kilbirnie)  – my guess would be this edition is around 1925.

 

 

Glengarnock Steel Social Night – Whist Drive, 1930’s – Date to be confirmed

Names in this article and likely in the photo: James Gibson,  Mary Steele, G Jaffray,  E.Pirrett, M.Martin, Alan Walker,  Ed Kellett,  G. Hamilton, Doris Gaze, D McKee, Margaret Fulton,  WI Thomson, Tom Davidson, M. Kircaldy, (mentioned in some football results elsewhere)  E Hamilton, J. Graham, Alan Hamilton,  John Archibald, Bert Smith, WM Baillie.

Glengarnock Steel Works: War Memorials unveiled (including Kilbirnie) November 1922.

 

 

To avoid confusion, let me explain:

  1. There was a Plaque for both wars  inside Glengarnock Church (demolished) and details can be found here on the Imperial War Museum´s site and it resides now in the Auld Kirk of Kilbirnie along with another plaque for their own Kilbirnie parishoners.
  2. A memorial for WW1 was a plaque attached to a building at the steel works.   I have seen it as a boy and I recall that it was on the back of one of the steel works offices. I do not know if that contained names of the second war also. The Colvilles staff magazines in the early 1920s contained a pull out glossy souvenir about those employees who died during the first world war. Details are on this site.
  3.  A new Plaque was unveiled at Glengarnock Primary School for WWII only but that school has since been demolished  – it may have been transferred to the replacement secondary school at Glengarnock. The outdated Imperial war museum entry is here for that one. 
  4. A separate war memorial exists in Kilbirnie at the park gate covering both wars for people who lived in Kilbirnie. The Imperial war museum reference is here.

Here is the roll of Honour from the staff magazine about Glengarnock with the Steel works Employee names on there: