Armadale
| Armadale | |
| West Lothian | |
|---|---|
 West Main Street | |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | NS935685 |
| Location: | 55°53’52"N, 3°42’17"W |
| Data | |
| Post town: | Bathgate |
| Postcode: | EH48 |
| Dialling code: | 01501 |
| Local Government | |
| Council: | West Lothian |
| Parliamentary constituency: |
Linlithgow and East Falkirk |
Armadale is a town in West Lothian. The town was formerly known as Barbauchlaw, a village before industry came, but it developed from coal-mining.
Today Armadale is an ex-mining town which is also known for its brick manufacturing. It is named after Armadale in Sutherland,[1] which latter estate being owned by Sir William Honeyman who later acquired the land of Barbauchlaw.[2]
The Town
The town is a local town like many others, with local shops and nine pubs and bars and a small supermarket on West Main Street.
The main feature of Armadale is The Cross, the wide cross-roads in the centre of the town, where Main Street is crossed by North Street and South Street. Here once stood the Toll House (built in 1795) and the Toll Bar, which levied tolls on travellers. The Toll House was demolished in January 1884.
At the cross is a memorial stone (with a lamppost on top) erected in honour of Elizabeth Kerr, a popular local midwife, who died on 26 November 1919 when, seeing a young girl (Mary Easton) standing in the middle of the road about to be hit by a car, she ran and pushed the girl out of its path, and was run herself down.
Armadale (Woodend Farm) is noted as the site of Ogilface Castle.[3] Woodend Farm has another site nearer Blackridge, marked as 'Ogelface in ruins' on a 1773 map.[4] These sites have been the subject of archaeological geophysical surveys by the Edinburgh Archaeological Field Society[5] and aerial photography.
History
The estate comprising the lands of Barbauchlaw was sold to Sir William Honeyman in 1790.[6] A new highway between Edinburgh and Glasgow had been opened in 1786 and a toll house was built where the new road intersected with an existing road in the east of the estate.[6] A coal company was formed in 1819 and began to work the "Woodend Pit" to the north-west of the toll house.[6] A school was first formed in the town also in this year, and it eventually became necessary to build a dedicated school building in 1839 to accommodate the growing number of students.[6]
Railway
The station at Armadale was first opened by the Bathgate and Coatbridge Railway, built as part of the Airdrie-Bathgate Rail Link in the south end of Armadale and re-opened on 4 March 2011.[7]
Culture and sport
Armadale Stadium hold greyhound racing and speedway. It was also used in the past for stock car racing. Speedway started in 1997 when the Edinburgh Monarchs[8] team moved there and has now competed for ten seasons at the venue. The team won the Premier League in 2003, however Armadale Stadium is soon to be closed and demolised to make way for a new supermarket.
The town also has a long-established football team, Armadale Thistle, whose home, Volunteer Park, is located on North Street.
The Armadale Flute Band, established in 1983, have won competitions all over Scotland.
Outside links
References
- ↑ Sutherland places: Armadale - Caithness.org
- ↑ Armadale.org.uk: Honeyman
- ↑ Armadale.org.uk: Archaeology
- ↑ Armadale.org.uk: Archaeology
- ↑ Edinburgh Archaeological Field Society
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 "The History of Armadale". http://home.freeuk.net/pastandpresent/index.htm. Retrieved 2010-12-27.
- ↑ "Airdrie-Bathgate Rail Link". http://www.airdriebathgateraillink.co.uk/. Retrieved 2008-01-06.
- ↑ Henry, J and Moultray, I: Speedway in Scotland (2001) ISBN 0-7524-2229-4