2019 saw the restoration of a rather special monument in Stevenston, 90 years after it was first erected between Sinclair Street and Glencairn Street.
For many years this monument stood in ruins in a field at Kerelaw Farm. It was taken to Kerelaw House by Mr Fullarton of Kerelaw for safety, where it lay until 1929.
This monument had been erected in 1784 by Robert Baillie in memory of his wife, May Reid Cunninghame of Auchenharvie. Robert built Mayville House, on the Old High Road, Stevenston in the early 1760s and named it after his wife. They had two sons, and five daughters. Their daughter, Lesley, was born at Mayville on 6th March 1768.
The monument was restored in 1929 with the aim of saving the damaged remains from utter destruction and to re erect the monument as near as possible to its original condition. Lesley’s name was also added at this time. The monument was erected on the site at Glencairn Street, not far from Mayville House. With the addition of her name, it became known as the Bonnie Lesley Baillie Monument, and again having fallen into disrepair and covered in several layers of paint, the monument was restored to its former glory by North Ayrshire Council in 2017.