We are pleased to announce we have added yet another war memorial to our ‘Stories’ section and this time it is Kilbirnie War Memorial. Unveiled on the 7th of October, 1922, the war memorial in Kilbirnie takes the shape of a large memorial gateway which leads to the public park. At the time of the unveiling, it contained the names …
The Final Talk at Haylie Neolithic Tomb
Gordon Black of the Haylie Neolithic Tombsters has been conducting a series of very well received talks at Haylie Neolithic Tomb and the final one takes place on Tuesday, the 12th of May at 10:30am. Meeting at the entrance to Douglas Park (just off of Irvine Street with nearby street parking available) Gordon will inform visitors of the history of …
Beith Bronze Age Shield Returns to Scotland
A bronze age shield is finally returning to Scotland after more than 230 years! Found in 1779 in a peat bog, following an excursion at Luggtonrigge Farm, just outside of Beith, the shield was presented to the Society of Antiquaries of London in 1791 by Dr Ferris (who acquired it from the Estate owner) where it has remained ever since. …
Archive of Air Disasters in North Ayrshire and Arran Has Been Added to the Stories Section
We are delighted to announce that the Stories section of the site now has a new section, entitled ‘Air Disasters’, This section includes some of our own stories of air disasters in North Ayrshire, such as the crash of an RAF Liberator on Arran and the crash of Whitley Bomber Z9362 at Saltcoats Harbour. The new section also includes a …
A Series of Talks at Haylie Neolithic Tomb
After a hugely successful talk at Largs Museum, Gordon Black is continuing with a series of on-site talks about Halie Neolithic Tomb! Three talks in March, starting at the entrance to Douglas Park, where Gordon will walk with visitors up to the Neolithic Tomb and tell the story of this fascinating part of North Ayrshire history. The talks are being …
Frigate Goes for Conservation
The Heritage Centre Team said a fond but temporary goodbye to a really special object from our collection yesterday. This gorgeous model ship is sailing off to AOC Archaeology for some conservation work. The frigate, Caledonia, was made by a Mr William Dunlop, who was a member of the congregation of Ardrossan Parish Church in the building that now houses …
Our Heritage Centre Is Now Open
We are delighted to confirm that our Heritage Centre re-opened on the 23rd of February! We are back to our usual opening times which are: Monday, Tuesday & Wednesday: 09:30am – 1pm & 2pm – 4:30pm. We are also open the last Saturday of every month (same opening times), with the 28th of February being the first of the year! …
50 New Stories Have Been Added to the ‘Stories’ Section
As a Christmas present to our readers, we added 50 new stories to the ‘Stories‘ section of our website, from all around North Ayrshire and on a huge variety of topics! From the history of the Cumbrae War Memorial and West Kilbride Village Hall, to tales of the 1913 Strike at Nobel’s Factory and the Storm of 1912. Perhaps you’d …
Heritage Centre Closed Until 2026
Our Heritage Centre is currently closed as we get our windows replaced and some other essential maintenance works completed. We had hoped to re-open before Christmas but the Heritage Centre will now not reopen until 2026. We will still be active here on our website and on our Facebook page. Keep an eye on for updates on when we will …
The Crash of Whitley Bomber Z9362 at Saltcoats Harbour is now Available to Watch
We are delighted to announce that our video interview with John and Ian McCallum about the crash of Whitley Bomber Z9362 at Saltcoats Harbour in 1943 is now live on YouTube for everyone to watch. In this fascinating interview, Ian McCallum tells the story of the crash, what went wrong and what happened to the crew. Then, he passes to …