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The name Cumnock is one of considerable antiquity, so much so that the
original meaning of the name has long been forgotten. Historians suggest
"Hollow of the hill", "Meeting of the waters", Bent
or crooked hill" or "Little shrine". The little shrine
theory is certainly a possibility as Cumnock was known as Cumnock Kirk
while New Cumnock - actually the oldest - was known as Cumnock Castle.
 The
Parish and Barony of Cumnock comprised the present parishes of Old and
New Cumnocks and was owned by the Dunbar Family.
Cumnock Old Church, in the town square, was erected between 1863 and
1867 in the Gothic style to the plans of James Maitland Wardrop of Edinburgh.
Yellow sandstone from Coalburn, near New Cumnock, was used. The cost of
construction was £6227 14s 8d though the proposed spire was not
built, its intended location over the clock capped off.
St. John's Catholic Church was erected in 1882 thanks to the help of
the third Marquess of Bute, who followed the Roman Catholic Faith. The
Marquess initially paid the entire cost of maintaining the church and
paying the incumbent Priest. St. John's is a beautifully furnished Church
at the head of Glaisnock Street. In 1885 it was the first ecclesiastical
building in the country to be lit by electricity.
Erected between 1896-99, Chrichton West Church was paid for by Miss Crichton
of Hillside in memory of her father Hew Crichton and her brother Sheriff
James Crichton - both of whom died in 1892. The architecture was David
Menzies of Edinburgh. The building seats 500 and the spire stands 140
feet tall. Originally a Free Church, it became a United Free Church in
1900 and a Church of Scotland in 1929.
In 1879 James Keir Hardie
came to live in Cumnock where he worked in the pits. He became secretary
to the Ayrshire Miners Association and in 1900 helped establish and became
the first leader of the Labour Party.
A magnificent bronze bust of James Keir Hardie stands on a pink granite
plinth outside Cumnock Town Hall. Since James Keir Hardie lived for the
majority of his life in Cumnock, The National Keir Hardie Memorial Committee
commissioned the sculptor Benno Schotz RSA, to create the bronze bust.
The memorial bust was presented by William Stewart and, very appropriately,
accepted by Cumnock's Provost Nan Hardie Hughes (Keir Hardie's daughter)
in August 1939, on the eve of World War 2.
The proposal to build a Town Hall in Cumnock was first put forward in
1880. The Marquess of Bute offered the Glaisnock Street site free of charge
and a contribution of £500. A subscription list was opened in 1883
and it soon reached £2000. The building was declared open on the
7th June 1885 and a grand bazaar was held ten years later to clear the
outstanding deficit. The architect was R. S. Ingram and the building contained
two halls. A fire damaged part of the building in 1983 but it was subsequently
restored.
The Hall & its lesser rooms have been used for all kinds of events
& occasions. In the early 1900's touring companies came to offer drama,
music & grand opera. Cumnock's first wresting competition was presented
in 1905. Mrs. Pankhurst came to the Town Hall in 1907 to address a Votes
for Women rally. In the 20's & 30's it was a favourite venue for
ballroom dancing with music by local bands.
The building has housed schoolrooms, billeted soldiers, met accommodation
demands and provided a meeting place for every club, society & association
in the locality.
Textiles remain strong in the former deep mining area which also manufactures
fire engines and where agriculture is still an important industry. The
town has a population of 9091.
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