Auld Earlston

Monday, 5 February 2018

A Look at Earlston Churches

In 1866 Earlston had three churches Ercildoune Parish Church, West United Presbyterian Church and East United Presbyterian Church. Rutherfurd's Southern Counties Directory of 1866 noted that the three churches offered seating for 1400 worshipers - in a village with a population of 1825. Religion was an integral part of community life.

THE PRE-REFORMATION CHURCH

In the 12th century, the foundation charter for Melrose Abbey was signed by King David I at Ercildoune (the old name for Earlston), It is known that a chapel was built in Earlston at the end of the 11th century and in 1242 a new church was built and consecrated. After the Reformation in 1560, it became the Church of Scotland.

ERCILDOUNE, later EARLSTON PARISH CHURCH
The medieval church was replaced in 1736, enlarged in 1834 which in turn was replaced on the same site in 1892 by the present building of red sandstone from Cowdenknowes Quarry, with seating for 700 people. It was known as Ercildoune Church until its union with St. John's Church under the minister Rev. John Duncan in 1946 after 200 years of division.

The Old Parish Church, demolished in 1891

Men from Rodger Builders working on the church, 1891.
One of the oldest photographs in the Auld Earlston collection

A charming tinted image of the rebuilt church,

early 20th century

In 1991 renovation work took place on the church building, largely thanks to a generous bequest from the late Miss Ella Newton of Edinburgh, whose father had been works manager at Simpson & Fairbairn Mill in Earlston. Again men from Rodgers Builders undertook much of the work.

Some of the team working on the 1991 refurbishment

Ministers
Records go back to James Ker in 1549 up to the present day. One of the longest serving was William Mair (1869-1903), who served as Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1897. The Rev. John Duncan also served 30 years 1946-76.

Communion Plate

The pewter communion plate mostly came from the Relief and Associate Churches in Earlston, 1750 and 1780 respectively, with the earliest chalice dated 1760. The Associate and Relief bodies came together in the early nineteenth century to form the United Presbyterian Church. All the communion plate is kept in the bank and only brought out four times a year for a formal sacrament.

Church Records

The Church of Scotland Registers go back to the late 17th century, recording baptisms, marriages and burials, but with some gaps. You can search them online at www.scotlandspeopl.gov.uk or consult them on microfilm at the Heritage Hub in Hawick.
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Earlston Kirk Session Records give us a unique social commentary on life in the village at the time - with the emphasis on chastisement and charity, as the church provided help to the poor and needy, but censure to those involved in what was regarded as moral turpitude. As late as 1901, a woman was brought before the Kirk Session to be questioned on her "sin of fornication and having a child out of wedlock".

"Having confessed in sorrow for her sins and resolution to walk through grace in newness of life, the Moderator after solemn admonition did in the name of the Kirk Session absolve her from the scandal of her sin and restore her to the privileges of the church.

Scottish Kirk Session Records are not available online, but you can view them in a digitized format at the Heritage Hub at Hawick, which serves the whole of the Scottish Borders.

WEST UNITED PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

Following disputes over the appointment of the Rev. Lawrence Johnston to be minister of Ercildoune Parish Church, a Relief congregation was formed in 1778 and a church built at the West End of the village with seating for 500.

In 1887 it joined with the East Church (see below) to form one congregation with one minister, as the Earlston United Presbyterian Church. With some irony the West Church was sold to the Parish Church (Church of Scotland) and used as a church hall until 1956. The property was later demolished and replaced eventually by the modern flats we see on the site today.

EAST, later ST. JOHN'S CHURCH

Dissatisfied members of the congregation at Ercildoune Church joined the Secession movement in 1738. A church was built and later enlarged to seat 500 worshippers and became the East United Presbyterian Church. 1887 saw it join with the West United Presbyterian Church and the name of St. John's was adopted in 1929.

In 1946 the congregation reunited with the Parish Church of Scotland under the ministry of Rev. John Duncan. The old St. John's Church Hall became the parish church hall, with the church itself later demolished.

United Presbyterian Church (East), later St. John's Church
The building on the left became the Parish Church Hall,

when the two congregation united in 1946.

THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH

There was a congregation for a few years in the mid 19th century. Worship in Earlston resumed in 1949 in a chapel hall, dedicated to St. Cuthbert, on Westfield Road which closed c.2012.

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Earlston Parish Church and Churchyard, 2016

SOURCES OF INFORMATION

The Church in Earlston 600AD-1982, by Rev. John H. Duncan, 1992 - with a copy in the Auld Earlston Archives.
The Churches and Graveyards of Berwickshire, by Dr. G. A. C. Binnie, 1985. Available from Scottish Borders Library Service.
Earlston Monumental Inscriptions, published by Borders Family History Society, 2005 - available through BFHS and Scottish Borders Library Service.
Website of Earlston Parish Church - http://www.earlstonchurch.org

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Future posts will look at other aspects of church life.

In Case You Missed:

For a fuller picture of the information in the Kirk Sessions Records, see an earlier blog post HERE.

The Auld Earlston Group is grateful for the photographs and postcards featured here. It will be pleased to receive donations or loans of further material which can be scanned and returned to you. E-mail: auldearlston@aol.com

THANK YOU

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Thursday, 25 January 2018

Childhood Escapades in Earlston

John Moffat (1919-2016) spent his early childhood in Earlston in the 1920's where his father Peter, opened the village’s first garage. John was an adventurous little boy, always getting into scrapes, which he recalled in his biography “How I Sank the Bismarck”. In the Second World War, he became a lieutenant commander pilot in the Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm and was involved in the attack on the German battleship.

Business in Earlston

"My father's garage was located next to the [West End} church and on the other side of the road was the local bakers and next to that the public house {Black Bull}. The bakers was an attractive place for a young boy, with its iced buns and doughnuts in the window. I was allowed to go down to the cellar where the dough was mixed in large tubs, then cut up into portions to be baked into rolls and bread.

Looking west from the Square

There was almost no motor traffic in Earlston, and the roads were covered in layers of stone chip spread over hot tar. The Council road workers came every year to renew the surface. Piles of grit and barrels of tar were left by the side of the road, ready to be used. Somehow I managed to get into one of these barrels and cried for help. My father rescued me and and dragged me into the garage where he cleaned me up with paraffin.

My father's business prospered . The garage was usually busy, as cars and buses were starting to replace horse drawn vehicles. I enjoyed loitering in the area and became fascinated by engines and anything mechanical. My father bought a chassis from Albion, lorry manufacturer in Glasgow, and had the local joiner build a charabanc body on it. It was the first bus to operate in Earlston and was often hired out to local clubs and church groups for excursions or picnics. The wheels still had wooden spokes and rims, like the horse drawn carts, On very hot days, the wood would dry out and shrink, so the driver had to carry a bucket of water to keep the wood wet and prevent the wheels collapsing."

Fairs in the Square

"Earlston like many Scottish towns was built around a large open square. Here each year they had the Hirings in which farm workers from the surrounding area would come, hoping to find employment for the next 12 months. It was a giant annual labour exchange and it could be a desperate time for people. Rural areas saw a great deal of poverty.

A Hiring Fair in the 1930's

"The Square was also the site of a yearly summer fair and then it would be filled with all kinds of sideshows and entertainers - fire eaters, jugglers and boxing booths. The arrival of the fair always brought great excitement. Steam driven tractors would haul wagons into the Square and would be set up to drive roundabouts and steam organs."

A Wedding Custom

"Entertainment was by and large a communal affair. I loved to watch weddings. The groom would have purchased a rugby ball from the local saddler. After the marriage ceremony, the groom would kick the ball as hard and as high as he could. This was a sign for the men to rush after it, and try to grab it. The struggle could go on to dusk, it was taken very seriously. There was no prize for this - gaining the ball was the end in itself."

A Walk to Cowdenknowes

"I wandered far and wide with Wiggy, my pet terrier . My favourite walk was to the large house of Cowdenknowes. I was always welcome at the gardener's cottage on the estate where there was always something fresh to eat - a piece of cake from the oven or an apple from the orchard."

The Appeal of the Railway

"I also used to wander off to the railway station. The porter there was also called Moffat, though I was not aware of any family connection. The train drivers and firemen on the local route soon got to know me. I found the steam trains enthralling - belching steam and smoke, shrieking and clanking as they pulled to a halt, then heaving away, gathering speed. The crews were willing to let me ride on the footplate and it was a regular occurrence for me to ride the four miles south to Newtown St. Boswells and back. It was enormously exciting , with the heat from the firebox, the gleaming brass levers and dials , the smell of hot oil and smoke - and me in the company of the overalled men in charge of this monster."

Two trains in Earlston Station
Copyright © A R Edwards and Son, Selkirk. (Cathy Chick Collection). All Rights Reserved

A Spell in the Cells

"One day | got into my head to visit a good friend of my grandfather , a man called Mr Deans, pub landlord of the Black Bull in Lauder. I hopped on a local bus and hid beneath a seat. But someone must have seen me and told my parents. My father clearly thought this was the last straw and telephoned the local constable in Lauder, and this fine fellow was waiting for me. I can still see him with his blue cape, his helmet and a fierce waxed moustache. Towering over me, he grabbed me by the ear and none too gently marched me off to the police station, up the iron steps to the front door. There I was led to the cells. I am sure my distress took the edge off my father's anger when he came to take me home."

Crashing the Doctor's Car

"About 1925, my father sold Dr. Young a new car a Model T. Ford, It had been fitted with what was then a very modern invention - an electric starter button as an alternative to cranking the engine over by hand with a starting handle. Motor cars were still a novelty in those days, and I was fascinated by the concept of the electric starter button.

One day the doctor's pristine black Ford was parked outside the big grocer's shop in the Square. I took the opportunity to clamber up into it and pressed firmly on the starter button. To my utter surprise, the car leapt forward and smashed into the plate glass windows of the grocer's shop. There was utter chaos. The shop assistants were screaming, people all around rushed to see what had happened - all this accompanied by my shock and tears at the realisation of the trouble I was in. Then the doctor and my father added to the tumult. My father treated me very sternly. I was forbidden treats and was told I must stay indoors. "

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Soon after. John Moffat's family left Earlston and moved near Gateshead, returning after a few years to Kelso.

Auld Earlston is very grateful to Mr Scott Aiton and especially to Pat Stirling, John Moffat's daughter who gave permission to quote from her father's book, for which she holds the copyright.

Photographs are from the Auld Earlston Collection

Monday, 15 January 2018

Travel around Earlston in Times Past.

AN EARLSTON TRAVEL TIMELINE

c, 1737 - Craigsford Bridge was built over the Leader Water, carrying what was then the main route north and south.

1765 - The Turnpike Act authorised the planning and building of a new road from Lauder to Kelso via Purveshaugh, near Earlston.

1768 - A Turnpike Act provided a new road between Lauder and the Tweed at Leaderfoot, the route going by Blainslie and Craisgford to the west of Earlston. with considerable improvement to the existing route between Newtown and Jedburgh and onto Carter Bar.

1778 - A bridge was built over the River Tweed at Leaderfoot, replacing the ferry crossing. Its narrow structure, more suited to horses and carts, remained in use for 200 years, until a new road bridge spanned the river in 1974.

1795 - The first regular coach service introduced between Kelso and Edinburgh, via Smailholm and Lauder, with a later stop at Earlston for changing horses. The journey initially took 10 hours!

1830's - The "Tweedside" coach between Kelso and Edinburgh offered a daily service, leaving Edinburgh 8am. Lauder 12.30pm, Earlston 1.30pm and arriving at Kelso 2pm - a six hour journey.

1834 - Road built between Earlston and Greenlaw.

1849 - The Waverley Rail Line opened between Edinburgh and Hawick, extended to Carlisle in 1862.

1850 - A new road was built following the line of the Leader Water, between Lauder and Newtown, via Earlston (the current Thorn Street).

1852 - As the railways took over as a mode of travel, the last coach service was withdrawn from the Borders. On country roads, the only vehicles were private carriages and farm carts.

1863 - The Berwickshire Railway reached Earlston.

1865 - The opening of Leaderfoot Viaduct and the completion of the Berwickshire Railway line from Reston to Newtown.

1890's - The introduction of the "safety bicycle" brought in the first hey days of leisure cycling.

1890's - The Arrol-Johnston, built by George Johnston in Glasgow, was one of the first cars ever built in the world.

1903 - Wilbur and Orville Wright made the first powered flight.

1931 - Earlston Aerodrome opened at Purveshaugh, with a William Rodger's plane offering air displays and passenger flights.

1948 - Major floods in Berwickshire restricted train traffic through Earlston to goods only.

1965 - The Berwickshire Railway closed, as part of the Beeching cuts.

1974 - A new concrete bridge was built over the River Tweed at Leaderfoot to take modern day A68 traffic.