
Kirkmichael (
Gaelic
Gaelic (pronounced for Irish Gaelic and for Scots Gaelic) is an adjective that means "pertaining to the Gaels". It may refer to:
Languages
* Gaelic languages or Goidelic languages, a linguistic group that is one of the two branches of the Insul ...
: ''Cille Mhìcheil'', "the church of St Michael") is a village in
South Ayrshire
South Ayrshire (; , ) is one of thirty-two council areas of Scotland, covering the southern part of Ayrshire. It borders onto Dumfries and Galloway, East Ayrshire and North Ayrshire. South Ayrshire had an estimated population in 2021 of 112,45 ...
,
Scotland
Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...
, located between
Patna
Patna (; , ISO 15919, ISO: ''Paṭanā''), historically known as Pataliputra, Pāṭaliputra, is the List of state and union territory capitals in India, capital and largest city of the state of Bihar in India. According to the United Nations, ...
,
Maybole
Maybole (, ) is a town and former burgh of barony and police burgh in South Ayrshire, Scotland. It had an estimated population of in . It is situated south of Ayr and southwest of Glasgow by the Glasgow and South Western Railway. The town is ...
and
Straiton
Straiton is a village on the River Girvan in South Ayrshire in Scotland. It lies in the hills between Kirkmichael, Dalmellington, Crosshill, and Maybole.
Straiton was mainly built in the 18th century to house mill workers and weavers workin ...
. It was also a
civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...
. In 1991 it had a population of 647.
The village
Kirkmichael lies east of
Maybole
Maybole (, ) is a town and former burgh of barony and police burgh in South Ayrshire, Scotland. It had an estimated population of in . It is situated south of Ayr and southwest of Glasgow by the Glasgow and South Western Railway. The town is ...
and started life as the focus of a well populated rural parish served by its church. Today it is a largely white harled small village set amid the rolling hills of
South Ayrshire
South Ayrshire (; , ) is one of thirty-two council areas of Scotland, covering the southern part of Ayrshire. It borders onto Dumfries and Galloway, East Ayrshire and North Ayrshire. South Ayrshire had an estimated population in 2021 of 112,45 ...
, a drive south of central
Ayr
Ayr ( ; ; , meaning "confluence of the River Àir"), is a town situated on the southwest coast of Scotland. A former royal burgh, today it is the administrative centre of South Ayrshire Council, and the historic county town of Ayrshire. With ...
.
Its origins date back to the 13th century when John de Gemmelstoun founded a church beside the Dyrock Burn here, which he dedicated to St. Michael. For much of its early life the village was called Kirkmichael of Gemilston, after its founder, but the name was eventually simplified.
The village church dates back to 1787 and is a fairly typical T-plan design intended to provide a large number of seats within a fairly small space, all exposed to the full force of the preacher's oratory.
The surrounding churchyard reflects its much greater age, though the attractive lich gate leading to it only dates back to 1702, according to the inscription on its bell. The lich gate was intended to accommodate mourners at funerals.
Kirkmichael focuses on two intersecting streets, largely occupied by white cottages built for hand-weavers in the 1790s. The most unusual building is the red stone McCosh Hall in Patna Road. This serves as the village hall and in 1898 was gifted to the village by
James McCosh
James McCosh (April 1, 1811 – November 16, 1894) was a philosopher of the Scottish School of Common Sense. He was president of Princeton University 1868–88.
Biography
McCosh was born into a Covenanter, Covenanting family in Ay ...
, President of
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private university, private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial ...
, whose family came from this part of Ayrshire. At the junction of Patna Road and Straiton Road lies the white-painted Kirkmichael Arms, a long one-storey village inn.
It has a pub, a restaurant and one post office.
Kirkmichael House on the south west side of the village is a Scottish baronial mansion dating from the 17th century. It was originally the home of the noble
Kennedy family
The Kennedy family () is an American political family that has long been prominent in American politics, public service, entertainment, and business. In 1884, 35 years after the family's arrival from County Wexford, Ireland, Patrick Joseph "P ...
, before becoming a miners' welfare home and a boarding school.
Notable people
*
John McCosh
John McCosh or John MacCosh or James McCosh (Kirkmichael, South Ayrshire, Kirkmichael, Ayrshire, 5 March 1805 – 18 January / 16 March 1885) was a Scottish army surgeon who made Documentary photography, documentary photographs whilst serving in ...
, army surgeon and photographer, the earliest war photographer whose name is known.
*
Samuel McGaw
Samuel McGaw VC (1838 – 22 July 1878) was a Scottish recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.
Details
McGaw was about 36 years old, and a ...
, recipient of the
Victoria Cross
The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious decoration of the Orders, decorations, and medals of the United Kingdom, British decorations system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British ...
.
*
John Willet, engineer. Attended the village primary school.
Guitar festival
Kirkmichael was the venue for the Kirkmichael International Guitar Festival. From 1999 until 2005 (except 2004, when the event was not held) for three days in May, Kirkmichael became Scotland's
guitar
The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...
village
and played host to thousands of music lovers from around the world. They came together for a weekend catering to all musical tastes from
folk
Folk or Folks may refer to:
Sociology
*Nation
*People
* Folklore
** Folk art
** Folk dance
** Folk hero
** Folk horror
** Folk music
*** Folk metal
*** Folk punk
*** Folk rock
** Folk religion
* Folk taxonomy
Arts, entertainment, and media
* Fo ...
to
flamenco
Flamenco () is an art form based on the various folkloric music traditions of southern Spain, developed within the Gitanos, gitano subculture of the region of Andalusia, and also having historical presence in Extremadura and Region of Murcia, ...
and
jazz
Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...
to
rock and roll
Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock-n-roll, and rock 'n' roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from African ...
.
Industry
The
mining industry
Mining is the extraction of valuable geological materials and minerals from the surface of the Earth. Mining is required to obtain most materials that cannot be grown through agricultural processes, or feasibly created artificially in a la ...
that dominated much of South Ayrshire left Kirkmichael unscathed. The same cannot be said for many of those employed in the industry, and it is a mark of the village's attractive location and environment that in the early 20th century the large Kirkmichael House, to the south of the village, was converted into a miners' welfare home, while another was opened near
Cloncaird Castle to the south east. Both closed in the 1950s.
References
External links
*
Kirkmichael Village WebsiteThe Kirkmichael Churchyard, Covenanters, Landowners and VC holders.
{{South Ayrshire
Villages in Carrick, Scotland
Parishes in Ayrshire