Ayton Local History Society
and
Ayton Heritage
====== Ayton Berwickshire ======
Organisations and Businesses click on underlined links to access information
Ayton Churches History
Some information relating to the churches which have existed in Ayton.
Ayton had a nine hole golf course at the end of the 19th and into the 20th century. It was located on the banks of the Eye upstream from the Jubilee Bridge.
Ayton Cow Club
In the 19th and early 20th centuries many people had small plots of land attached to their houses, from which they produced fodder for their cow or cows. Some villages possessed common grazings, on which village cow keepers had the right to graze their animals during the grazing season. It was to assist these small cow keepers that the Ayton and District Society for Insuring Cows was originally founded, each member paying an annual subscription for each cow in his possession. In the event of the cow dying, or being slaughtered by order of a veterinary surgeon, a compensation payment was made to the owner, this payment being a valuable contribution towards the purchase of a new cow.
In 1949 during the centenary celebrations for the society a poem titled "A Stitch in Time" was read out and it can be read by clicking on the button below. This has been reproduced from the book "East Berwickshire in Rhyme" by Jim Crosbie where it is also recorded that in 1949 there were 36 Cow Club members and 57 cows insured. The History Society is grateful to Jim for allowing us to include the poem here.
Ayton Horticultural Society
There has been a Horticultural Society in Ayton since 1881 and continues to this day. The main event is the annual show, more commonly known locally as the Floo'r Show. The schedule for the first show in 1881 and the report in the Berwickshire News are shown on these links.
Ayton Home Guard was active during World War 2. These documents were given to the History Society by Sheila Stoddart of Doughty's Solicitors, where they had been kept since the 1940's. The main document is the register of 115 volunteers. This is listed twice - firstly as it was in the original document and then alphabetically to assist in any search for particular family names. Some information (for example date of joining, national identity number and age) were not recorded at first but appear later. There are also details of transport available to the Platoon including privately owned cars, motor cycles, lorries and tractors.
Papermaking was an important industry in Ayton employing many people. A devastating fire in 1868 destroyed the Millbank mill although Bleachfield continued until 1942. John Reid has done much research into this subject and delivered a talk to the History Society in 2001 and again in 2013. He has kindly agreed for his work to be published here.
A talk given to the History Society by Irvine Inglis. It covers some general history about Ayton as well as that of the sawmill. Thanks to Irvine for giving permission for his notes to be published here.