History

Dailly parish in the Carrick District of Ayrshire is situated in a broad open valley about two miles wide through which runs the River Girvan.   The parish contains extensive upland areas to the north, extending to Kirkoswald parish and to the south extending to Barr parish, which was at one time part of Dailly parish as far as the summit of Kirriereoch and the northern shores of Loch Moan.   The eastern end of Dailly parish reaches as far as Kirkmichael and Straiton parishes and to the west it is bound by the parish of Girvan, which like Barr was once part of Dailly parish.

Two roads between Maybole and Girvan run through the parish of Dailly, one on the north side of the river and the other on the south.   Both of these roads follow the valley that is well wooded and gives picturesque views of the hill areas on either side of the River Girvan.   There are two main communities in the parish – Old Dailly and New Dailly.

Old Dailly

Old Dailly is now little more than a hamlet with its old school, a few private cottages, four council houses and an old village hall, that has recently been sold but was built and gifted to the community by the Todd family of Trochrague.   The main feature of the village is its ruined 14th century church and churchyard.   The church was an important centre for the ancient parish that was named Dalmakerran.   The churchyard contains the graves of several covenanters, and two Charter Stones which are mentioned in Sir Walter Scott’s “Lord of The Isles”.

New Dailly

Now-a-days the ‘New’ has been dropped and the village is known simply as Dailly, which came into being in 1690 when worship was discontinued at Old Dailly and a new church was built at Milncavish around which the village of New Dailly grew up.   In those early days the village consisted of the church, a manse, a mill, and a few dwelling houses in the vicinity of what became Main Street and Back Road.   By the end of the 19th century many more houses had been built but the village still only consisted of Main Street and Back Road.   Up to the 1950s more people resided in outlying areas than were resident in the village.   Electricity was introduced to the village in 1946.

Modern Housing

The first council houses built in Dailly were during the 1920s at Eldinton and these were completely modernised during 1995.   Wood Street was developed circa 1937 and no further houses were built until circa 1946 when metal structure homes were built at Eldinton and Victory Crescent, where a large number of prefabricated houses were also built.   From 1948 until the late 1950s an extensive building programme was undertaken at Hadyard Terrace, Woodside and Main Street and many of the families from the outlying communities were re-housed.

Employment

From early times coal mining and agricultural work were the main occupations.   Coal was first mined in Dailly by the Monks of Crossraguel Abbey and records of mining go back to 1405.   Since those times there have been in the region of 110 pits of various sizes lying between Killochan and Kilkerran, and all on the right bank of the river.   The last mine to close was Dalquharran Mine in 1977 with the loss of 120 jobs.   No large disasters have been recorded in Dailly coalmines but there have been many fatal accidents involving one or two men.   The last fatal accident was on the last day that Dalquharran Mine closed when a Givan man was killed.   The best-known accident however was in November 1835 when John Brown was entombed for twenty-three days in Kilgrammie Pit.   He survived for three days after he was rescued.   The incident was depicted in a television play that was awarded best play of the year in 1966.   An opera entitled “The Decision” also depicted the incident, and was first performed in Covent Garden in 1967.

Due to modern machinery, new farming methods, and death duties imposed on large estates, a great number of farm labourers have lost their employment.   For example,  at Bargany until just after the Second World War between 30 and 40 people were employed and there are now only 3 or 4 employees.

Until circa 1939 a large number of men were employed in forestry and within the parish there were several saw mills.

Within the parish, Ailsa Wood Products, Brunston Golf Course, Jim Wilmer Timber, and Seasons are the main employers, with other smaller businesses taking local people.   There are quite a number of self-employed tradesman, such as joiners, plasterers, and plumbers.   The largest percentage of those in work are employees at Grangestone Industrial Estate, with others commuting to Ayr, Maybole and Girvan.   Historically, due to lack of employment a large number of young men enlisted in HM Forces and no less than five of these saw action during the Gulf War.

Education

Schools were in the past maintained at Bargany, Kilgrammie, Wallacetown, Old Dailly and New Dailly.   Since the 1950s only Old Dailly survived along with the new village school.   Old Dailly eventually closed in 1970 and Wallacetown was re-opened as a school for handicapped children but it too closed during the 1990s.   Dailly Primary School has an average of 95 pupils and is a feeder school for Girvan Academy and Carrick Academy, Maybole.

Crime

A Police Office was established in Dailly in May 1859 and since that date there have been thirty-one resident constables.   In addition many natives of Dailly have served in various Forces throughout the United Kingdom and abroad and many of these have risen to high ranks.   During 1996 the Police Office and House were closed and the police officers are now based out of Girvan.

Social

The village of Dailly supports many organisations and clubs with something for all age groups.   Amongst these are:

Bowling Club
Club Diamond
Curling
Fishing Club
Fitness Club
Football
Home and Away
Homing Society
Horticultural Society
Jolly Beggar’s
Karate
Masonic Lodge
Over 60s Club
Scouts, Beavers and Cubs
SWRI
Women’s Guild
Young Anglers
Youth Club

There have been other clubs such as Scottish Country Dancing, Yoga, Line Dancing, Piping, Historical Society, Girls Brigade, and others but these have often been disbanded due to lack of numbers.

Amenities include:

Activity / Sports Barn
Church
Church Hall
Coffee Shop – Tillys
Community Centre
Co-op Supermarket
Doctors Surgery – two doctors in attendance
Football Field and Changing Room
Masonic Hall
Newsagents and General Store
Play Park
Post Office
Public Houses – Greenhead Hotel and Mid Pub
Resident Grocer Van
School Field
Scout Hut
Travelling Butcher and Fish Van


The Activity / Sports Barn is part of the South Ayrshire Council facilities and provides activities for all ages, including Indoor Football, Badminton, Squash, Weights, Gymnastics.

The Community Centre is one of the best halls in South Ayrshire, having a full-size snooker table, library with 6 computer stations, a large main hall, various smaller rooms, kitchen and toilet facilities.   The Centre is used for a variety of social functions, such as Bingo Nights, Dances and Weddings, Carpet Bowling, as well as Community Council meetings.

Dailly and Barr Horticultural Society hold a bi-annual Flower Show in Dailly alternating each year with Barr.

The Scout Hut has recently been renovated with funding assistance from the Hadyard Hill Community Benefit Fund.   This has made a huge difference to the facility available to the Scouts, Beavers and Cubs.

Antiquities

The parish has connections with Robert the Bruce and has featured in many national historical events.   There are several buildings and sites listed as Ancient Monuments together with many archaeological sites listed by the Secretary of State for Scotland, and there are at least three listed Sites of Special Scientific Interest.

© David M Hunter FSA Scot., 2001

• John Brown, Collier, at Kilgrammie Coal Pit
• Old Dailly Church and Churchyard
• The Blue Stones of Old Dailly
• The Rev. John Thomson HRSA

Location: Hadyard Hill Communities / Dailly Community / History

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