120th Anniversary
Kirkintilloch celebrates a new ‘civic mansion house’ - the town hall
ONE hundred years ago £1000 was given to the people of Kirkintilloch by a benefactor to help realise the long-held dream of building a town hall.
At the start of the century the Kirkintilloch area had in effect two town councils - one that had been elected by landowners and another made up of police commissioners who were democratically elected.
In 1901 the police commissioners' group also became known as the town council and took on responsibility for lighting, policing and cleansing.
By 1908 the old town council, that had been put in place by the landowners, wound down.
One of the first decisions the new town council had to take was when, where and who should build the new town hall.
Part of the finance for the hall had been gifted to the town by one time resident William Watson MacKay, who went on to become the Provost of Dunoon,
His £1,000 gift was added to £3,000 raised by the town to build the hall.
After many legal wranglings the site at Union Street. Kirkintilloch was bought for £1,600 in 1903.
The building was designed by Walker and Ramsey of Glasgow and the memorial stone was laid by Provost Andrew Graham Service in 1905.
But the much publicised building did not open until September 1906, with the staging to the local Horticultural Society Show.
Part of the controversy surrounding the town hall was the amount of time it took the Burgh to get the project going, despite the town's motto "Ca canna but ca awa", meaning "go carefully but keep on going".
Shortly before the opening of the hall the Herald wrote: "Ca' Canna certainly describes the burgh's municipal policy since it shook itself free from its old baronial administration, and while substantial progress has certainly been made, there have been periods when "ca' awa" seemed to be overlooked."
But it said: "At long and last Kirkintilloch is in possession of a brand new town hall, up-to-date in its design and equipment, and thus another of our long felt wants has been supplied."
The campaign for the Hall was helped along by William Watson Mackay, who was originally from Kirkintilloch but went on to become provost of Dunoon, when he left the town £1000 in his will, as long as a further £3000 was publicly funded within four years.
The council of the day, led by Provost Service, found the money within the time and the Herald said: "A generous response to their appeal provided the necessary money and then the question of the situation of the town hall arose, and proved to be one of much greater difficulty than that of the funds.
PARK
"Public criticism has been aroused over this matter to a degree hitherto unknown. Ultimately they were faced by either of two alternatives - to acquire the site in Union Street . . . or to go to the public park. The latter received scant consideration by the Council and Committees."
But it was celebrated by all when it was complete, at a cost of £8000 and the Herald said: "... to see Kirkintilloch in possession of such a building had been the dream of many an ardent Councillor. But those all died in faith and the idea has never lost its vitality, 'til today we are in immediate prospect of processing a civic mansion house that will do the community credit."
One hundred years on and the Town Hall is again courting controversy as it is earmarked for a new health and social care centre as part of the Kirkintilloch Initiative's plans for the town.
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