Ayr
Ayr maps (1 available)
Map of Ayrshire
Beautifully hand-drawn and coloured, dating from around 1840
Ayr books (2 available)
Oban - A History and Celebration
Hardback
So You Think You Know? Oban
Hardback
- 3 photos on Ayr appear in 1 Frith books - View photos of Ayr
- Read extracts and see photos from these books on Ayr and Ayrshire
Ayr memories
Read and share memories of Ayr and Ayrshire inspired by Frith photos
The mid Fifties
I recall my pals and I going to Ayr harbour and picking up the herring and mackerel, which dropped off the baskets when the boats were unloaded, and selling them round the nieghbours' houses. Herring were 1 old penny and mackerel 2 old pennies. Today (2008) a herring costs £1 each! 240 times dearer.
We would make dens up Craigie Woods and sleep out. No dangers then. My wee sister aged 4 walked to High Street from Fotheringham Road and got a bus to to Heathfield School and back herself. Try that today!!
Cheers, Jimmy Manson, Ayr.
Contributed by james manson
Fish & Chips
Having fish & chips from the Vesta Cafe on the New Road, they were the best.
Playing the puggy at Favali's in the New Road.
Playing down at the Newton Shore. Skating at Ayr Ice Rink.
Climbing the fence and getting into the dog track from Elmbank Street on Sunday morning to pick up anything of value the drunks had dropped the night before at the races, usually money. Working for Cowan the Butcher as a delivery boy and apprentice.
The Odeon club for kids on Saturday morning, to see Flash Gordon and the likes.
Newton Park Higher Grade School.
Contributed by Donald Pettigrew
Holiday memories
Happily walking along Ayr beach with an ice cream from the Wellington Cafe, paddling in the sea with my parents! Eating wonderful fish and chips on a windy day. Getting breakfast rolls from one of the many bakers to take back to my aunt's. Going skating at the ice rink with my cousins.
Contributed by liz webb
Ayrshire memories
The mid Fifties
I recall my pals and I going to Ayr harbour and picking up the herring and mackerel, which dropped off the baskets when the boats were unloaded, and selling them round the nieghbours' houses. Herring were 1 old penny and mackerel 2 old pennies. Today (2008) a herring costs £1 each! 240 times dearer.
We would make dens up Craigie Woods and sleep out. No dangers then. My wee sister aged 4 walked to High Street from Fotheringham Road and got a bus to to Heathfield School and back herself. Try that today!!
Cheers, Jimmy Manson, Ayr.
A memory of Ayr contributed by james manson
Extracts From Ayr & Ayrshire books
Famous as the birthplace of John Macadam in 1756 and of Robert Burns in 1759, Ayr was founded under a charter granted by William the Lion. The ‘Twa Brigs of Ayr’ became famous as a result of a poem by Robert Burns. The Auld Brig, which is thought to date from the 13th century, is still standing. The New Brig was rebuilt in 1879 having lasted less than 100 years.
An extract from from"Scotland".
The ‘Twa Brigs of Ayr’ became famous thanks to a poem by Robert Burns. Things had changed by the time this photograph was taken. The Auld Brig, which is thought to date from the 13th century, is still standing. The New Brig was rebuilt in 1879 having lasted less than 100 years.
An extract from from"Scotland Photographic Memories".
Little survives of the old town, although parts the former Greyfriars church of St John, where Robert the Bruce held a Parliament in 1315, are thought to date back to its beginnings.The 130 ft high neo-Gothic Wallace Tower, situated in the High Street, was completed in 1832. It replaced an earlier structure in which Sir William Wallace was alleged to have been imprisoned.
An extract from from"Scotland Photographic Memories".
Famous as the birthplace of John Macadam in 1756 and of Robert Burns in 1759, Ayr was founded under a charter granted by William the Lion. This view looks towards the New Brig and Main Street. On the right, at the junction with the High Street, are the town buildings, the handsome spire of which is considered to be one of the finest in the Lowlands.
An extract from from"Scotland Photographic Memories".
Little survives of the old town, although parts of the former Greyfriars church of St John, where Robert the Bruce held a Parliament in 1315, are thought to date back to its origins. The 130ft-high neo-Gothic Wallace Tower, in the High Street, was completed in 1832. It replaced an earlier structure in which Sir William Wallace was alleged to have been imprisoned.
An extract from from"Scotland".