55°49′44″N 3°55′19″W / 55.829°N 3.922°W / 55.829; -3.922
52-674: The Bishops' Conference of Scotland (BCOS), under the trust of the Catholic National Endowment Trust , and based in Airdrie, North Lanarkshire , is an episcopal conference for archbishops and bishops of the Catholic Church in Scotland . The conference is primarily made up of the presiding bishops of Scotland's eight dioceses as well as bishops who have retired . As of 2024, the president of
104-541: A John Mackay voting despite being under 10 years old. In 1824, it was decided to build the Airdrie Town House , originally designed by Alexander Baird and now a local landmark known as the 'town clock'. In 1832, the Town House was used as a hospital due to the cholera outbreak of this year. The enormous growth in population was not due to high birthrate, but instead due to an influx of residents from
156-480: A commuter town. In fact, housing construction in Airdrie has been very prominent in recent years, with builders developing a number of brownfield sites following the closure of various factories such as Boots (who closed their factory in 2004). Nonetheless, it does retain significant economic activity. There are two trading estates in the town, Brownsburn Industrial Estate and Osprey Trade Park. Policing in Airdrie
208-518: A frequent train service to Glasgow via Coatbridge Sunnyside and Easterhouse . In 2010, the Airdrie–Bathgate rail link re-opened providing Airdrie with a direct commuter train service to Bathgate , Livingston North and Edinburgh Waverley . Drumgelloch railway station serves the eastern end of the town. Including the satellite village of Caldercruix, Airdrie is served by four stations; Caldercruix , Drumgelloch , Airdrie , and Coatdyke , on
260-577: A high plain. A further, non-Gaelic alternative is the Brythonic , i.e. Cumbric or North Welsh , ard tref (becoming ardre by process of assimilation), meaning a high steading or farmstead, which would date back to the times of the Kingdom of Strathclyde , before the expansion of Gaelic or English speech into the region. Airthrey Castle in Stirlingshire may have a similar derivation. There
312-720: A regional centre for services and retail, as well as being a commuter settlement within the Central Belt . Historically part of Lanarkshire , Airdrie forms a conurbation with its neighbour Coatbridge , in what was formerly the Monklands district, with a population of approximately 90,000. Airdrie's name first appeared in the Register of the Great Seal of Scotland ( Latin : Registrum Magni Sigilii Regum Scotorum ) in 1373 as Ardre. By 1546 it had become Ardry and by 1587 it
364-472: A religious, educational or charitable purpose for the benefit of the community throughout Scotland; and in addition for the benefit of students for the priesthood at home and abroad including the maintenance of the following colleges, all now closed; (a) St. Mary's College, Blairs , Aberdeen , Aberdeenshire ; (b) St. Peter's College , Cardross , Dumbarton ; (c) St. Andrew's College, Drygrange , Melrose , Roxburghshire ." The Bishops' Conference of Scotland
416-532: A substantial part of the population of over 2,500 around the turn of the 19th century. Given its large number of weavers, its geographic location and a large number of unemployed soldiers following the end of the Napoleonic Wars , Airdrie became a major centre of support for the Radical War of 1820. The rapid pace of population growth continued and by 1821 there were 4,862 inhabitants. At this time,
468-471: A weekly market in the town of 'Airdry'. This helped develop Airdrie from a 'farm town' into a thriving 'market town'. However, Airdrie really came to prominence through its weaving industry. Airdrie Weavers Society was founded in 1781 and flax was being grown in sixteen farms in and around the burgh . In the last decade of the eighteenth century, coal mining was in progress and around thirty colliers were employed. Weaving continued to flourish making up
520-714: Is a full member of Action of Churches Together in Scotland . The BCOS sends a representative to the Ecumenical Relations Committee of the Church of Scotland and is always invited to send a delegate to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland . Source: Airdrie, North Lanarkshire Airdrie ( / ˈ ɛər d r i / ; Scots : Airdrie ; Scottish Gaelic : An t-Àrd Ruigh )
572-478: Is a town in North Lanarkshire , Scotland . It lies on a plateau 400 ft (130 m) above sea level , 12 miles (19 km) east of Glasgow . As of 2012 , it had a population of 37,130. Airdrie developed as a market town in the late 17th century following an Act of Parliament allowing it to hold a weekly market. It later grew in prominence as a centre for weaving and manufacturing, as well as being
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#1732787053135624-779: Is also a member of several international organisations including the Council of European Bishops' Conferences and the Commission of the Bishops' Conferences of the European Community . Before 1980, the organisation first registered with Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator and stated that its objective was to "promote, establish, develop, expand, contribute to, support and maintain facilities, projects, schemes and institutions of all kinds having
676-667: Is currently a gap in the National Cycle Network route at Devol Glen, Port Glasgow ." Other than the Sustrans path, there are no cycle lanes in Airdrie. Historical transport links include:- Monklands (district) Monklands ( Bad nam Manach in Scottish Gaelic ) was, between 1975 and 1996, one of nineteen local government districts in the Strathclyde region of Scotland . The district
728-572: Is found in the modern name Drumpellier, Metheraugh is Medrox; Mayeuth is Myvot and Clarnephin refers to the North Calder Water in the east of the parish (from old Brittonic name claur n afon meaning plain of the river). Dunduffes has become directly translated into the modern Black Hill which, as the Charter states, lies at the eastern extremity of the parish. The Charter does not mention anything resembling Airdrie, although this
780-477: Is no evidence to support the claim ( George Chalmers , Caledonia ) that Airdrie is the site of the ancient battle of Arderyth . Under the patronage of King Malcolm IV of Scotland Cistercian monks established an abbey at Melrose in 1136. Five years later a daughter house was founded at Newbattle Abbey in Lothian. In 1160, Malcolm granted lands in central Scotland to the monks of Newbattle. These became known as
832-635: Is still operated in the present building by the Airdrie Astronomical Association a Scottish astronautic and astronomy society and registered charity. By the turn of the century variety shows were becoming popular in the area and by 1911 the Pavilion in Graham Street was built which after initially being used as a music hall started showing cinematographic pictures. Unfortunately it was destroyed by fire in 1917 but
884-496: Is undertaken by Police Scotland . Airdrie is part of Coatbridge Area Command with Chief Inspector Kenny MacLeod as the Area Commander. Airdrie also forms part of NA (or Monklands) sub division which includes Coatbridge and the surrounding area. There is one police office in Airdrie and this is open 24 hours. Airdrie Sheriff Court is a modern building in Graham Street which provides a comprehensive local court service for
936-515: Is where Airdrie is located. Airdrie owes its existence to its location on the 'Hogs Back' – a ridge of land running from east to west. One very important aspect of the town's history was the Cistercian monks of Newbattle Abbey , which is why the area is called the Monklands. The monks were farmers and some of their place names survive, e.g., Ryefield and Whifflet (the wheat flats). Much of
988-482: The Airdrie & Coatbridge Advertiser in 1855, which is still the most popular local paper today. The prison was legalised in 1859 and had 51 cells. Airdrie Working Men's Club was established in 1869. Also around this time, football and cricket began to emerge as popular sports. Following the codification of association football rules a local team called Excelsior was formed in 1878 which would later be renamed Airdrieonians . Horse race meetings were also held in
1040-635: The Airdrie and Shotts constituency. This has slightly different boundaries from those of the UK Parliament constituency of the same name. The current Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for Airdrie and Shotts is Neil Grey MSP ( Scottish National Party ), who won this seat in 2021. In addition to this, Airdrie is represented by seven regional MSPs from the Central Scotland electoral region . Before Brexit , it
1092-590: The Diocese of Motherwell , currently led by Bishop Joseph Toal . The Bishops' Conference of Scotland (effectively the Church's headquarters in Scotland) is situated in Airdrie. Congregational Church – Airdrie's Congregational churches are associated with the Congregational Federation . Other Airdrie railway station is on the electrified North Clyde Line . This railway provides
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#17327870531351144-597: The Highlands and predominantly Ireland. This followed the Highland potato famine of the mid-1840s and also reflected the change from cottage industry to heavy industry in the area. Most of the Irish immigrant population were involved with mining and labouring. This led to an increase in ironwork foundries around the area. Because of this explosion in industry, railway links were established starting in 1826. By 1862,
1196-640: The House of Commons . In 2005, changes to the constituency boundaries saw part of its area transferred to Motherwell and Wishaw , offset by the addition of part of Hamilton North and Bellshill . The location has been represented by several prominent Labour MPs in recent years: The current MP for the constituency is the Scottish National Party 's Anum Qaisar . For the purposes of the Scottish Parliament , Airdrie forms part of
1248-617: The Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994 which replaced regions and districts with unitary council areas . North Lanarkshire council area was formed covering the abolished districts of Monklands, Motherwell , Cumbernauld and Kilsyth , and the Chryston area of Strathkelvin district. The area is still informally referred to as Monklands. The hospital in Airdrie is University Hospital Monklands (previously Monklands District General Hospital), and football matches between
1300-688: The National Mòd in 1993. In the 21st century, the town has continued to grow as a residential settlement, with development and conversion of some town centre buildings, such as the Historic Orrs Department Store into new homes. In 2024, permission was given for a significant expansion of the town, with the creation of up to 3,000 new homes in East Airdrie on former mining land. Airdrie is represented by several tiers of elected government. North Lanarkshire Council ,
1352-568: The Second World War but in 1949 the Boots pharmaceutical company and Banner Textiles Ltd were attracted to the town (between them employing 1200). With this impetus, new companies began to consider Airdrie as a viable option for business and in 1958 Pye opened employing over 1000 people. The emergence of industrial estates was also prevalent around this time (Newhouse, Chapelhall, and Brownsburn). The Airdrie Arts Centre opened in 1967 in
1404-414: The "Munklands" (Register of the Great Seal 1323). Malcolm's Charter constitutes the oldest documentary record of place-names in the Monklands. The area of land granted by the Charter is clearly defined by direct reference to geographical and topographical features thus: Dunpeldre by its right boundaries, namely with Metheraugh and Mayeuth and Clarnephin as far as Dunduffes in the east. The name Dunpeldre
1456-562: The Airdrie and Bathgate Junction Railway provided a direct link to Edinburgh with Airdrie South Station providing the starting point for trains to Glasgow. In August the Public Libraries Act (Scotland) 1853 was passed, and in November Airdrie Public Library became the first in Scotland. The dramatic rise in population and industry prompted the need for more accessible water supplies. Until
1508-763: The area including civil actions and criminal cases. It is administered by the Scottish Court Service and part of the South Strathclyde, Dumfries and Galloway Sheriffdom headed by a Sheriff Principal . It replaced the old County Buildings in Bank Street which was demolished in 1969. Christian Church of Scotland – Airdrie's Church of Scotland churches are part of the Presbytery of Hamilton. Roman Catholic Church – Airdrie's Roman Catholic churches are immediately governed by
1560-528: The border of Airdrie and Coatbridge. Airdrie has road links to Glasgow , Edinburgh , Livingston , Motherwell , and Cumbernauld and is situated close to the M8 motorway . Bus services are largely undertaken by local operators, and links to Glasgow are provided by First Glasgow and McGills . McGill's took over most of the local companies in 2016 to form its 'Monklands' network in Go Zone 8. The services link all
1612-459: The conference is Bishop John Keenan of the Diocese of Paisley . The BCOS is organised into several agencies. These are: The Commission for Doctrine and Unity, The Communications and Press and Media Relations Office, The Commission for Catholic Education and Scottish Catholic Education Service, The Justice and Peace Commission, operating using the name Justice and Peace Scotland, The Heritage Commission as well as some other offices. The Conference
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1664-697: The construction of roads. In the 12th century, they established the original Glasgow to Edinburgh road via Airdrie and Bathgate , to link up with their lands in Newbattle in East Lothian . Definitive evidence of the existence of Airdrie as a tenantry was only made clear in 1503. The old monks' road was via Cliftonhill (an area now in neighbouring Coatbridge), Airdrie House (now the site of Monklands Hospital ), Aitchison Street, High Street, Hallcraig Street, Flowerhill Street and Colliertree Road. The first houses in Airdrie were built along this road. Development
1716-556: The council's reputation. After 1996, it came under the authority of the unitary North Lanarkshire Council . North Lanarkshire has many councillors; currently, the council is in control of the Labour group and the leader of the council is Jim Logue , councillor for Airdrie Central. Chapelhall , Calderbank , Caldercruix , Gartness , Glenmavis , Greengairs , Longriggend , Plains , Stand , Upperton , Newhouse and Wattston are generally considered satellite villages of Airdrie. Since
1768-558: The end of the First World War , Airdrie was hard hit with many casualties from the war. Unemployment reached 30% in the local area. After years of moving from one site to another, the first purpose built library in Airdrie was opened in Anderson Street in 1895. However, this only lasted 30 years until the current Airdrie Library building was erected in 1925. Conditions in the town did not really improve until well after
1820-500: The former Airdrie Library building, and was a popular venue for concerts and plays, but was closed in 2012 by North Lanarkshire Council. Between 1964 and 1991, the town was the location of a Royal Observer Corps monitoring bunker, to be used in the event of a nuclear attack. No trace remains today. The 1970s saw the opening of Monklands Hospital , which replaced an older hospital on the Airdrie House estate. Airdrie hosted
1872-499: The history section, Airdrie's traditional economic activities of weaving, coal mining, and heavy industry have ceased to exist. Although the Glenflagler Distillery is now closed, the town still retains a strong involvement in the whisky industry. Airdrie was also home to a Crimpy Crisps factory. Given its location near to Glasgow and other commercial or industrial areas, Airdrie might now be considered something of
1924-459: The infant classes in schools of this burden. Airdrie Academy was built in 1849 and by 1919 all school boards were dissolved and Lanarkshire Education Authority took over responsibility for education throughout Lanarkshire . Airdrie Public Observatory , one of only four public observatories in the UK (second oldest and smallest) – all in Scotland, was founded in the first library building in 1896, and
1976-495: The land they used is known today as 'The Four Isles' (a housing estate named after four Scottish islands): Mull , Islay , Iona and Luing in the Petersburn area of modern Airdrie. The monks of Newbattle had numerous establishments throughout the area including a farm grange at Drumpellier, Coatbridge, a court house at Kipps , a chapel in the area of Chapelhall and a number of corn mills . The Monks were also expert in
2028-490: The local neighbourhoods with longer distance services e.g. the 212 from Coatbridge - Caldercruix via Airdrie and Plains, or the 247 from Monklands Hospital - Kirkintilloch via Airdrie, Glenmavis, Cumbernauld and Blackwood. Airdrie is connected to the UK National Cycle Network by National Cycle Route 75 . This route provides a path between Glasgow and Edinburgh. According to the Sustrans website: "there
2080-429: The mid-1800s, various wells were put in place feeding from surrounding streams in the area. These served to provide many houses with private wells. By 1846 Airdrie and Coatbridge Water Company was founded to construct (along with Forth and Clyde Canal Company) the reservoir at Roughrigg. Journalism in Airdrie began with "The Airdrie Literary Album" in 1828. Several local newspapers began appearing around this time notably
2132-412: The most recent major reorganisation in 2006, North Lanarkshire Council divides Airdrie into the following wards , each electing four councillors since the 2017 election : Historical records of Airdrie's population are available from the 18th, the early decades of the 19th century, and into the early 20th century. According to the 2001 Census , Airdrie's population of 36,326 was: As outlined in
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2184-406: The number of houses being built increased dramatically and in 1821, by a private Act of Parliament , Airdrie became a free and independent Burgh of Barony . In 1821, the first election of a town council took place and by August it had appointed an assessor, procurator fiscal , master of police and a town crier . Anyone who had paid their 3 guineas was allowed to vote; there is even a record of
2236-481: The same time: The name of "Monklands" originated in the grant of lands in the area to the monks of the Cistercian Abbey of Newbattle , Midlothian in 1162. From the seventeenth century the area was formed into the two parishes of New Monkland and Old Monkland. Apart from the two burghs of Airdrie and Coatbridge, the area included the following settlements: The district was abolished in 1996 under
2288-418: The settlement near several coalmines. In the mid 19th century, the town expanded greatly as a result of immigration and the development of iron works and railway links. This led to the town building the first public library in Scotland in 1853. During the 20th century, industrial decline took place in Airdrie, with heavy industry closing down across much of the town. In the 21st century, Airdrie has continued as
2340-486: The town (1851–1870) but this land became the golf course for the newly formed Airdrie Golf Club in 1877. Education posed a major problem with severe overcrowding in the few schools available, therefore three new school boards were established. In the early 1830s there were about 800 pupils while the town had about 7,000 residents. Fees were routinely charged within the schools with the belief they should be self-supporting until an act of Parliament of 1889 relieved some of
2392-523: The two senior teams in the area, Airdrieonians and Albion Rovers , are often referred to as Monklands Derbies . The first election to the district council was held in 1974, initially operating as a shadow authority alongside the outgoing authorities until it came into its powers on 16 May 1975. Throughout the council's existence the Labour party held a majority of the seats: The district council's headquarters were at Coatbridge Municipal Buildings at
2444-600: The unitary local authority for Airdrie, is based at Motherwell , and is the executive , deliberative and legislative body responsible for local governance . The Scottish Parliament is responsible for devolved matters such as education , health and justice , while reserved matters are dealt with by the Parliament of the United Kingdom . The town forms part of the burgh constituency of Airdrie and Shotts , electing one Member of Parliament (MP) to
2496-421: Was created in 1975 under the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 , which established a two-tier structure of local government across mainland Scotland comprising upper-tier regions and lower-tier districts. Monklands was one of nineteen districts created within the region of Strathclyde . The district covered parts of four former districts from the historic county of Lanarkshire , all of which were abolished at
2548-531: Was known as Ardrie. In 1630 it finally appeared in the Register as Airdrie. Given the topography of the area, the most likely interpretation is that the name derives from the Gaelic An Àrd Ruigh meaning a level height or high pasture land. Another possibility is from the Gaelic An Àrd Àirighe meaning a sheiling , a summer pasture/shepherd's hut. A third possibility is the Gaelic Ard Reidh meaning
2600-630: Was part of the Scotland European Parliament constituency . Up until 1975, Airdrie had its own Burgh Council . Between 1975 and 1996, Airdrie came under Monklands District Council operating in conjunction with Strathclyde Regional Council . Monklands District Council was headquartered in the Coatbridge Municipal Building. Many Airdrieonians felt short-changed by MDC's actions and a significant political scandal known as Monklandsgate greatly tarnished
2652-676: Was rebuilt in 1919 and finally closed in 1970. The New Cinema was opened in 1920 in Broomknoll Street but it too has since closed. The town had no suitable venue for larger functions so in 1912 the Sir John Wilson Town Hall was opened (following an offer of £10,000 from Sir John Wilson). On 9 July 1918 nineteen miners died in the Stanrigg Pit Disaster . The pit was situated in boggy land and collapsed after being saturated by heavy rainfall. At
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#17327870531352704-612: Was slow and it was only around 1650 that evidence of the number of inhabitants was known at around 500 for the Airdrie area. A large contingent of Airdrieonians fought at the Battle of Bothwell Brig during the Covenanter Rebellion of 1679; their banner can still be viewed at the local library. A significant event in Airdrie's history was the 1695 passing of a special Act of Parliament in the Scottish Parliament allowing Robert Hamilton of Airdrie to hold four fairs yearly and
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