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1985
VALERIE McKAY - " Bo'ness
Fair 1900 "
"Bo'ness Fair" - words which
conjure up a postcard
setting for most people, a
glamorous spectacle, once
seen never to be forgotten.
Words which for incomers who
work locally mean at least
an extra holiday. But for a
Bo'nessian they signify a
day of intense excitement
which starts at 7.30 a.m.
when the first strains of
Carriden and Kinneil Bands
can be heard, It means, a
sense of pride, a feeling of
belonging.
After months of planning and
hard work by both adults and
children, this longed-for
day dawns, and excitement
hits fever pitch, only to be
matched in atmosphere by
watching Bo'ness United lift
the coveted " Scottish Cup.
" Our pageant is the
biggest and most spectacular
of its kind in Scotland. It
began in 1897 when George C.
Stewart wanted to
commemorate Queen Victoria's
Diamond Jubilee. He had
once visited Lanark's famous
Lanimar Day and decided that
Bo'ness should have a
similar version of these
festivities, but styled in
their own fashion.
Principally he wished to
involve the children of the
town.
The Fair has heralded the
beginning of the miners'
holidays since then,
excluding the years during
both World Wars. Alas in
Bo'ness this industry is no
more, Kinneil Colliery being
the last winder to be left
standing, solely as a
monument. The process of
changing the face of
industrial Bo'ness to an
attractive residential town,
is now in full progress.
Once a vibrant source of the
East coast which boasted
Potters, Salters, Mariners
and Miners: Bo'ness trades
of the past, all silent,
gone forever.
In this year of 1985 the
honour of providing the
Bo'ness Fair Festival with
its principal characters
falls to Kinneil Primary.
They were first awarded this
compliment in 1900. A year
which signified, not only
the turn into a century of
vast change in both
environmental and scientific
progress worldwide, but also
saw changes in the rapidly
expanding town of Bo'ness.
A long-planned-for street,
named after Provost Stewart,
and the Glebe Park that
houses the crowning in
present day, were to be open
for public use from the 15th
July " Fair Day. " To
mastermind the Fair is a
mammoth undertaking but to
have the additional task of
opening a new street, then a
park, and manoeuvring the
procession to the other end
of the town where the
Queen's crowning where the
revels were to take place,
was no mean feat.
As with most Fair Days the
sun was on the side of the
righteous, and the morning
brought ideal weather
conditions. In every part
of the town, the locals had
been up well into the night
decorating houses, and
putting the finishing
touches to their Arches,
which were then built not so
much in specific gardens but
across roads, as our Queen's
is today.
The proceedings of the day
began when a large crowd
gathered at the top of the
School Brae to witness the
opening of the new Street.
A large boxwood Arch had
been built in front of the
local Jeweller, Willie
Ross's villa. This was to
be the location of the
opening ceremony. When
Provost Stewart and other
dignitaries were assembled,
the former was called upon
to address the crowd. He
did this by explaining how
long and hard the different
bodies of the town had
worked in situating the
Street.
Mrs Drysdale, wife of the
councillor in charge of
roads, then cut the ribbon
with gold scissors and the
new " Stewart Avenue " was
officially opened. The
local company of the "
Volunteers " ( the
equivalent of the Terries
now ) fired a gun salute,
then the men of Bo'ness and
Carriden brought the
proceedings to a close with
the National Anthem.
The crowd then moved on to
the South East entrance of
the Glebe Park where the
second event of the day was
to take place. The honour
of opening the gates for the
first time was given to
councillor Law's wife, as he
was in charge of Parks. He
took advantage of the fact
that he had many listening
ears to thank the gentlemen
of the town for providing
the park with seats, but
then asked if someone would
like to come forward and pay
for a bandstand they planned
to erect in the centre
spot. He hoped that once
built the three bands in the
town would provide open air
entertainment on a Saturday
afternoon.
The Queen and Committee were
driven through the gates in
open carriages and the
procession was formed at the
North West corner of the
park. The crowd then
filtered off to claim their
spot, for a bird's eye view
of the most important
ceremony of the day. The
retinue followed the
official route via the Wynd
, to West Partings, North
Street, Main Street,
Cowdenhill and Bridgeness to
Kinnigars Park where,
courtesy of Henrey Mowbrey
Cadell of Grange House a
platform had been
constructed for the Queen's
Court.
On entering the grounds the
Queen was escorted to her
throne, there followed the
various tasks of her
courtiers, then Mrs Cadell
stepped forward and crowned
Miss Jennie Hunter, daughter
of Kinneil School Headmaster
" Queen of Bo'ness Fair "
1900. The ceremony was
brought to a close with the
singing of " Scots Wha Hae.
"
In the afternoon the
sunshine prevailed. The
children dispersed to their
allotted points in the park,
to be supplied with
refreshments before the
revels began. Teachers,
parents and children all
took part in the races and
games that followed. A much
enjoyed feature of the
programme was the Maypole
dancing performed by the
little girls of the Bo'ness
Infants School ( the old
Baptist Church South Street
).
The celebrations continued
until 6 o'clock then, tired
but exhilarated children
reformed the procession.
Spurred on by the bands they
marched up Philpingstone
Road, along Grange Terrace,
finally dispersing on the
new " Stewart Avenue. "
The Fair Festival was held
mainly for the benefit of
the children so the local
trades held their
celebrations in the
afternoon, also taking the
form of a procession. The
Newtown, Corbiehall and
Grange Miners, the local
branch of the Dockers'
Union, and the carters
joined forces at the Market
Square then proceeded
through the town to the
grounds of Kinneil Estate,
where they adjourned to
refresh themselves after the
long walk. Revived by large
measures of the local
Mountain Dew they set out
once more to return to the
town by way of Borrowstoun,
Muirhouses and Carriden,
each trade accompanied by
their own band and led by
gaily decorated whipmen on
horseback.
The day was filed with
events that would have
exhausted the fittest.
However, it was only the
beginning of a week of
excursions. Each trade,
business, organisation,
church and school had their
own holiday. It began on
the Saturday following the
Fair when Kinneil Miners
visited Berwick-on-Tweed by
train. On the same day the
Volunteers marched off into
the sunset to join the Forth
Bridge Camp at Lochore.
Sunday seems to have been
their only day of rest. On
Monday it was the turn of
Bo'ness F.C. when, instead
of taking a trip, they held
their annual Sports Day at
Newtown Park. For those who
fancied a leisurely sail
down river instead of
exerting energy at Newtown:
they could join a Galloway's
Steamship for a day cruise
to Leith.
The men of Kinneil Band
chartered Wilson's Steamer
the " Royal Norman " for a
trip to Burntisland. Even
the Merchants in the town
took a day off on Wednesday
when they joined " Tug Boat
Wilson " as guests on one of
his ships. The Mason's
haven lay at Elie. The it
was the turn of the
Churches. A steamer carried
them to Alloa where they
were allowed to enjoy their
picnic in grounds belonging
to the " Earl of Mar."
Steamships were undoubtedly
the favourite way to travel,
and were kept busy running
unchartered trips to Leith.
Charlestown, Aberdour,
Inchkeith and the Bass
Rock. However, even without
Jimmy Saville, the railway
was able to get in on the
scene by having special
offer days.
This exciting one day trip
was probably enjoyed as much
as the now taken for granted
fortnight in Majorca or
Tenerife. They must have
been glad to get back to
work for a rest, the entire
week being full of
festivities.
The " Bo'ness Fair Day "
basically remains the same
in present time only bigger
and brighter. This great
occasion brings back many
exiled sons and daughters
from every " airt of the
globe." If, for reasons,
there are some who cannot
make the journey, it is not
unknown for " Our Festival
Day " to be heard being sung
at " Wee fairs " in the "
Australian Bush " or the "
Great Forests of Canada."
It's said that on this day
homesickness is at its worst
among ex-Bo'nessians.
For those who come to
spectate the proceedings are
all very enjoyable, but the
work that goes on behind the
scenes to ensure the success
of this event is never fully
appreciated. From
Committee, to the
individuals who continually
dip into their pocket
beforehand, and hang out
their string of flags on the
day, everyone likes to do
their bit. For, to a
Bo'nessian nothing is too
much troublefor the Fair.
Although in this year of
1985 " Dirty Bo'ness " as
Rabbie christened it, has
had a face wash, it still
holds fast the memories of
days gone by. Here's hoping
it will continue to do so,
with the promise of many
happy "Fair Days" to come.
VALERIE McKAY
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