Broxburn Community Council (original) (raw)

BROXBURN is a town in West lothian, Scotland, originally a village know as Esater Strathbrock in the medival period ,with Strath coming either from the Gaelic srath or the Pictish/Welsh/Brythonic ystrad meaning a river valley. The name Broxburn comes from the "broc" beng an old name for a badger whether from the Gaelic broc or pictishBroch and the bur being the Scots word for a larrge stream or small river. By the 1600 the village has become know as Broxburn. Rapidly developing during the Victoria eras as a result of industrilisation related to shale oil extraction. The village that later became Broxburn probably originated around 1350 when Margery le Cheyne inherited the eastern half of the Barony of Strathbrock (Easter Strathbrock) on the death of her father, Sir Reginald le Cheyne III. The hamlet that grew up around her residence was then called Eastertoun (eastern town) after the land on which it stood. The lands of Strathbrock were earlier owned by Freskin the Fleming, granted to him under a charter from King David I.

Easter Strathbrock was burned to the ground sometime in 1443-4 during a conflict between William, Earl of Douglas, Lieutenant-General of Scotland, and William, Lord Crichton, Chancellor of Scotland. It was destroyed again in 1455 during fighting between the Douglases and King James II. After the conflict, peace was regained and the town was gradually resettled. In 1590, Kirkhill House was built for John Laing, a local landowner.[ The village was renamed Broxburn in 1600 by Sir Richard Cockburn of Clerkington, Keeper of the Privy Seal of Scotland, almost certainly after Broxburn, East Lothian.

In 1636, Kirkhill house was granted to Ludovic Stewart, advocate.[ The house and surrounding land eventually passed to David Erskine, 11th Earl of Buchan, where the house was extensive remodelled in 1770/1771.[ It then passed to his nephew, the 12th Earl who was buried in St John's Church nearby. The house still exists today in Broxburn and is Category B listed.

Broxburn remained an agricultural community until the development of the oil shale industry in the area during the second half of the nineteenth century. This brought in a rapid influx of workers, greatly expanding the local population. Broxburn is still known for its association with the industry, pioneered by the inventor and industrialist James Young. Many shale spoil tips, known as bings, are still in evidence around the town.

Up until its closure in 2013, Hall's of Broxburn, a food manufacturer, employed around 1,700 employees at its meat processing plant to the east of the town.] At the time of closure, it was the largest, single employer in Broxburn. The large building was demolished in 2014.

The Shale Bings

The 3 Broxburn Bings (Greendykes Bing, Albyn Oil Works Bing and Hopetoun Bing) reside on the north east of Broxburn starting from behind the East Mains Industrial estate. The nearby Niddry Bing resides near the village of Winchburgh. The largest of the three Bings is the Greendykes Bing which when scaled provides excellent views of the whole area. The Bings were created by large piles of spoil from the shale mines being dumped on top of each other to form the Bings.

Present day Broxburn now has two separate industrial areas, the Greendykes Industrial Estate and the East Mains Industrial Estate, which provide employment for local people.