Mr and Mrs Whitefield, son Gavin and
daughter Margaret stayed in No 10. Mr Whitefield was in the police and had
fixing radios as a hobby, Gavin was a first class golfer, a county player,
and after graduating from university, Glasgow I think, became a
schoolteacher and was in charge of a school somewhere in England.
Information I got some years back was that Gavin had sadly died, he was four
years my junior. The Blairs were resident in No 11 and on Mr Blair's
retirement towards the end of the war the house was occupied by Mr and Mrs
Johnston their son and two daughters. Mr Johnston was in charge of the
factory gardens. As already mentioned Mr Stevenson his wife and family lived
in No 12. Mr Stevenson was a fireman. They had three sons, Robert, Jeffery
and David, and also a daughter Myra who was born while the family were
Villas residents. The three sons were apprenticed in Ardeer Factory, Robert
becoming a painter/ glazier, Jeffrey a plumber and David a sailmaker.
We the Cunninghams lived in No 13, still with its outside stair! I left the
Villas in 1954 after graduating in Mechanical Engineering, spending two
years National Service in the R.A.F. and getting married. My father and
mother moved to Kilwinning after he retired from the police, although he did
in reality retain his job at the factory ''gate'' as Mr Ashcroft, Works
Manager, and Dr Richardson, Director, asked him to stay on due to his
knowledge of visitors and their names. What this meant was a change of
badge! My father finally retired in 1965 aged 65. I think it worthy of note
that my father won the King's Police Medal for action he took during one of
the nights of the Clydebank blitz when Ardeer Factory was also bombed. I
have been unable to get the citation but believe he fought fires in the
Potassium Nitrate store immediately after the adjacent Barium Nitrate
manufacturing unit had received a direct hit. My son David has his medal.
The Paton Family lived below us in No 14. Mr and Mrs Paton were quite a bit
older than my parents and in fact if Mr Paton was not retired then he must
have been close to retirement age. The tenancy of the house was in Archie
Paton's name. He was the Transport Manager for the factory looking after
cars and distribution vehicles. Other members of the family were Jimmy,
Robert, Bunty, Meg and Jean. All had jobs outwith the factory apart from
Bunty who acted as housekeeper. There was a brother older than Archie and he
was employed by a railway company in the Argentine. When Archie married the
Paton family, as was, moved to a house in Station Square, Stevenston. The
''new'' Paton family, wife Ella and daughter Grace joined Archie, and some
time after a son was born. Archie and family moved to England when he was
made manager of the Fisherwick Depot.
At this time George Lyons took over as
Transport Manager and moved in to No 14 accompanied by his wife and son
George. Young George graduated in a branch of engineering and married Evelyn
Shaw of No 7. The last block in the back row was made into one house for the
Firemaster. Initially and for most if not all the wartime period Mr Bird was
Firemaster and stayed in No 15 with his wife and daughter Dolly. Dolly
married and she and her husband, Dick Downie, stayed with Mr and Mrs Bird
for some time. Following Mr Bird's retirement Mr Kirk became Firemaster and
with his wife and two sons occupied No15. During my last few years at the
Villas the McCartneys the Shaws and the Whitefields moved to other parts due
to retirement. Hugh Clark, policeman, his wife son Hugh and daughter Betty
moved into No5. Dougie Hood, policeman, his wife and daughter Alma moved
into No7 and Willie Mitchell his wife sons Billy and John and a daughter
whose name escapes me moved into No10.
Moving to the Sandhill houses, No 1 had
the Hornels as occupants. Mr Hornel was the manager in charge of Blasting
Department and had a wife and two children, a son and daughter. The Hornels
moved to the Gomia Factory in India where Mr Hornel was Works Manager. The
Hallidays moved into No 1. Mr and Mrs Halliday had two sons, Walter and
Billy. Mr Halliday had a job in the Division Office, and his sons were
employed there after finishing school. After the Hallidays were the Tobins,
Tommy his wife and eventually a family. Tommy was the manager in charge of
nitroglycerine production and during my spell as a plant engineer in
Blasting Department I had the privilege of working with him. I should
explain that Tommy Tobin was a world authority on nitroglycerine and its
manufacture.
Next door in No 2 lived Mr and Mrs Crerar,
their son Jim and daughter Elizabeth. Mr Crerar was the General Labour
Foreman in the factory. Jim qualified as an engineer and moved to a job in
the south of England. Mr Shearer lived with the Crerars. He followed Mr
Tucker as senior ambulance man. The Works Engineer, Mr Golder his wife, sons
John and Ted, and daughter Marion lived in No 3. John qualified as an
engineer and was employed in Ardeer Factory this was after military service.
Ted after a spell in the Royal Navy attended the Commercial College in
Glasgow around the time I was at the Royal Technical College. Marion also
attended a college in Glasgow, the ''Dough'' school I think, and obtained a
qualification. I cannot remember who followed the Golders in No 3. I have no
recollection of the families who occupied No 4 although the name Wilkie
figures with a position in Sales and or Distribution Departments. After Mr
Thomas retired as factory chauffeur I don't remember the bungalow being
occupied. In time it did become a Dental Surgery with a Mr Scott the
Dentist, I know because I had some treatment there!
Sadly Ardeer Villas no longer exists , the
buildings were demolished to make way for part of the Nylon plant which
I.C.I. in its wisdom decided to build next to the existing Nobel's
Explosives Factory. The Nylon plant took in all the available ground to the
east of Lundholm Road which included Ardeer Golf Club and course which to my
mind was very regrettable. I recently went up ''Dynamite Road'' only to find
the road closed off at the top of the hill leading down to where the Villas
used to be. I apologise for probable omissions and for possible incorrect
family details and movements but this is how I, with the help of Annie ,
Jimmy and Jackie remember things.
Bill Cunningham ~ Ayrshire, Scotland.
