Old Mauchline

Mauchline has a long and rich history dating back to mediaeval times and was made a burgh of barony in 1510, but is best known for Robert Burns' sojourn at the nearby Mossgiel Farm and for the manufacture of wooden boxes, now known as Mauchline Ware. Although Described by an unimpressed American visitor in 1859 as having 'wretched little dwellings' most of the photographs in this book, which are from the Edwardian period and later, show a tidy and industrious place. Besides town streetscapes and buildings, including post-war prefabs, also featured are the local industries - the box works, Mauchline Colliery, Barskimming Mill, Ballochmyle sandstone quarry, the creamery in its Art Deco heyday and the curling stone factory.