Sorn

Sorn (Scottish Gaelic: Sorn, meaning a kiln) is a small village in East Ayrshire, Scotland. It is situated on the River Ayr. It has a population of roughly 350. Its neighbouring village is Catrine. Sorn Castle lies just outside the village.

Catrine and Sorn from the air

Sorn from the air

1950s council housing in Sorn; the brown building in the centre rear with the cream tower is the primary school

History

Sorn was a parish in Ayrshire. One gazetteer states "It is bounded on the north by Galston; on the east by Muirkirk; on the south by Auchinleck; and on the west by Mauchline."[1] Another states that Sorn did not exist until 1658 when it was disjoined from the parish of Mauchline.[2]

Sorn has a Covenanter history.

Sorn Today

Local services include: a pub, a church, a general store (closed 2019), a motorbike shop and a television shop. There is also a village hall and a bowling green and primary school. In November 2007 the school was threatened with closure by East Ayrshire Council.

Sorn is known for its success in the Britain in Bloom competition. In 2004 it won gold in the "Small Villages" category and has previously won, amongst other awards, the "Highly Commended Certificate" a number of times in the 1980s. Sorn is also the first village in Scotland where all parking is off-road parking.

Notable people born in Sorn

John Campbell of Sorn nonconformist minister.
Rev Lewis Balfour, minister of Sorn 1806 to 1824.
George William Balfour, physician
Alexander Peden - preacher
Sir John Rankine FRSE - legal author
Very Rev John Rankine, minister and Moderator of the General Assembly in 1883 (father of above)
James Rennie - natural historian, author, and educator
James Seaton, Member of New Zealand's Parliament (1875-1879 and 1881-1882)

References

The Topographical, statistical, and historical gazetteer of Scotland ; with a complete county-atlas from recent surveys, exhibiting all the lines of road, rail, and canal communication; and an appendix, containing the results of the census of 1851. Edinburgh: A. Fullarton. 1854. Retrieved 11 February 2019.
Paterson, James (1847). History of the County of Ayr : with a genealogical account of the families of Ayrshire. Edinburgh: T.G. Stevenson. pp. 419–433. Retrieved 11 February 2019.

External links

Video footage of Dalgain Church.
Video footage of Holehouse Mill.
Video footage of Dalgain Lime Works and Haggis Bank lime kiln.

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[1] The Topographical, statistical, and historical gazetteer of Scotland ; with a complete county-atlas from recent surveys, exhibiting all the lines of road, rail, and canal communication; and an appendix, containing the results of the census of 1851. Edinburgh: A. Fullarton. 1854. Retrieved 11 February 2019.

[2] Paterson, James (1847). History of the County of Ayr : with a genealogical account of the families of Ayrshire. Edinburgh: T.G. Stevenson. pp. 419–433. Retrieved 11 February 2019.