Ayton Village, Berwickshire Scotland

A historic parish

in the beautiful East Berwickshire area of the Scottish Borders

 

Welcome to the Home Page of the Ayton Village website - the portal to visiting or living and working in a beautiful parish in the Scottish Borders. The website was last updated on Tuesday 14th May.

Text Box: Check the village What's On?calender here.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What's new on the website?
 

April 2013

New Village Website

Ayton Community Council is currently looking into organising a new village website. The software package used for this one is now out of date and no longer supported.

 

September 2012

Ayton Golf Club
Details of the Club's trophies which are held in the Ayton branch of the RBS have been added. Click here.


Community Council
As the result of an election held on Wednesday 22nd August, Ayton has a new 12 member Community Council. This is only the second time there has been an election for places since the very first Community Council was formed in the 1970s. To read more about the Community Council click here.


February 2012
Wind Farms
Wind farms are certainly a hot topic in Ayton and the surrounding area just now with two large projects currently being proposed. Blackmains wind farm would be sited on the east side of the A1 between Reston and Ayton. Horn Burn wind farm would be to the west of Reston Hill Farm. To keep you informed about the latest developments we have added a new dedicated wind farm page to the website. To view the page click here.


April 2011

Link to Ayton & District Bowling Club added. Click here.

 

May 2011

Information about Ayton Golf Club added. Click here.

 

March 2011

Film Shows have started in the Community Hall. To find out more click here.

 

February 2011

Ayton Enhancement Group gets off the ground. Link to new page here.

 

January 2011

Refurbished Community Hall. The hall re-opened in early February. Link to the hall pages here.

 

December 2010

Photos of the the Community Hall Project

 

November 2010

Information on the Church Pages updated.

New information on the Local Projects page.

 

September 2010

Article about Ayton Golf Club which existed between 1891 and 1928.

 

 

   Picture: V Swain

This website continues to grow and the Community Council are very grateful for contributions that continue to come in.  We have a number yet to add - in particular a number of historic photos.  Our thanks to those who have supplied these.

There are however a number of new items which have been added, including the history of the local churches, supplied by Raymond Allan.  More will be added as soon as possible so come back soon - you will now see the latest update date shown in the left hand navigation bar. Thanks for your patience in the meantime.

If you have any further text or photographs or old postcards you would like to share via the website (either attributed or anonymously) we would be delighted to hear from you.

This cracking picture to the left was supplied by Vic Swain - thanks, Vic!

About Ayton

The village of Ayton (population circa 570) lies a few miles inland from the larger coastal town of Eyemouth, in East Berwickshire, the Scottish Borders, in what remains a key arable farming region of Scotland.

Picture: P Wheelhouse

Being on the main route (the “Great North Road”, now the A1) between Edinburgh and London, and all parts in between, there has been a settlement at Ayton since before the Roman invasion in the first century AD, and the village is close to a hill fort occupied by the same Celtic tribe (the Votadini) who founded Din Eidyn (Dunedin or Edinburgh as it became known).

It was in the 1820s with the realignment of the Great North Road that the village began to grow in its present location. In 1844 the Edinburgh to Berwick railway was opened and a station at Ayton benefited the village. It closed in 1966, although Ayton Community Council are fully supportive of local efforts to reopen a station on the East Coast mainline in the neighbouring village of Reston..

After a fire destroyed Ayton House in 1834 William Mitchell Innes built the present baronial style Ayton Castle (pictured in the banner above) on the site between 1846 and 1851.

Ayton Castle is very much still a home, and its estate extends to a considerable area around Ayton, but the castle is now occupied by the Liddell-Grainger family and is also used as guest accommodation and for equestrian events.

The oldest surviving building within the village is the Old Kirk, also known as St Dionysius’ Church, which dates back to the 12th century and has been the venue for a number of peace treaties between Scotland and England, which lies a mere seven miles to the South.

The village was served by a public school located just off the High Street from 1864 until 1974 when the present school was built. Another significant building in Ayton is the church, built in 1864, which is a most impressive example of Gothic architecture and demonstrates the wealth and influence of its benefactors.

Ayton continued to grow and had many shops and businesses established in the late 19th and well into the 20th century. However since the 1950s there has been a steady decline in these, in common with many villages throughout the county of Berwickshire. Despite this, Ayton remains home to a number of local businesses today and is very much a thriving village, with a very welcoming community. Sadly, the last pub closed a few years ago, but we still have a branch of the Royal Bank of Scotland and a much valued local shop, the Ayton Mini Market.

Increasing traffic levels on the A1 was causing a problem for the village, and the building of a bypass in the early 1980s provided relief. This changed the character of the village, and although not good for businesses relying on passing trade, such as the garages which are now closed, this has resulted in a more environmentally friendly, safer community. The building of new houses in recent years has increased the population slightly, with people travelling daily as far as Edinburgh and Newcastle for employment.

 


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