Scottish Towns and Cities. Saltcoats.

Saltcoats (Scottish Gaelic: Baile an t-Salainn; Scots: Saulcuts) is a town on the west coast of North Ayrshire, Scotland. The name is derived from the town’s earliest industry when salt was harvested from the sea water of the Firth of Clyde, carried out in small cottages along the shore. It is part of the ‘Three Towns’ conurbation along with Ardrossan and Stevenston and is the third largest town in North Ayrshire.

The history of Saltcoats can be traced back to when the monks of Kilwinning Abbey discovered easily accessible coastal coal seams at Saltcoats in the 1200s, it expanded from small scattering of buildings. The coal proved an efficient source of heat for evaporating saltwater for the manufacturing of salt, and by the 1500s, King James V-funded sheds along the shoreline, leading to a successful salt

In 1528, Saltcoats was granted status as a burgh leading to the creation of a market. By the middle of the 1600s, Saltcoats’ primary sources of income were the import of corn and butter, as well as the sale of cattle and fish (mostly herring) to Ireland. Local farmers produced cheese, butter, wheat, oats, and potatoes. Cottage labourers in the town were given access to hand looms so they could weave muslins for the Glasgow and Paisley markets. On the outskirts of the town, chemical operations that produce magnesium and Epsom salts ran on waste materials from the salt-panning business.

In the late 18th century, several shipyards operated at Saltcoats, producing some 60 to 70 ships. The leading shipbuilder was William Ritchie, but in 1790 he moved his business to Belfast. In 1793, it was recorded that Saltcoats had around 400 houses, with 3 operational shipyards remaining. By 1820, this had climbed to 600 houses, with a population of 3,413 being noted.

By the early 19th century, the town had stopped producing ships. Saltcoats Town Hall, which dates back to 1826, is a Category B listed building.