Kilsyth - Religion and Revivals

Religion and Revivals

Following its foundation as an early monastic settlement, the town has a long tradition of radical protestantism and was the scene of major revivals under the leadership of James Robe in 1742 and William Chalmers Burns in 1839, part of the Second Great Awakening. William Irvine (Scottish evangelist and founder of the Two by Twos and Cooneyites sects) was born in Kilsyth in 1863. The formation of the new Church of God, the first Pentecostal Church in Scotland in 1902 led to further outbreaks of revival in 1908. The influx of Roman Catholic immigrant workers from Ireland led to outbreaks of sectarian violence at the Duntreath Arms Inn (adjacent to Innsbridge) in 1905, which followed a mistaken visit by an Orange band which disembarked at Croy and marched to Kilsyth. The Riot Act was read at the ensuing battle. It was one of the two 'dry towns' from the 1920 s to 1960 s when a poll dictated that no alcohol would be sold. This was a result of the amount of drinking by miners and the consequent poverty and violence at home. Sunday walks over the Tak Ma Doon Road to the Carronbridge Hotel were popular. Today, Kilsyth is a more tolerant town with a wide variety of faiths which co-exist in harmony through the auspices of the ecumenical "Kirks The Gither" movement.