Hilda McAdam's Story
Hilda McAdam’s Story PDF Print E-mail
Written by Hilda McAdam   
Saturday, 09 January 2010 17:54
Hilda McAdam’s Story

I was born in Dalry and has long been my ambition to see a book like this published.  It has always been a fear that stories and reminiscences of Dalry worthies and of things that uses to happen in the village would fade away.

My family have been in Dalry for many generations.  My father was a Ferguson and his mother was a Milligan of Kirkland.  My grandmother and grandfather stayed in Kirkland Street.  They were in No. 43 first and the owners of the house, John and Wull Walker stayed in No. 41.  The Walkers were having some renovations made to their house and they had and indoor toilet fitted, a novelty in those days.  After a short while, John Walker went to my granny and asked if she would change houses with him.  When Granny asked the reason why, she was told, “that in no way were they (the Walkers) going to stay in a hoose with that smelly thing in it!”

I went to Dalry school with Mr Singleton first and then Mr Findlay as Headmasters.  Both were very well respected in the village.

When I married my late husband, George, in 1962, I married into another well known Dalry family, the McAdams.  My father-in-law, James McAdam, was a jobbing gardened.  My mother-in-law was a Londoner, who came to the Glenkens as a sewing maid with Mrs Conran in the Holm at Balmaclellan.  Mrs Conran was the mother of Lady Templeton of the Holm.  James McAdam was the gardener and met his wife-to-be there.

I have two sons who were both born in Dalry and were both educated at Dalry School.  Ian is a fish farm manager in Argyll and Gordon is a plumber, here in Dalry.

My family has great connection with the late Rev Mullo-Weir.  He married my mother and father in 1942, then christened me in 1943 and my sister, Margaret, in 1947.  In 1662 he married George and me, and in 1964 and 1966, he christened Ian and Gordon.  The next connection was when he married my sister, Margaret, and her husband, Rae, in 1970 and christened their son in 1971.

I am sure readers will realise that the reason I wanted to see a book such as this printed is that there are so many memories of Dalry and the things that have happened in the village.