New Kilpatrick

New Kilpatrick, (also known as East Kilpatrick or Easter Kilpatrick) is an ecclesiastical Parish and former Civil Parish in Dunbartonshire. It was formed in 1649 from the eastern half of the parish of Kilpatrick (also known as Kirkpatrick), the western half forming Old Kilpatrick. New Kilpatrick is also a disused name for the town of Bearsden.

Originally spanning a large area from Strathblane in the North to Baldernock and Summerston (on the River Kelvin) in the East, down to Anniesland in the South and Yoker and in the West, a quarter of the parish was once in the county of Stirlingshire. The geography of the area has supported mining, iron-working and quarrying in the past, but these are no longer economically viable, and much of the area functions as suburbs of Glasgow. Local government of the area was once the responsibility of the kirk, but is now administered by East Dunbartonshire, Glasgow and Stirlingshire councils. The name New Kilpatrick was dropped from general civil use in 1958 when Bearsden Burgh was formed. The previous extent of New Kilpatrick can be seen quite clearly on old maps, but current maps no longer show the former parish.

As the population of the area grew, the ecclesiastical parish reduced in area as smaller parishes were separated off and the parish now covers only a fraction of the town of Bearsden. The parish church was built in 1649 from local stone, and was replaced in 1807 with a larger building.

The parish system was introduced to Scotland in the 13th century. In about 1227, the church and lands of Kilpatrick were given to Paisley Abbey by Maldowen, Earl of Lennox. The name Kilpatrick is an Anglicised form of the Gaelic Cille Phàdraig - literally "Patrick's Churchyard". The alternative anglicised form "Kirkpatrick" is occasionally used in old texts. It is therefore reasonable to assume that a church dedicated to St Patrick gave the area its name before the transfer to Paisley Abbey. The parish remained under the supervision of the Abbey until the Reformation in 1560.

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