Union Street

To explain the name of Union Street, Saltcoats, we need to go back half a century before it was built.

Until the railway arrived in the three towns, Raise Street connected directly to Countess Street. The streets were sliced in two when the railway was built, although a level crossing allowed traffic to continue to access.

The level crossing was removed when the new Saltcoats railway station was built in its place in the early 1880s. This left Raise Street effectively blocked off at the south end. From that point on access into Saltcoats town from Raise Street was provided by two new routes: a bridge at Kyleshill, and a bridge at the Chapel Brae, accessed via a new road running from Raise Street to Springvale Street, enhancing an existing stretch of road at the Gas Works. As this new road united the two streets, it was named Union Street.

The street is virtually unrecognisable from when it was built, with the only original building to survive being the hall used by the Army Cadets (visible at the end of the road on the left in the photo below).

As well as the Gas Works, the street was also the location of St. Mary’s RC School. Both the school and the gas works are long demolished.