Ochiltree
& Skares
The village of Ochiltree is just under 12 miles due east of Ayr on the A70 to Cumnock and is the largest settlement in the community area.
At its highest point, the village is 145 metres above sea level, with the surrounding land rising to 350 metres. Ochiltree (Ochiltree) is one of the oldest settlements in Ayrshire with evidence dating back to at least the Bronze Age and perhaps beyond. Its position on a hillside overlooking the Lugar and Burnock Water was strategically important. It was given Burgh status in 1669. The village has historical associations with William Wallace, the Colville family, John Knox, the Covenanters, Robert Burns, James Boswell and is the birthplace and former residence of George Douglas Brown (House with the Green Shutters). It has always been part of an agricultural community, but in the past also had many cottage industries including, snuff box making, cotton weaving, tile works, dye works and the manufacture of reaping tools. Until recently mining of minerals and coal had provided significant employment but with the demise of these industries, the demography of our rural communities has changed as have employment opportunities.
Skares is located some three miles southwest of Cumnock. It used to have a football team called Skares Bluebells. Skares consisted of an older core of a village and three miners’ terraces. They were called ‘The Auld Raw’, ‘The New Raw’ and ‘The Tap Raw’. These were built as mining expanded in the area: today mining has gone except for the opencast mine behind Skares.
The current population of the community area is 761 (2013) and a significant proportion of the population is over 30 years old.
The population of Ochiltree has remained static in the last ten years from 752 in 2004 to 761 in 2013.
The current population of Skares is 36.