Hamilton, South Lanarkshire

The head office of South Lanarkshire Council in Hamilton, known locally as the 'County Buildings'

Hamilton is a large town in west central Scotland. It is about 12 miles south-east of Glasgow and sits on the junction of Avon Water and the River Clyde. Hamilton is an administrative centre for the area so is said to be a large burgh (a traditional Scottish term). The seat of the current South Lanarkshire council is the high-rise County Buildings on Almada Street, which tower over the area

The town of Hamilton was re-named in honour of the Duke of Hamilton (it was originally called Cadzow). The Hamilton family built many landmark buildings in the area including the Mausoleum in Strathclyde Park.

Hamilton is twinned with Châtellerault in France. This connection dates from the 16th century when the title Duc de Châtellerault was conferred on James Hamilton. The Duke's hunting lodge (now in Chatelherault Country Park), a primary school and new railway station are named 'Chatelherault' for this reason.

Other historic buildings in the area include Hamilton Old Parish Church - a fine Georgian building (1734), the only church to have been built by the architect William Adam. The old Edwardian Town Hall now houses the library and Townhouse concert hall. The ruins of Cadzow Castle also lie in a country park outside the town.

Hamilton used to be at the centre of a major coal-mining area but now service industries are the main employers. Undermining was said to be the reason the Hamilton Palace was demolished in 1921 (though some local historians belive it was for financial reasons). Nowadays the Palace is the name of the town's only nightclub.

Hamilton town centre has been regenerated over the last decade by creating an indoor shopping centre on Regent Way and the Palace Grounds Retail Park and leisure facilities. This development transformed the Hamilton side of Strathclyde Park, the original site of the Duke's palace. It also caused T in the Park, Scotland's main music festival, to move to Perthshire in 1997.

Many of Hamilton's main facilities have been moved to the Palace Grounds including the Vue (formerly SBC) cinema and large Asda store visible from the M74 motorway. The creation of a circular Town Square here on the edge of the town has been controversial. Its glass 'clocktower' was frequently vandalised and eventually taken down and moved to another part of the county.

To the north of the Palace Grounds is the Low Parks Museum, housed in an old inn and recently refurbished. The museum contains extensive exhibits on Hamilton Palace, and also on the local Cameronian Scottish Rifles regiment (disbanded in 1968).

The area near Hamilton West railway station and Peacock Cross has also changed with the demolition of Hamilton Accies' original Douglas Park stadium in 1994. A retail park was built on the site with New Douglas Park added behind it in 2001. Hamilton Academical Football Club (the Accies) were formed in 1874 and are one of Scotland's oldest senior clubs. They take their name from Hamilton Academy, now called Hamilton Grammar School, the oldest school in the town.

Many Hamilton primary and secondary schools are being rebuilt or refurbished during 2005/6. This includes the controversial closure of Earnock secondary school, which is being merged with Blantyre High. This leaves three high schools - Hamilton Grammar and two denominational schools, John Ogilvie and Holy Cross. South Lanarkshire Council Secondary Schools Modernisation Programme Hamilton also has one private school - Hamilton College, a Christian school on Bothwell Road, next to the modernised Hamilton Park racecourse. It hosts a nursery, a primary school and a secondary school. Bell College - Hamilton's only tertiary education college - has its campus nearby, behind its main building on Almada Street.

On February 7, 2005, Hamilton was granted Fairtrade Town status.

Areas of Hamilton:

Burnbank, Barncluith, Hamilton, Cadzow, Eddlewood, Fairhill, High Earnock, Earnock Hillhouse, Laighstonehall, Little Earnock, Low Waters, Meikle Earnock, Silvertonhill, Udston, and Whitehill.

Main centres near Hamilton:
*Motherwell
*East Kilbride
*Bothwell
*Blantyre
*Strathaven
*Larkhall

Communication Links:
*Hamilton Circle

Location and getting there

Hamilton is on the Hamilton Circle railway line and can be reached in 30 minutes from Glasgow Central station. By road it is to the west of the M74 motorway, which is the main southerly link to England. From the northern areas of Scotland Hamilton is reached via the M80 and M73 (which connects to the M74 at Uddingston). The main route from Edinburgh is the M8 (leave at junction 6 or 7). The nearest commercial airport is Glasgow International Airport.

Hamilton District

Hamilton District 1975–1996

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During the 1975–1996 period Hamilton lent its name to a local government district (Hamilton District) within the Strathclyde region.

Town twinning

* Châtellerault, France

References

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