Back to Home Page

The Drum and Horn

Four hundred years ago Gargunnock was no more than a cluster of houses alongside or nearby the burn in the vicinity of what is now The Square.  But during the 18th century big changes took place.

Improvements to agriculture caused the displacement of people from the land as farms were made larger and fields enclosed.

By the end of the century the village had grown to about 90 houses and a population of 400 as land was feu'd on either side of the Main Street from the bridge westwards.  The earliest feus are dated 1726.

At this time also the main street continued through the parish westwards from the top of the village and through Leckie Estate towards Dumbarton.  It is described as the Kings Highway in old feu documents.

About the middle of the century it was the

"….he should be punctual in the beating of the drum or blowing of the horn at six o' clock in the morning during the three dead months of the winter and at five o'clock during the rest of the year and also perform the duty at 9 o'clock of the evening  throughout the year.!"

custom of the feuars and tenants to organise an annual  horse race, and in November 1776 there was a surplus of money left after payment of expenses.  A meeting was held to decide what to do with it "for the public benefit of the town". 

Three options were considered;  that...

  • "a drum should be purchased to go through the town at proper hours"
  • " a cross (be) built"
  • "the money (be) kept for other races"

The majority were in favour of the drum and further decided that "a fit person for a drummer" be annually chosen and that  none be accepted unless he could produce two "substantial cautioners" for "the proper preservation of the drum and the horn.  The horn was intended for rousing the inhabitants on wet mornings when the drum couldn't be used.

Why?  At this time there would be few clocks in the village so time keeping would be a pretty hit and miss affair.  One way round that would be to have the drummer (who would be supplied with a clock of course) sound the instrument at the set times so that all could regulate their lives accordingly.  It was resolved that he should be punctual in the beating of the drum or blowing of the horn at six o' clock in the morning during the three dead months of the winter and at five o'clock during the rest of the year.

The drummer was to be remunerated each  Hansel Monday by subscription collected from the populace.  History does not tell how much was collected!

"The Toon Cooncil"

One of the first  uses of the drum was to call a public meeting of the inhabitants to elect a committee of 8 to superintend the affairs of the drum and everything of importance connected therewith.  In time this committee came to consider themselves somewhat in the light of guardians of the public interest of the town so that as more ambitious people came to be elected to it they laid aside the name committee and substituted the more dignified designation of  "Town Council "


Later, not content with this they soared a little higher still  and styled themselves "Provost, Magistrates and Town Council"  Eventually the feuars of the town began to claim for themselves the right to elect the higher office of Lord Provost to the exclusion of the "tenants" but the "tenant citizens " fought back hard against this and won the day and the right to be so elected. Each year a Treasurer and  Clerk were appointed at a lively meeting.


To maintain the feuars' rights as defined in their feu documents to cut turf and peat a custom similar to "riding the marches" was kept each year when  a procession headed by the drum and horn and the Provost marched to the hill where, with due ceremony, a turf was cut and carried to the village.

The last known holder of the office of Provost was Provost Draper who lived in Hillview at the head of the brae.

The Drum Today
The drum continued to be used well into the 19th century before falling out of use (there would be more clocks around by then) except for ceremonial occasions and was, by then, kept by the Provost.

When Provost Draper was flitting from the village the drum and horn were seen to be  loaded onto the cart along with his other possessions.  Two of the villagers, Mr Johnny Philp and Mr Coubrough took action to stop the cart from leaving the village and removed the drum and horn.  During the 20th century they were, for many years in the safe possession of Miss Mary Philp, the post-mistress, then after her death, Miss V.H.C. Stirling of Gargunnock House.  After her death the Gargunnock Estate Trust gave them to the Smith Institute in Stirling where they remain on display to this day.

Decoration on the Drum and the Gargunnock Flag
Examination of the drum in its glass case in "The Smith" in the ambient lighting there doesn't make deciphering the decoration easy.  I have, however, in my possession a high quality photograph taken in bright sunlight outside Gargunnock House and that  provides more detail.   There was a "Gargunnock Flag" and that is reputed to have had on it a depiction of Wallace storming the "Peel o' Gargunnow" so perhaps that was repeated in the decoration of the drum.  The years have not been kind to it, however, and much of the paint has flaked off.  I'll ,try some photo-enhancement techniques on what remains to see if the original design can be further deciphered and post the results here.