Larkhall

   LARKHALL, lately a quoad sacra district, in the parishes of Dalserf and Hamilton, Middle ward of the county of Lanark; containing, with the village of Millheugh, 2453 inhabitants, of whom 1609 are in the village of Larkhall, 3½ miles (S. E.) from Hamilton. The district comprised the lands of Broomhill, West Machan, and Meadowhill; a portion of Dalserf lying between those lands and the river Avon; and considerable strips of the parish of Hamilton to the north and west. The village of Larkhall, which is situated in the Dalserf portion of the district, and on the great road from Glasgow to Carlisle, is of modern erection, built on a regular plan, and has latterly very much extended, and increased in population. It is now the largest village in Dalserf parish, and mostly inhabited by weavers. In its vicinity are several hamlets, rows of houses, and other dwellings, the whole so approximating with it as to be considered parts of one town. Within the last ten years a post-office, subordinate to Hamilton and Glasgow, has been established; and other facilities are fast tending to the improvement and importance of the place. A small fair, once accompanied by a horse-race, is held here in the month of June. The river Clyde flows at a distance of two miles north-eastward. The ecclesiastical affairs are directed by the presbytery of Hamilton and synod of Glasgow and Ayr, and the patronage is vested in the male communicants: the stipend of the minister is £80, derived from seat-rents. The church, built by subscription, aided by the General Assembly's extension fund, was opened for divine service in January, 1836, and contains 720 sittings, of which thirty are free. There is a place of worship for the Relief, very recently enlarged; also a parochial school, in which, besides the usual branches of education, Latin is taught: the master has an annual salary of £5, with a house, schoolroom and garden, and the fees. A library, instituted in the year 1809, contains upwards of 500 volumes.