Good question! One person must be singled out as the catalyst to it all. Norman Knight started it, interested others in it and played a major role in its development, despite simultaneously fighting a terminal illness.
Norman was a resident of the hamlet of Kirkton, situated in the Parish of Kinnettles. He wanted to produce a book detailing the history of the Kinnettles Parish, he was a a well known face, he knew everybody and therefore could tell many stories about the people, the buildings and the land in and around the Parish.
Instead of planting trees or holding a street party to celebrate the Millennium we decided that it was time that the history of Kinnettles was put down on paper. To do this we needed people to help and money to cover the costs of production.
We applied, and had approved, funding from the National Lottery Awards For All that enabled us to produce and print the book and give a copy to every household in the Parish as well as to each of the local schools. Other books have been sold for a small fee, this money has covered other production costs and has also gone towards establishing the Kinnettles Heritage Group which currently has 30 plus members. We have also purchased slide show equipment that can be used by the local community in the Duncan Hall (Kirkton).
Sadly Norman died before the book was published. He was proud to be part of such a wonderful commumnity and to have been part of an excellent and worthwhile project, he would certainly have been the 1st in line for a book when they came hot off the press.
Hopefully this project, as it continues to evolve, will add positively to the community spirit that already exists in the Parish.
Kinnettles and District Heritage Group 