Fauldhouse

Fauldhouse (Scots: Fauldhoose,[2] Scottish Gaelic: Falas)[3] is a village in West Lothian, Scotland. It is about halfway between Glasgow and Edinburgh.

Fauldhouse
Fauldhouse
Location within West Lothian
Population4,780 (mid-2016 est.)[1]
OS grid referenceNS929606
Council area
Lieutenancy area
CountryScotland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townBathgate
Postcode districtEH47
Dialling code01501
PoliceScotland
FireScottish
AmbulanceScottish
UK Parliament
Scottish Parliament

History

The town of Fauldhouse has existed since, at least, the Middle Ages, and was known until the 19th century by the names Falas and Fallas. The seventeenth century Dutch mapmaker Willem Blaeu features Fauldhouse as Falas on two maps in his Atlas Novus of Scotland, and there are families with the surname Fallas. The name Fallas or Fauldhouse has been translated as "house on the fold", "house in the field", or "house on unploughed (fallow) land". However, the name may be older than the Middle Ages, and might even be derived from the Brythonic or Welsh-type language once spoken in the Lothian region.

Facilities

The village has two primary schools, Falla Hill and St. John the Baptist RC. The local high school for Falla Hill is Whitburn Academy and for St John the Baptist, St. Kentigern's Academy in Blackburn.

The church of St. John the Baptist was the first Roman Catholic parish in West Lothian, in the year 1873.

The village is served by the Fauldhouse railway station, on the Shotts Line between Glasgow and Edinburgh, Lothian Country Buses also run the X17 bus service linking Fauldhouse with a direct bus service to Edinburgh via West Calder, Livingston and Corstorphine

The nearest towns to Fauldhouse are Whitburn and Livingston. Other neighbouring villages include Longridge, Shotts and Stoneyburn.

The village previously had a theatre and cinema, the Palace Theatre, which opened in 1914. It later became the Savoy Bingo Club and was then demolished.[4]

Geography

People

Stephen Greenhorn, who wrote River City and Marchlands, is from Fauldhouse. In 2013, Greenhorn adapted his musical Sunshine on Leith for the big screen. The film was shot in Glasgow and Edinburgh in late 2012; it stars Peter Mullan and Jane Horrocks, and is directed by Dexter Fletcher.

John McLaren, won the title Scottish Junior Cross Country Champion in 1954, and then retained the title. In 1955, McLaren won the English title and came in 12th in the 1956 International Cross Country Championships. He represented Scotland six times throughout his career.

Sports

Football Team

The local football team is Fauldhouse United who play in Eastern Region and won the Scottish Junior Cup in 1946.

In 2001, the Fauldhouse Foxes BC was formed, later known as Fauldhouse FCA. They now operate with teams ranging from Under 9 up to Under 19. The Under 13s won the Scottish Cup in 2011, beating Syngenta Juveniles 3-0 in the final.

Golf

To the south of Fauldhouse is the 18-hole Greenburn Golf Course which was founded in 1892, but has been on its present site for around 50 years. Trains run through the course over a viaduct.

Cricket

The local cricket club is Fauldhouse Victoria.[5] They were established in 1855, and are one of the oldest clubs in Scotland. The 1st team plays in the East of Scotland Division 1.

Swimming

The swimming club in Fauldhouse is called the Fauldhouse Penguins. They are part of the swimming development programme in West Lothian called Swim West Lothian (SWL).

See also

References
  1. "Mid-2016 Population Estimates for Settlements and Localities in Scotland". National Records of Scotland. 12 March 2018. Retrieved 30 December 2020.
  2. The Online Scots Dictionary
  3. List of railway station names in English, Scots and Gaelic – NewsNetScotland Archived January 22, 2013, at the Wayback Machine
  4. "Palace Theatre, Fauldhouse". West Lothian's War. Scotland's War. Retrieved 2 April 2016.
  5. "Fauldhouse Victoria Cricket Club". fvcc.hitscricket.com. Retrieved 7 January 2018.
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