For I ken mysel' by the queer-like smell
That the next stop's Kirkcaddy!
The final two lines in Mary Campbell Smith's poem "The Boy in the Train" refer to the industrial aroma that once pervaded the air in the Lang Toun. Kirkcaldy was the centre of the global linoleum industry and my parents vividly remember the heyday of this trade. A few years ago, BBC Scotland made an excellent documentary on the subject, called The Town that Floored the World. Kirkcaldy Museum is currently running an exhibition on the manufacture of linoleum across Fife. From its beginnings in a Kirkcaldy canvas works right through to the present day.
I took my mum down to browse the displays and the story began by taking a look at the history of the material itself. Yorkshire inventor Frederick Walton came from a family of mill owners and was investigating cheaper alternatives to rubber to aid the processing of wool. The legend says Walton accidentally left the lid off a tin of linseed-based paint and noticed how the surface oxidised to form a flexible, waterproof skin. Intrigued, he patented this substance under the name linoxyn and started experimenting with floor coverings. He mixed his creation with kauri gum, rosin, ground cork and various pigments. He spread this concoction over a woven jute backing. Thus linoleum was born and Walton advertised his "warm, soft and durable" flooring at every London railway station. Kauri gum was extracted from trees in New Zealand and the labour carried out by Croatian immigrants and indigenous Maori people. Both groups were paid very little for their efforts. The cork came mainly from Portugal. Linoleum is waterproof and easy to clean. Almost immediately after its invention, manufacturers produced patterns that mimicked more expensive alternatives, such as carpet or tiles. Printed linoleum was easy enough to produce and there was limitless scope for new designs. The main drawback was the image wore away over time and and inlaid linoleum was developed to combat this issue. This meant the coloured pattern physically ran through the depth of the material and didn't fade as the material aged. Inlaying was however a more labour intensive process, requiring high levels of skill. By the mid-1920s, a dozen linoleum works had sprung up in Kirkcaldy. The tall chimneys dominated the skyline, pumping out the unique fragrance. Whole families found employment in the industry, which also had a presence in Falkland and Newburgh. In 1956, six of Britain's nine linoleum firms were located in Scotland, and four of these concerns were based in Fife. Few would have guessed that only one would remain in 25 years time. The exhibition covered the other Fife hotspots, as well as Kirkcaldy. The roots of the local trade stretch back to canvas manufacturer Michael Nairn (1804-1858), who began selling his material to English firms in the late 1820s, to be used as a backing for floorcloth, an ancestor of linoleum. Floorcloth was relatively thin and prone to cracking. It nevertheless became popular as it was draught-proof, cheap and available in myriad elegant styles.
Nairn realised if he made his own floorcloth, he could potentially corner the Scottish market. To this end, he took out a loan of £4000 to set up a factory in the Pathhead district of Kirkcaldy. The business was up and running by 1847. Meanwhile Frederick Walton's original linoleum patent expired in 1877, meaning any company could now produce the material without having to pay licencing fees. With 30 years of experience in making floorcloth, Nairn moved into the linoleum market. Walton tried in vain to protect what he regarded as a brand name that belonged to him. The court ruled otherwise and Nairn was free to make linoleum and call it just that. Over in Newburgh, the Tayside Floorcloth Company was founded in 1891 and they began producing linoleum in the early years of the 20th century. The riverside location of the factory allowed raw materials to be easily shipped in. The finished material was sent as far afield as Scandinavia, Singapore and Ethiopia. The historic Fife town Falkland also had a linoleum plant, named St John's Works. The Scottish Co-operative Wholesale Society purchased the business in 1933 and greatly extended the complex. The workforce grew from 75 to a few hundred, the youngest of whom were just 14. Back in Kirkcaldy, the Nairn empire didn't have everything its own way. Three smaller concerns banded together to form Barry, Ostlere and Shepherd (known locally simply as Barry's) and they rivalled Nairn into the 1960s. This merger encompassed 10 factories within the municipal boundaries of Kirkcaldy, one of which stood directly across the road from the museum. The close proximity to the railway station suggests this mill was the the main generator of the "queer-like smell" sensed by travellers passing through. A downturn had to come and St John's in Falkland ceased production in 1966, the factory switching to the manufacture of plastic bags until its final demise in 2014.
The increasing popularity of fitted carpets and the availability of cheap vacuum cleaners began to eat into linoleum's market share. Budget vinyl flooring also appeared and the public often mixed this up with genuine linoleum, the former being far less durable. Crucially, fashions had changed and younger generations regarded linoleum as something you would find in your grandparents' house. Everything has its time and place. The Fife firms diversified into other types of floor covering but it wasn't enough to save the Newburgh factory. It closed in 1978 and was destroyed by fire two years later. Only Nairn remained as we entered the 80s and it was taken over by European conglomerate Forbo midway through the decade. Trading as Forbo Nairn, the company survives to the this day, making high-quality linoleum (under the brand name Marmoleum) at their Den Road plant - the only such business left in the entire UK. It is comforting to know the industry retains a foothold in the Lang Toun and the strong environmental credentials of linoleum should ensure its future. Unsold material can be ground down into granules and used to make future batches. Very little waste is generated. Forbo offers a take-back scheme where offcuts and superfluous pieces can be returned to the company, instead of going to landfill. Forbo claim that 97% of the substances used to make Marmoleum are natural and renewable. Linoleum was popular across the social spectrum and could be found in a huge range of properties, from farm cottages to stately homes. It is ubiquitous in hospitals, being easy to clean. The hardwearing nature is also easy on the public purse in the long run. The final section of the exhibition looked at some of the local faces within the industry and their working and community lives. Many factories encouraged their employees to take up team sports. Others were known for brass and pipe bands. The industry was firmly embedded in local civic life and regular social events were organised. Visitors to Kirkcaldy no longer experience the scent of linoleum wafting through the air but - thankfully - the trade wasn't completely wiped out and the exhibition provided a fascinating account of the glory days. My family has many connections to Kirkcaldy. My brother and I both work in the town, while my sister has resided there for over 25 years. My mother was born in Forth Park Maternity Hospital (my brother also) and several relatives are or were based in the Lang Toun. Leaving the linoleum galleries, we proceeded towards the permanent art collection to view the restored Madonna painting.
The artwork is by far the oldest piece in the Fife collection. It depicts Mary holding the baby Jesus on her knee, with a young Saint John the Baptist by their side. The painting was displayed in Anstruther Town Hall for many years and had been gifted to the Town Council in 1888 by William Woodcock, whose brother Alexander (a retired naval surgeon) had included the picture in his Anstruther art museum. Not much was known about the painting's deeper history until recently. In 2016, experts from Aberdeen University attributed the work to an artist from the Florence scene of the 1520s, during the Italian Renaissance period. Following a three-year conservation exercise, the Madonna was introduced to the public last year in a special exhibition here in the Kirkcaldy Galleries - now the permanent home of the artwork. I didn't attend this event as religious art isn't my thing, but since we were here anyway, it was worth having a look. Back in the 16th century, paintings were often created by a group of aspiring artists and not signed. A small strip of paper on the back of the Fife Madonna credits Andrea del Sarto (1486-1530) as the artist. Historians however have compared the work to other del Sarto paintings and concluded he was not the man responsible. The consensus of opinion is that the portrait originated from the studio of Domenico Puligo (1492-1527) - whose Florence workshop specialised in Madonna paintings. Puligo was also a close associate of del Sarto. Originally painted on a wooden panel (common before canvas took over), the conservators carefully removed the accumulated dirt, along with paint and varnish traces from previous restoration attempts. This helped bring the true colour scheme to life and the Madonna now makes a vivid impression.
Comentários