workers and was eventually sold to Robert Balfour, who later built a new factory near Beith Town Station, the West of Scotland Cabinet Works. The Muirs had been tanners for many generations and around 1791 John Muir and Sons, Tanners, Curriers, and Fancy Leather Manufacturers had become established at the Bath Lane works. William Muir of Mains joined as a partner in 1846. Micro-history An early Bronze Age flanged axehead was found near East Kerse in 2004 by a metal detectorist and is now in the Kelvingrove Museum, Glasgow. The axehead belongs to the so-called Bandon type with a long, straight-sided body, raised edges or low flanges and widely expanded blades. The find is associated at this site with several other finds of metalwork of the later Early Bronze Age. One of the buildings at the Kerse Bridge was the old 'Kirk's Railway Inn' serving the railway station that once stood across the road from it. Mrs Kirk managed the Railway Inn at the turn of the 20th century Alexander Kirk spent his boyhood years there, attended Spier's school and served in France from 1917, graduated in medicine at Glasgow university and spent his professional life in England. A small pier existed at the north end of the loch in recent times. Much of the successful drainage works, especially of the Barr Loch, were carried out by Dutch immigrants who introduced the technology from their homeland; Dutch surnames present in the area to this day reflect this immigration. In around 1691 the Rev Patrick Warner likewise purchased and drained much of the Irving Loch or Trindlemoss, later called Scott's Loch, after returning from exile in Holland. The Ardrossan & Saltcoats Herald recorded that in 1904–05 a model yacht race under the auspices of Townhead Model Yacht Club on Kilbirnie Loch the result was: 1, John Martin, jun (Thistle); 2, James Martin (Swift); 3, John Martin (Helena); 4, William McCosh (Reliance)); 5, William Taylor (Genesta); 6, John Taylor (Bona); 7, Robert Taylor (Rover); 8, Robert Martin (Fairlie). A possible relic of the smuggling days of Beith is the Ley tunnel that is said to run from the site of the Grace Church on Eglinton Street to Kilbirnie Loch. A geocache is located on the lochside. Kilbirnie Loch is said to be the only Scottish loch to have its main exit at the same end as the source river. Scottish Enterprise owns