cattle show, sheepdog trial and sports and arts festival held near the village on the first Saturday of every May with a tradition beginning in the early 19th century. It began as a result of a dispute between two farmers from the village. Each farmer had a prized bull that he said was better than the other's. In a bid to settle the argument, the farmers arranged a contest that would be judged by the other farmers in the area. It is not documented who had the better bull, but the contest grew into an annual event that has become a local custom which is celebrated each year at the end of the show with the burning of a 50 ft tall wickerman. Although agriculture continues to a limited extent on the village's outskirts, Neilston's textile processing industry has diminished. Since deindustrialisation, Neilston is a commuter village with significant numbers of its inhabitants travelling to the major urban centres of Glasgow, Paisley and Barrhead for work. The village has retained a selection of amenities from local shops for local people, leisure facilities, and schooling however. The Barrhead News, a local newspaper published by Clyde and Forth Press, reports on Neilston, Barrhead, Nitshill and Darnley. In 2005 the Clydesdale Bank closed its branch at Neilston, leaving it without a bank. In 2006 Neilston Development Trust utilised the Land Reform Act to purchase the bank building for community usage with the aid of a grant of £210,000 from the Big Lottery Fund. This was the first time this legislation had been successfully used in an urban area. The premises are used as a community café, a service information point, office space and meeting rooms. The trust has been involved in a community energy project, the Neilston Community Wind Farm, which installed four turbines with a capacity of 10MW in 2013. Landmarks A chapel at Neilston was first recorded in 1163 in a charter of Paisley Abbey. It was commissioned by Sir Robert Croc, as part of a feudal requirement by the High Steward of Scotland, Walter fitz Alan. The original Neilston Kirk was one storey high, and was rebuilt in 1762 to accommodate the growing population of the parish. The only remaining parts of the original building are a Gothic window in a back wall and the burial vault of the Mure family of Caldwell, including the tomb of Laird, scholar and