Pumpherston, West Lothian

Pumpherston is a small dormitory village in West Lothian, Scotland. Originally a small industrial village to the nearby shale mine and works, it now adjoins the new town of Livingston, which was constructed alongside Pumpherston in the late 1960s and quickly grew much larger than its neighbours. HistoryThe history Pumpherston, the story of a shale oil villagewas commissioned by BP and collated and edited by local area historian Sybil Cavanagh. This book acknowledges a previous history by a Mr Vic Armstrong. Both books are out of print as of 2009. The specific oil shale retort, invented in 1894 and marking the separation of the oil shale industry from the coal industry, is named after the village. Origin of the nameThere does not seem to be an unambiguous derivation for the origin of the name. Various suggestions have been made as to the meaning of the name Pumpherston. One writer suggested it was from 'pamper', a short thickset man; another suggested it was from 'pundler', the official in the middle ages who impounded stray cattle. derivation is from 'ap Humphrey' meaning son of Humphrey. Pomphray was probably one of the Flemish (Belgian) noblemen invited by King David I and his grandson Malcolm IV to settle in Scotland in the twelfth century. . . Pomphray would have been granted the lands north of the Almond in return for serving the king in battle. . . around the castle built by Pomphray, probably a wooden structure later replaced by a stone building, would have grown up a little settlement and farm to house and feed his adherents and servants - Pomphray's town.

Pumpherston is a small dormitory village in West Lothian, Scotland. Originally a small industrial village to the nearby shale mine and works, it now adjoins the new town of Livingston, which was constructed alongside Pumpherston in the late 1960s and quickly grew much larger than its neighbours. HistoryThe history Pumpherston, the story of a shale oil villagewas commissioned by BP and collated and edited by local area historian Sybil Cavanagh. This book acknowledges a previous history by a Mr Vic Armstrong. Both books are out of print as of 2009. The specific oil shale retort, invented in 1894 and marking the separation of the oil shale industry from the coal industry, is named after the village. Origin of the nameThere does not seem to be an unambiguous derivation for the origin of the name. Various suggestions have been made as to the meaning of the name Pumpherston. One writer suggested it was from 'pamper', a short thickset man; another suggested it was from 'pundler', the official in the middle ages who impounded stray cattle. derivation is from 'ap Humphrey' meaning son of Humphrey. Pomphray was probably one of the Flemish (Belgian) noblemen invited by King David I and his grandson Malcolm IV to settle in Scotland in the twelfth century. . . Pomphray would have been granted the lands north of the Almond in return for serving the king in battle. . . around the castle built by Pomphray, probably a wooden structure later replaced by a stone building, would have grown up a little settlement and farm to house and feed his adherents and servants - Pomphray's town.