It has been quite amazing to find out just how many different such bodies have existed in such a small village, and in such a comparatively short time.   It may well be that there are other which have not yet come to light but this chapter should bring back memories to many people who read it.   With so much to do and in so many varied fields it is a wonder that the population could find the time to actually go to work, particularly up until the 1940's.   The different activities are not put in chronological order, not in any order of importance, but are loosely put into similar groupings:  Societies, Organisations, Musical groups, Clubs, Gala Days and Old Folks' Treats.

Within seven years of the beginning of the village, the first 'society' was established.  The Loyal Orange Lodge "Stoneyburn True Blues" No 37 was opened in 1905 and has continued to operate, without a break, up to the present day.    The current Worthy Master is Thomas Meek and the Lodge meets in the Masonic Hall.   Its first meetings were held in the Public School, with its first Worthy Master, Archibald Wylie and the Secretary was Robert Ewing, both men coming from Addiewell.   A Juvenile Lodge, No 95, was opened in 1929 with John Abbott as Worthy Master and John Pender as Secretary, and operated until 1935.   This was succeeded by a new Juvenile Lodge, No 64, which started up in 1952 with William Abbott as Worthy Master and George Abbott as its Secretary.   This Lodge met in the Masonic Hall but went dormant in 1974.   On the 1st September 1922 the first Ladies L.O. Lodge, "Daughter of Ruth" No 97, opened with Mrs R. Abbott as its Worthy Mistress and Mrs P. Rodger as Secretary.   This went dormant in 1935 but was resurrected under the number 189 in 1951.   The Worthy Mistress was Margaret Abbott and Elizabeth Morris was its Secretary.   This Lodge is still active today under its Worthy Mistress, Miss Denise Johnston.

On the 1st May 1919 the new Freemasons' Lodge, St John 1186, was consecrated with John Millar, a Past Master from the Fauldhouse Lodge No 374, as its first Right Worshipful Master and John Lambie as Secretary.   Despite two periods of great difficulty in the early 1930's and in the mid 1950's, the Lodge has grown in strength and is very active today with another Fauldhouse man, Murray Brown, in the Chair during this, its 75th Anniversary Year.   The Lodge first held its meetings in the school, moved its venue to 'Ewing's Hall' in 1923 and then purchased the A.R.P. Hall in 1945.   By 1952 the Lodge had built a new hall on the same site and this is in use today, and has been recently enlarged and completely refurbished.

The Ancient order of Free Gardners formed a Lodge on the 12 December 1919.   This was at the request of Stoneyburn men who were members of the Order in Bathgate.   Stoneyburn Olive Lodge promised to become one of the largest in the shire at that time, but apart from the report of its founding in the local press, no other mention of it has come to light but it is believed to have existed for several years before it and its Grand Lodge became dormant.   The first R.W. Master was David Strickland and the Secretary was Peter Walker, an Addiewell man.

The Independent Order of Grand Templars opened a 'Temple' in the village on the 20th November 1920 with Richard Haggarty as its Chief Templar.   On that day it is reported that they admitted 20 candidates.   The Order seems only to have flourished for a few years.

The Independent Order of Rechabites opened "The Star of the West" Tent on the 27th January 1922.   The Chief Rechabite was S. Paton and his Deputy was Mr Gilmour.   The Secretary was Mr Tweedie and Mr A. Allan was the Treasurer.   Apart from the report in the press about the starting of this 'Tent' there is no further mention of them until the report of them holding a Social and Dance on the 31st October 1947 in the Welfare Hall.   The Chairman was Peter Thomson.   This Society was for men and women.

The British Women's' Temperance Association set up a branch on the 22nd October 1920 under the Presidency of a Miss Laidlaw.   The only other reference to this ground found so far is of a monthly meeting held on the 20th February 1925 with a Miss Aitken as President.

The only record found to date of The Royal Order of Antediluvian Buffaloes is of a meeting held in the Calder Lodge in February 1936, when Brother P. Gilfether was raised to the 2nd Degree conferred by the Knight Winnert and Officers of the Edinburgh and East of Scotland Provincial Grand Lodge.   It is reported that there was a good attendance of Brethren from Bathgate, Uphall and Newhaven.

The Order of the Eastern Star, Beechwood Chapter No 406 was chartered on the 15th October 1945, with Jemima Frame as its first Worthy Matron and John Barr as its first Worthy Patron.   This Chapter met in the Masonic Hall until it went dormant in 1972.   There is also a rather puzzling report of a Social held by the 'Star' on the 2nd April 1926, which pre-dates their official existence.

There is one record of the Band of Hope on the 7th February 1919 when they held a Social in the school.

The last of this group that a single record has been found is of an excursion by train to Ayr on the 26th July 1929, by The Court Hope, Stoneyburn Lodge of the Ancient Order of Foresters.   It is recorded that 300 people attended the trip, leaving from Addiewell Station and the journey taking 2½ hours each way.

The first youth organisation in the village was The Boy Scouts, with its first Troop being founded in the spring of 1919.  The 2nd of May nearly all the boys were in uniform and the Scoutmaster was Mr Aird.   This early troop seems to have ceased, however, and a new one formed in 1928 under the leadership of the minister, the Rev George Frazer.   This group met in the church hall until 1948 when it too fell by the wayside.   During 1943 it had its highest membership of 43 boys.

Another troop started up again in April 1957 under Scoutmaster, Edmund Wisniewski, whose assistants were T. Haggarty and Jim Moonie.   They held their meetings in the Masonic Hall until they were disbanded in 1960.   A Wolf Club Pack was run by two Leaders from 1983-86, but this also failed to keep the interest of the youngsters and so it also disbanded.

In May 1929 a Company of Girl Guides were formed under the Captaincy of Miss Webb, with over 100 members.   The Company kept running until at least June 1838, when they were presented with 'Colours' at a parade and ceremony in the church.   It still had a membership of 100 Guides and Brownies.   The Guides were led by the Misses Scott and Ellis, and the Brownies' Leader was Miss McIntyre.   The service was also attended by their male contemporaries, the Scouts, with Scoutmasters Mr McWhinney and Mr Bishop.   After several years the interest in the Guides also fell away despite an attempt by the Captain, Mrs Farrer, to keep a Company going during the 1970's with little success.   The Brownies, however, managed to survive into the 1980's under the leadership of Isobel Cowan.

The Air Training Corps in Bathgate, 1271 Squadron, started up a small group, 'C' Flight, under the command of Flight Officer Byrne during 1941 but this unit did not last beyond the end of the war.

The first Company of The Boys' Brigade was started in January 1949, with Captain Thomas Gibson in charge over 40 boys.   On the 8th of May that year they held a special parade to the church which was attended by over 200 boys from 15 different Companies.   The first Company was, unfortunately, disbanded within a few years and another was started by Captain Gibson in March 1957, which lasted until February 1968.   A third Company was formed in 1972 under Captain Matt Sommerville with 32 boys but this only lasted for four years.

A Junior Section, then known as The Life Boys, ran from 1959 to 1966 with up to 50 boys.   This 'Team' was led by James Kerr and Evelyn Hamilton, assisted by Charles Sergeant and William Moonie.

There were also some other organisations like the National Service Cadets in 1942, The Co-op Youth Movement in 1943 and the Clarion Youth Club in 1949.   These were all rather short-lived and it is a great pity that none of these excellent organisations seem to meet the needs of the young people of today.

The first band was founded in the spring of 1919.   This was the Stoneyburn Pipe Band which made its first public appearance with a parade round the village with Pipe-Major Richardson leading them.   The next major appearance was when they led the Gala Day Parade in July of that year from the school to Bents and back to the football field.   This band does not seem to have lasted very long because the Gala Parade for the following year was led by Stewart and Lloyd's Welfare Pipe Band.

For a mining community to be without a band was unthinkable, and so, in September 1923 a meeting was held in Paton's Picture Palace to consider the formation of a brass band.   Joseph Colquhoun chaired the meeting and it was agreed that a band should be formed.   A committee was set up with Mr George McDougal as President, Messer's Alex Geddes and Hugh Crawford as Vice-Presidents, John Paton as Secretary and John Murphy as Treasurer.   It was proposed that, in order to start raising money for the venture, all the miners were to be asked if they were willing to have a penny deducted from their wages each week.   This was agreed, even by the men who came from Blackburn to work in the 'Foulshie'.   By November of that year enough money had been raised to get the band started even though they had to hire their instruments.     

Their first big public appearance was, when as Stoneyburn Brass Band, they proudly led the Gala Procession in July 1924.   This band continued to play for many years, apart from the war years, giving pleasure to many and winning several competitions on the way.   It was referred to by various names over the years, the Public Band, the Silver Band, the Colliery Band or The Stoneyburn & District Public Brass Band.   It was finally disbanded in the early 1960's, and its instruments were handed over to the West Calder Band.

Over the years the band had many outstanding conductors, the first being a Mr Wardrope.   In 1927 the post was given to a Mr Robert Gillies from Fife and the following year a Mr Williamson took over.   Over the next twenty years there is no information about the conductors, but in 1949 a Mr Kirsley was the leader.

The third band to be formed was the 'Stoneyburn and Bents Amateur Flute Band'.   This was started by Jim Moonie in November 1978 and is now a well-known participant at all Flute Band Parades and other functions, albeit under the new name of 'Stoneyburn Crown Defenders'.   There is a strange early record of a 'Stoneyburn Conservative Flute Band', under the leadership of a Mr Thomas Watson from Armadale.   This was recorded in the press of the 24th September 1923, as being newly formed and having its first practise in Ewing's Hall with a large turnout of members.   This record has posed a small problem as nobody can give any other information about it.

Stoneyburn also boasted an orchestra, which was formed in September 1919.   At a music festival held outdoors in air of the Boy Scouts, the orchestra, under the leadership of Mr Robert Lawn, took part along with the Armadale Brass Band and the Whitburn Choir.   This orchestra would appear to have been disbanded in the 1930's, but during their existence were popular stars at many functions held in the village.

A much more famous musical ensemble was the 'Male Voice Choir', which was formed in the early 1920's under the conductorship of Mr David Sangster.   In May 1924 they held a social in Ewings Hall to celebrate their winning a competition organised by United Collieries.   From this date they went on to win many prestigious trophies at competitions across Scotland, their second triumph being to win the same trophy in 1925.   By 1926, the 24-strong choir had taken part in the Monklands' Festival and the Edinburgh Music Festival.   The choirs' successes were putting Stoneyburn firmly on the musical map and they were being congratulated at every event by the panels of judges.   It is a great pity that this choir seems to have disbanded in the early 1930's after such achievements.

Before leaving this section mention must be made of some other musical entertainers who were very much in demand during these early days, when dancing was a very popular and well attended pastime.   To provide the music for these many functions three village dance bands were almost in constant action.   These were "Aitken's Band", "Dougan and Potter's Band" and "Black's Jazz Band".   In addition to all these producers of music there was a Lithuanian Band in the early 1920's, which added colour to their performances by wearing the varied district differences of their national costume.   Other noteworthy musicians were the pianist who provided the accompaniments to the silent pictures shown in the 'Picture Palace', Johnny Haggarty, Peter Thomson and Molly Guthrie to name but a few.

Over the years there have been many other groups founded, some lasted for several years, whilst others appear to have been rather short-lived and only a few have managed to survive to the present day.   During the 1920's there was a "Burns Club", whose president was Mr Daniel McDougal;  Mr George Guthrie was the president of "The Progressive Club";   there was a "Glee Club" and the "Co-operative Societies", both from Stoneyburn and Bents with their associated Guilds;  the Sunday School as well as the Women's Association of the church came into being, with Mrs Fraser, the minister's wife, as it's president.   It appears that this latter group was to become the "Church Women's Guild" and this is one of the few that remain today, even though it has undergone another change of name this year, becoming the "Women Workers for the Church".

The 1930's saw the "Women's' Rural Institute" starting up under its first president, Mrs Richardson.   "The Unionist Association" and the "Wembley Club" also appeared on the scene as did the "Lithuanian Society".   Despite five years of war, the 1940's produced a spate of new groups.  "The Women's Voluntary Service", the "Church Associates",  the "Literary Society",  and "The British Legion".   "The Dramatic Club" was resurrected and the "Old Age Pensioners' Association" was formed with Sam Gilfether as its first president.   This association is another which has lasted the course until 1989 when, due to falling numbers and the ill health and advancing years of its two stalwarts, Mary Mulligan and Agnes McComisky - the oldest person in the village - they decided to call it a day and wind it up.   Sadly, Mrs McComisky died a few months before her 100th birthday in 1993.

The only new organisation in the 1950's was the "Heatherbell Cycling Club" but only one brief record has been found concerning its activities.   This club held a social and dance in the Masonic Hall and its president, Alec Bryce, was congratulated on the progress of the club in such a short time.

With the new craze of "Citizen Band Radio" sweeping the country in the 1980's, it was not long before a "C.B. Club" started up.   The "Breich Valley Breakers" was formed in 1983 and for three years about a dozen adults and up to twenty-five youngsters met every week in the 'Wee Croft' in the basement of Redcroft Place.   Other activities included visits to other clubs, treasure hunts and, of course, talking to breakers from all round the district for a radius of about 10 miles.   There was also the great excitement when freak weather conditions produced a 'skip' and it became possible to talk to 'Breakers' from as far away as Shetland or Cornwall.   Some very lucky folk managed to contact France, Spain, Germany and ever the Canary Islands.    The craze was, however, rather short-lived because of the vast numbers of irresponsible idiots who persisted in jamming the airways with constant rock music and offensive language.   The club folded but there are still about half a dozen folk in the village who are sill 'on channel'.

 "The Lunch Club" was established in 1987 by Nurse Doreen Meiklem, with help from the District Nurse and the Health Visitor.   This club was primarily to provide meals for some of the less able members of our senior citizens.   Transport to and from the venue was available for those who required it and the meals cost only 35p.   It was originally held in the Community Centre but there arose the problem of getting the members up and down the stairs.   A scheme was set up to have a lift installed, but the spiralling costs meant that it took some time to raise the necessary funds.   In the meantime, Lodge St John kindly gave them the use of the Masonic Hall on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 1989 and, because the members found the premises so much to their liking and comfort, there they have stayed.   The project is subsidised by the Social Work Department and caters for up to thirty meals which are prepared by staff in the kitchen of the Primary School.

The first such innovation was the founding of Stoneyburn Community Council on the 19th May 1977.   This inaugural meeting was chaired by Mr Morrison and, acting on the guidelines produced by the District Council, the Village Council was elected as follows:   Chairman - William 'Billy' McMahon;  Vice-Chairman - Ian Redpath;  Secretary - Jim Moonie and Treasurer - Elizabeth Moonie.   The committee was formed by A. Munroe, R. Laing, R. Moffat, M. Gallagher and E. Gallagher, J. Corrigan and P. Docherty.   This Council only met for a few years and a new one was re-convened at a meeting on the 26th November 1980.   The new Chairman was Tommy McCafferty, Margaret Currie became Secretary and Nancy Colquhoun was the Treasurer, in which capacity she still serves.   Since its formation the new Council has had a regular flow of members who have all contributed to the many schemes put into operation for the benefit of the village, most importantly, the creation of B.E.A.G. which is mentioned in Chapter 10.

A Village Association was set up in 1990 to try and bridge the gap which the Community Council had no say in, which was housing problems.   It also tackled one or two highly contentious issues but lack of support caused it to be wound up after two years.

There is no doubt several other groups which have come and gone during the history of the village, but regrettably, no records of them have been found.   Perhaps they will be documented at a later date.