The ancient Britons settled here, the tribe of Novantae take their name from the River Nith that starts its life in the parish . The missionaries of St. Ninian, St.Mungo and St.Columba all brought the Christian message to this corner of the ancient kingdom of Strathclyde.

A few miles downstream from its source the Nith is joined by the Afton Water , immortalised as 'Sweet Afton' by Scotland's national bard, Robert Burns. The meeting of these two fine rivers gave rise to the name Cumnock which is from the Gaelic comunn ach 'the place of the confluence'. Cumnock Castle the ancient seat of the Barons of Cumnock once stood on the castle hill overlooking the confluence and was occupied by Edward I during the Wars of Independence. Scotland's freedom fighters William Wallace and Robert the Bruce both sought refuge in the hills of New Cumnock and indeed legend has it that Wallace once held a 'royal house' at the head of Glen Afton.

Some 400 years later these hills were to provide similar refuge to Scotland's fighters for spritual freedom the Covenanters, the Killing Times of 1685 visited the parish and left its mark of martyrdom .

The hills and the beasts of the fields of course were the source of livelihood for many parishioners. However, in the 20th century coal became king and New Cumnock became 'a mining community' with pits and miners-rows covering the landscape. In 1950 the world held its breath as 129 New Cumnock miners were trapped in the Knockshinnoch Disaster , and 13 souls lost their lives. Less than half a century later Thatcher's 'Plan for Coal' destroyed the industry nation-wide. Jobs were lost and the population began to dwindle but thankfully the mining community spirit has endured.