Sheriff of Ayr


The Sheriff of Ayr was historically the royal official responsible for enforcing law and order in Ayr, Scotland and bringing criminals to justice. Sundrum Castle was used by the sheriff from the 14th century, and Loudoun Castle from the 16th century. Prior to 1748 most sheriffdoms were held on a hereditary basis. From that date, following the Jacobite uprising of 1745, the hereditary sheriffs were replaced by salaried sheriff-deputes, qualified advocates who were members of the Scottish Bar.
In 1946 Bute was added to form the new sheriffdom of Ayr and Bute, which was in turn abolished in 1975 and replaced by the current sheriffdom of South Strathclyde, Dumfries and Galloway.

Sheriffs of Ayr

;Sheriffs-Depute
  • William Duff, 1747–1775
  • William Wallace, 1775–1786
  • William Craig, Lord Craig, 1787–1792
  • Edward McCormick, 1793–1814
  • Archibald Bell, 1815–>1852
  • John Christison, <1861–1862
  • Neil Colquhoun Campbell of Barnhill, 1862–1883
  • John Comrie Thomson, 1883–1885
  • Sir David Brand, 1885–1908
  • John Campbell Lorimer, 1908–1911
  • William Lyon Mackenzie, 1911–1937
  • Arthur Paterson Duffes, KC, 1937–1946

Sheriffs of Ayr and Bute (1946)