The club was founded in 1874, and took its name from Kilmaronock Parish, in which the village is situated. It was occasionally referred to as simply
Kilmaronock or as
Kilmaronock Lochlomondside, and was often mistaken for a side from Kilmarnock. The club joined the
Scottish Football Association in September 1877 and entered the
Scottish Cup for the
1877–78 campaign, but withdrew when paired with
Vale of Leven, one of the strongest clubs in the world at the time. This would become a pattern, as the early rounds of the Scottish Cup in the period were drawn on a geographical basis, and Dunbartonshire almost always provided one of the Cup finalists. Therefore, although Kilmaronock entered every year until
1883–84, it withdrew after the draw four times. Kilmaronock did play in the competition on three occasions. In
1878–79, the club lost 4–0 at
Helensburgh in the first round, having ceded home advantage. In
1879–80, the club was drawn to visit
Renton in the first round, and gained a 2–2 draw. In the home replay, however, the Thistle lost 8–0, the club losing its two best players for the match. The last time the club played a match in the competition was in
1881–82, against Helensburgh again, this time losing 6–2 at home. The Kilmaronock side was the heavier side, but the visitors displayed "greater science and training in their play", and were 2–0 up inside ten minutes. One difficulty the club had was in attracting new players; its membership stayed around the 40 mark throughout its senior existence, while clubs such as
Vale of Leven Hibernians went from fewer to many more. The club's final Cup entry resulted in a withdrawal when drawn against
Jamestown, being unable to raise an XI. The club was one of the 33 struck off the
Scottish Football Association register in August 1884, the final indignity being that even the agenda for the relevant meeting listed the club as Kilmarnock Thistle. ==Kilmarnock Thistle==