Strachur And Strathlachlan (201285)
Charity Number: SC001767
The congregation of Strachur Church meet at 11.45 every Sunday and warmly welcome all who wish to worship with us whether new residents or visitors to this beautiful part of the world. The church is open every day for private worship or to explore the building with its long history. We hope you can join us. Strachur Church is an understated and beautiful building in the heart of Strachur village. Raised on a mound within a circular enclosure, it sports a natural stone colour. The entrance is a modest doorway on the east flank of the church. Pilgrims visiting Strachur, a Church of Scotland property, will find the doors open during daylight hours, and a visitor book in the entrance way. Please do sign this book, as it lets the local parish know that their church is appreciated (and if you could mention the Faith in Cowal website, even better!). Inside, there are large, narrow windows, allowing the light to stream into a, clearly well loved, chapel. Should you wish to offer prayers to the mysterious saint that this church, Kilmaglash, is dedicated to, then take a pew and allow this peaceful corner of Scotland to hear your prayers. Just be careful as you walk down the centre aisle; the full-size, marble gravestone of General John Campbell (American war of independence hero) lies just under the carpet, with an inscription requesting “that no heir or successor shall disturb this sacred repository”. It is, however, the outside of the building that attracts most visitors to Strachur Church. Inlaid into the walls of the church are ancient carved gravestones, with tightly packed Celtic knots, crosses and figures adorning them. They were brought down from the original kirk yard in Succoth (on the hills above) in the 1780’s, and then used as part of the fabric of the church by a local architect, Archibald Fergusson, when it was remodeled in 1903. A recent revival of the Dewar Manuscripts has led to speculation that at least some of these stones may have been salvaged from under Loch Fyne. A ship with artifacts plundered from Iona may have run aground and had to dump it’s contraband cargo. Local stories at the time make reference to such stones and crosses ‘miraculously’ floating ashore. This description is taken from Faith in Cowal web site. Please see https://www.faithincowal.org/ Strathlachlan Church The congregation of Strathlachlan church meet at 10.00 am every Sunday and welcome all who would like to worship with them whether they are new residents or visitors. On some Sundays, the congregation meet at the Community Centre in Strathlachlan for refreshments after the service and everyone is welcome to join them in a time of fellowship. The church is particularly accessible for those with disabilities including wheelchair users as there is level access and an accessible toilet. This church, which serves the SW part of the united parish of Strachur and Strathlachlan, is situated at Garbhallt, 1.25km NE of the medieval church site at Kilmorie (No. 75). It was built about 1792. The building, which measures 12.7m by 7.2m over 0.9m walls, is of harled rubble rising from a rough plinth, but the entrance-doorway in the NE gable and a lancet-window above it have sandstone dressings, now painted over. The angle-quoins are heavily rusticated with alternately projecting rubble blocks (en.2*), and the same treatment is applied to the surrounds of the Gothick features of the SW gable-wall, which has two lancet-windows flanking a taller blind lancet with a quatrefoil recess above. Its gable is surmounted by an open bird-cage belfry having thin circular pillars which support a slab roof and ball-finials. Each of the side-walls has two rectangular windows of modest size. The slated roof, with sprocketed barge-boards at the NE gable and cement skews at the SW, is of late 19th-century date. Most of the internal furnishings are of recent date but the NE gallery, with a panelled front supported on two timber columns, is probably of early 19th-century origin. In the central panel it carries the arms of the family of MacLachlan of MacLachlan, in carved and painted timber, quarterly: 1st, or, a lion rampant gules; 2nd, argent, a dexter hand couped gules holding a cross fitchee of the same; 3rd, or, a galley sable with sail furled, oars in saltire and pennons flying, on a sea azure; 4th, argent, in base a salmon naiant argent in a sea azure. The supporters are two stags and the helm is surmounted by the crest of a three-towered castle, while the motto is FORTIS ET FIDUS ('Brave and Loyal').Congregational Buildings
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Strachur
Service times: Strachur Church - 11.45am each Sunday The church is open daily for visitors. Strathlachlan Church - 10.00am each Sunday NB Disabled access at Strathlachlan including wheelchair accessible toilet. Minister : Rev R Mackenzie At times Strachur Church has a Food Share table at the rear of the church for anyone in need to take items they need free of charge. During the summer months a White Elephant Shop operates at the rear of the church selling donated goods to raise funds for the church and local organisations. Strachur Church Standing within a raised oval churchyard in the village of Strachur is Strachur Parish Church, an attractive grey-harled rectangular structure with a pedimented vestry surmounted by a belfry on its southern side. The church was built in 1789. Much of its appearance today dates back to a major renovation carried out in 1902-3 by the local architect Archibald Fergusson. The original hipped or piended roof was removed and replaced with a gabled roof, the pattern of windows was changed, and the interior layout was remodelled and the furnishings were replaced. The result was very much the church as you see it today. A raised site and an oval or circular graveyard are often signs that a church has been built on the site of a very much older religious foundation. This seems to be the case here, but the details are obscure and more than one version of the story of the development of Strachur Church can be found in usually reliable sources. The most likely story is that a church was founded here early in the Christian era which became known as Kilmolash, or "Church of St Molaise" after St Molaise. The name later seems to have been changed to Kilmoglash. Meanwhile the church itself probably evolved through a number of rebuilds, with wood and thatch being replaced by stone during the medieval era. The church then in use here seems to have survived the Reformation of 1560, and the parish of Strachur was merged with the neighbouring parish of Strathlachlan in 1650. As already noted Strachur Parish Church was rebuilt in 1789, to accommodate a congregation 400, while a smaller church was built at Strathlachlan in 1792 to accommodate 150. The parish remains a joint one today, and services take place at both churches. The churchyard at Strachur has a number of fascinating gravestones dating back to 1781. Much more interesting, however, are the 11 sculptured grave slabs which have been built into the outer wall of the church. One of these has the surround cut away to reveal a date of 1698 carved on its edge, but most are of a style that dates back to the 1300s and 1400s and carry a range of carvings typical of West Highland grave slabs of the era, including a knight, some nicely carved swords, and a great deal of Celtic knotwork. Accounts differ as to whether these stones were built into the outer wall of the church in 1789 or in 1903, and there is also disagreement as to whether they were originally in use on this site, or were brought here in 1789 from the site of a chapel at Chapel Verna, about three quarters of a mile south of Strachur. We understand from Archibald Fergusson's granddaughter that 1903 is the correct date, and that she has a copy of a letter which he sent to the late Chief of Clan Fergusson of Strachur telling him that he had built the stone into the walls, and that the stone with the knight was the gravestone of a previous chief who had been buried at Chapel Verna. Please see https://www.faithincowal.org/ for much more information on all the Pilgrim sites.l Strathlachlan Church This church, which serves the SW part of the united parish of Strachur and Strathlachlan, is situated at Garbhallt, 1.25km NE of the medieval church site at Kilmorie (No. 75). It was built about 1792. The building, which measures 12.7m by 7.2m over 0.9m walls, is of harled rubble rising from a rough plinth, but the entrance-doorway in the NE gable and a lancet-window above it have sandstone dressings, now painted over. The angle-quoins are heavily rusticated with alternately projecting rubble blocks (en.2*), and the same treatment is applied to the surrounds of the Gothick features of the SW gable-wall, which has two lancet-windows flanking a taller blind lancet with a quatrefoil recess above. Its gable is surmounted by an open bird-cage belfry having thin circular pillars which support a slab roof and ball-finials. Each of the side-walls has two rectangular windows of modest size. The slated roof, with sprocketed barge-boards at the NE gable and cement skews at the SW, is of late 19th-century date. Most of the internal furnishings are of recent date but the NE gallery, with a panelled front supported on two timber columns, is probably of early 19th-century origin. In the central panel it carries the arms of the family of MacLachlan of MacLachlan, in carved and painted timber, quarterly: 1st, or, a lion rampant gules; 2nd, argent, a dexter hand couped gules holding a cross fitchee of the same; 3rd, or, a galley sable with sail furled, oars in saltire and pennons flying, on a sea azure; 4th, argent, in base a salmon naiant argent in a sea azure. The supporters are two stags and the helm is surmounted by the crest of a three-towered castle, while the motto is FORTIS ET FIDUS ('Brave and Loyal').Postcode: PA27 8DG
Address: Clachan Beag, Strachur
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