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Summary

Description

John Cairns, 1791; 19th century additions; 1930 church hall. Original building: 2-storey, 5-bay symmetrical square with piended roof.

SE (ENTRANCE) ELEVATION: 1 ? storey round-headed windows in 2nd and 4th bays at ground floor; single windows in 3rd and 5th bays; single storey entrance wing attached at 1st bay; single windows in 1st, 3rd and 5th bays at 1st floor.

ENTRANCE WING: set at oblique angle to main building. Door with bracketed hoodmould and frame to right of S elevation; door in left bay of left return; single windows in central and right bay; blind right return.

SW ELEVATION: door to right of ground floor; large single windows in centre of 1st floor. 1930s church hall attached at rear: irregular fenestration to right; gablehead to left, also with irregular fenestration.

NW ELEVATION: 3 single stained-glass windows at 1st floor; church hall extension: 6 recessed bays all with square single windows, except 1st bay which is blind.

NE ELEVATION: external stair from left of ground floor to centre of 1st floor; single window in right bay at 1st floor. L-plan church hall extension to rear.

INTERIOR: re-orientated seating from SE to NW to NE to SW. U-plan gallery with steel pillars painted blue; timber balcony and seating. Balcony decorated with stencilling in black and gold. Clock in centre of balcony gifted by the Old Parish Church. Ceiling compartmentalised with slender ribs painted blue and gold. Central chandelier new.

Statement of Special Interest

This church was formed in opposition to the appointment of Reverend James French as minister of the Parish Church rather than Reverend David Ure, who had served as assistant minister from 1783. The aggrieved congregation called themselves the 'East Kilbride Congregation of Relief'. On 9th May the 'Congregation of Relief' met to organise a new meeting place by public roup. The contract to build the new meeting house was rouped in the yard of Robert Hamilton, smith in Kirkton. John Cairns, mason, presented the lowest order and received the contract. The total cost of the church was ?900 which was met by the congregation. To this day, the West Kirk is one of the few churches of Scotland that belongs to the congregation rather than the presbytery. During March 1860 the ceiling of the church collapsed and 6 years later the decision was taken to gut the church's interior and reseat it at a cost of ?638-3-4. On 12th June 1792, Reverend James Smith was ordained minister of the new church and the following year a manse was built for him. This manse was sold in 1878 to the Caledonian Railway Company for ?550, because the company needed the land for their new rail line. However, it was a very opportune situation for the congregation too because from 1824 there had been proposals to build a new manse, as the existing one was deemed to be too lowly for a minister. In the event, the Caledonian Railway Company were slow in presenting the money and 2 generous members of the congregation lent the money to build a new manse at 1 Barr Terrace (see separate list description). In 1930, a new church hall was added to the rear of the church on the site of the original manse - the railway line had long since been closed.

References

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