Visit to St Mary's Parish Church, Wednesday 5th November

The talk to the Society on the Church by Graham McKenzie in October generated great interest in the history of St Mary's which is why 20 members met at the main entrance for a guided tour led by Graham. We were reminded of the controversies in the story of its early origins before the Reformation and its subsequent build in 1914. Designed by G Bell, it is a Church of Scotland church with unusual features that have been described as temple and cathedral-like: it was planned by the Rev T Angus Morrison (minister 1898-1941) who was the driving force in the proposal to build a distinctive Parish Church and manse alongside the Forth and Clyde Canal. 

Built of stone from Auchinheath Quarry, the foundation stone was laid in 1912 but during construction there was a fatality when the crane and scaffolding associated with the 120-foot tower collapsed in a storm. A memorial stone was laid to commemorate this event. A Service of Dedication was held two years later. The new St Mary's was built in the garden of the old manse and its orientation determined by the available ground between Cowgate and the manse. The old manse was later replaced by the building of the church halls.

The tour started beneath the high tower with an awareness of musical chimes. On  entering the Church there were immediate impressions of colour, beauty and grandeur, and overall design lit in part by the  clerestory windows. Very quickly the Nave drew one’s attention to the north facing Chancel with its ecclesiastical traditions including the organ(golden painted pipes) and the dominant presence of the majestic stained glass window. The stained glass windows were highlighted of which 5 are dedicated to individuals and the large Chancel window to those from Kirkintilloch who suffered and died in WW1. Additional information  about the windows ( 6 days of creation) designed by Willie Rodgers, a local artist and member of the congregation, the Ferguson window (Christmas), the Haughton window (Easter) and the role of the Webster family in the design of the Great War Memorial window, captured our attention.

At the end of the tour hospitality was provided and there was an opportunity to climb the tower, see the chimes and more. A memorable morning.

View of St. Mary's showing the tower (G McKenzie)

The chimes in the tower (I Ruddock)

Significant Personalities of Kirkintilloch and District by the Research Group, Wednesday 19th November, 2pm, Park Centre.

On Wednesday 19th November, the Research Group will present profiles of a selection of the 22 personalities they researched for an exhibition in the foyer of the William Patrick Library from 6th to 13th September as part of Doors Open Day 2025. The personalities cover a wide range of professions and backgrounds, the common thread being that they are all buried in the Old Aisle Cemetery. A guided walk around the Old Aisle on the afternoon of 6th September took in 11 of the graves, covering 15 of the personalities. 

This is the third year that the Research Group has held an exhibition on this theme, and the personalities studied this year include the Alexander family, who ran Alexander's stores, a family of GPs, a number of other shopkeepers including Daniel Jack, who ran a well-known bicycle shop, the MacDonald family who were builders in the area and a former provost, John Shanks. The exhibition also included former member of the Society Susan Ross, and David Rollo Senior, the father of current member David Rollo.

The profiles will be presented by Research Group members Jenny Burgon, Don Martin, Ivan Ruddock and Barrie Stewart and the meeting will be held in the Park Centre at 2pm on Wednesday 19th November. Come along and see which personalities are profiled and whether they stir memories for you.

Guided Tour of St. Mary's Parish Church, Wednesday 5th November, 10:30am.

Further to his talk on the history of St. Mary's Parish Church earlier this month, Graham McKenzie will lead a guided tour of the Church on Thursday 5th November starting at 10:30am. Meet at the Church door a few minutes before 10:30am. 

The tour will last not more than an hour and a half, after which people will be able to look round the building until 12:30pm. Those wishing to attend the Scottish Local History Forum's Annual John Muir Symposium in Lenzie Academy will be able to get there in time for the start at 12:45pm.

This tour is part of St. Mary's regular programme of Open Days. In order to have an idea of numbers, could members please indicate by email to kdsantiquaries@gmail.com if they intend to go on the tour in advance.

The history of Glasgow's motorway system by Stuart Baird, Thursday 6th November at 7:30pm in the Park Centre

 Our next meeting will be in the Park Centre, 45 Kerr Street, Kirkintilloch G66 1LF, at 7:30pm on Thursday 6th November. Tea and coffee will be served from 7pm. 

Explore the history behind Glasgow's road developments of the 1960s, when the city eagerly embarked on the construction of new routes. This engaging talk offers insights into the creation of the city's ring road and its expansive motorway network. The presentation is illustrated with rare, previously unseen photographs from the Scottish Roads Archive collection.

Stuart is a Chartered Engineer with a keen interest in transport and civil engineering heritage. Currently employed by Transport Scotland, he’s held various roles, mostly relating to structures, across the Scottish motorway and trunk road network. Stuart is Founder and Chair of the Scottish Roads Archive, the largest private collection of roads and transportation records in Scotland.

DEVOTION AND DISCORD: The History of St Mary’s Parish Church Kirkintilloch by Graham McKenzie. Thursday 2nd October 2025

 The first meeting of the 2025-26 session will be on Thursday 2nd October in the Park Centre, 45 Kerr Street, Kirkintilloch G66 1LF. The meeting will start at 7:30pm with tea and coffee served from 7pm.

Society member Graham McKenzie will give a talk on "Devotion and discord: the history of St. Mary's Parish Church, Kirkintilloch". St Mary’s church located in the Cowgate in Kirkintilloch has been in existence for over 110 years, but it is only the latest manifestation of a local parish church history that goes back over 700 years. The history of this parish church is a story of those who were devoted to promoting Christian worship in Kirkintilloch, but also a story of the discord that arose when people began to challenge the rights the law had conferred on the church. This illustrated talk will cover the history of the two earlier parish churches and will describe in detail the controversy that attended the planning, design and construction of the current church.

Graham was born and grew up in East London, South Africa, and studied and worked in topographical surveying before taking up a project administration and management role with a South African engineering consulting firm. While working, he completed a BA with majors in history and psychology at Rhodes University. He transitioned into preparing and managing engineering consultancy tender submissions. He moved to the UK in 2008 to take up a proposal management position with a company in Glasgow and is still working in the same field.

As part of plans for celebrating the centenary of the current St Mary’s church in 2014, Graham undertook to write a publication that updated and extended aspects of Joe Fisher’s book, ‘The Auld Kirk, Kirkintilloch Parish Church, 1644-1944’ and Iain Smith’s book ‘St Mary’s Parish Church, Seventy-five years on, 1914 – 1989’. The new publication provided a detailed analysis of the planning, design and construction of the church in the Cowgate.

Come along and join us for what promises to be a fascinating presentation.

Doors Open Day and Old Aisle Cemetery Walk, Saturday 6th September 2025

This year's Doors Open Day in East Dunbartonshire is on Saturday 6th September 2025. The Society's contribution is an exhibition in the foyer of the William Patrick Library profiling significant local personalities, mostly buried in the Old Aisle Cemetery, Kirkintilloch. In connection with the exhibition, which will be on view for the following week, a guided walk around a selection of these graves will start from the cemetery's belfry at the Old Aisle Road entrance at 2.00 pm. The full programme for 2025's Doors Open Day may be downloaded here with details of the Antiquaries exhibition and walk on pages 9 and 11 respectively.

The grave of David Lawson, the founder of the transport company,
in the Old Aisle Cemetery. The business expanded in the 1920s to
include buses and 'Land Cruise' coach tours, and the Lawson brand
continues to this day as a funeral undertaker. (© I.S.Ruddock)