Old Parish

The Old Parish Church on Montgomery Street features a square clock-tower with an unusual crown spire. Dating from 1774, the church was built on a site which had been used for worship since ancient times. Erected at a cost £570, the current building was the work of James Pollock and was modelled on Shettleston Parish Kirk. In 1819 the tower was heightened and the crown added. The church has been B-listed since 1963.

The kirkyard has memorials which date from the early 18th century, including that of the parents of the famous surgeons William and John Hunter (1718-83 and 1728-93); Rev. James French, who was minister of the church between 1791 and 1835, and also tutor to the young Walter Scott (1771 - 1832), together with the 18th C. mausoleum of the Stuarts of Torrance.

Until 1947, East Kilbride was a sleepy, peaceful, rural village of about 2,500 souls; the centre of a large rural parish of 37 square miles with over 125 farms and where farming and agricultural businesses played a large part in the village economy.

On Friday 8th 1947 the first meeting of the East Kilbride Development Corporation was held, which oversaw the construction of a New Town of East Kilbride, taking overflow population from the City of Glasgow and bringing in new industry to form what is today, Scotland's 6th largest town with a population of over 71,000.

The original village area of East Kilbride is still there and active. Many old features were demolished before the days of "conservation". But many other old features remain and it is still possible to get a little of the flavour of East Kilbride's rural days.




I had some business in the Old Village this morning, and had a walk around. The gates to the Old Parish Church were open and I had a wander through the kirkyard. I like the crown on top of the tower of the church and thought it made a nice blip, especially with the blue sky.

We have high temperatures in the 20's today and it is wonderfully sunny. I visited my usual village teashop and enjoyed my tea and a read of the morning paper. Unusually, no one I knew was having a snack today.