Dollar Old Kirk       

The 1836 print above is rather special as it shows Dollar Old Kirk with its roof on. The church was built in 1775. Its roof was taken off after 1842 when the present parish church was built. The photos below show the ruin of the Old Kirk today.

Before 1775, Dollar folk worshipped in a tiny church on a site which dated back to mediaeval times, and possibly even to the time of St Columba. Here in the 16th century the Vicar of Dollar preached in English, for which he was burnt at the stake in Edinburgh. Here in the 14th century English pirates stole a carved wooden screen, which was lost when they were drowned off Inchcolm Island.

But in 1773 the Rev. Robert Findlay needed a larger church. He called the Heritors (local landowners, who would have to pay for the church) to a meeting of the Stirling Presbytery. Skilled tradesmen were asked to inspect the church. Alexander Fairlie and John McLeish, masons, reported that the south wall was hanging out of the perpendicular 7 inches at the west door and 5 inches at the east door. Two wrights reported that the roof was insufficient, with not a good piece of wood in the couples, and that the lofts were decayed. A slater found the slate-work to be wholly insufficient.

The Presbytery decided ‘that the Church was in a ruinous condition, and that it could not be repaired without taking it down to the foundation, and building a new one.’ They did ‘discern and ordain the Heritors of Dollar to build a new church sufficient to accommodate the congregation.’

Rev. Findlay reported that the population of Dollar was around 500 souls. The new church would seat 300 and was to be not less than 48 feet wide, 26 feet broad and 18 feet high, to accommodate galleries. The Presbytery selected James Kirk’s plan  and he was chosen to be contractor. The cost was to be £172.19.5d, with £17.10.0d being deducted from the sale of the old church. Later the cost was reduced to £155.9.5d, £5 being allowed for a quarry for Mr Kirk and £20 for incidental expenses. Mr McArbrea, the schoolmaster, and Mr Greig, Writer in Alloa, worked out the sums due by the Heritors, according to the valuation of their property in Dollar parish. The amounts paid ranged from £86.10.103/4d by the Duke of Argyle to  £0.8.51/4d for Mrs Kirk for her houses and yards in Dollar.

The new, bigger, church could not be built on the site of the old one because of the ‘burying ground’ on all sides – the kirkyard still contains very old gravestones dating back to 1681 – and so it was built about 20 yards north of the old church, on part of the Minister’s glebe. (see map showing the church and manse in 1807)

The New Church was a rectangular building with four bays on the south side, balconies entered by outer stairs on the north side, and an elegant birdcage bellcote on the west gable, said to have come from the former church. In November 1775 the Presbytery inspected and approved the new church. There followed a complicated apportioning of space to the Heritors according to their valuations. In square feet, 600.11 floor area  was required for communion table, baptismal font, passages between seats, etc., leaving 988.10 for the Heritors’ seats. To ‘Preserve Uniformity and Regularity throughout the Whole’, the same man was to install all the seats.  First choice went to the Duke of Argyle, who selected the West Gallery and the space below. In his Reminiscences, Gibson drew a seating plan of the church with names where he remembered them (see below).

Described by the next minister, Rev. John Watson, as ‘a neat country church’, it was not in use for long. Although still being referred to as ‘the New Church’ in 1831, it was too small for Dollar’s growing population after the founding of Dollar Academy. One chronicler says that sitting in the front of the side gallery he could have shaken hands with the preacher in the pulpit and described the church as ‘dark, damp and dilapidated’.  When Dr Andrew Mylne, minister from 1816, had preached there for around 25 years, he had had enough and set in motion the process of building the present church.

The Old Kirk was allowed to remain as a roofless but picturesque ruin and eminent Dollar folk were buried inside, where they had sat or preached during their lifetime. Unfortunately, for safety reasons, no access is allowed to the Old Kirkyard at present:  the Old Kirk, the Session House and the Kirkyard are in need of repair and conservation. This is being undertaken by the Ochils Landscape Partnership and Clackmannanshire Council and is expected to be finished by the end of 2014.They will then form part of the Hillfoots Kirkyards Trail.

By Janet Carolan, Dollar Museum Curator and Dollar Academy Archivist