Barony St. John's Church Ardrossan : More photos of Ardrossan.

A Kirk with a view. There can't be too many Kirks that offer the congregation a view of the sea walking out the front door. That's the scene at the waterfront here in Ardrossan, certainly when the wind isn't howling or the spray is washing the front door steps!

The sea air must have contributed to the eagerness of the workforce, either that or it was unbearably miserable wayyyyyy up there on rainy days. Incredibly this whole structure was built in a matter of 8 months. Admittedly it was a bit smaller than what we see today. The design is rather beautiful with a square based tower reaching for the skies almost 100 feet high. The corners of the tower and frontage are finished off with no less than 10 mini spires. Unfortunately none of the same elaborate design extends to the rear of the Church, the tower being the exclusive recipient of beauty. Considering the rear was an extension built 45 years later in 1889, perhaps finances did not allow for a more artistic continuation.

Thinking for a moment about the modest size the Ardrossan congregation must have been in 1844, this was quite an optimistic design for a small Ayrshire village. Something of this size would have been happy in a large City. Then again the folks who designed it, Black & Salmon architects, came from Glasgow! The extension that was built in 1889, as plain as it may be on the outside, contains a beautiful pipe organ that was installed at the same time. This is truly a magnificent piece and unusual in that it is painted all white. There are some very nice pictures of the organ and general interior on the Kirks official web site (see link at bottom).

Photo: Barony/St Johns Church with the Hall in foreground. Ardrossan, Ayrshire.

There is a large Hall on the south side of the Kirk, this being added in 1887. Effectively this Hall doubled the size of the Kirk's property. The building is of simple boxed design with no beautification, just as the extension to the Kirk. Both the stone of the Hall and the Kirk extension are identical and great care was obviously taken to match the ornate tower. During my visit in May 2005 the stone was in beautiful condition reflecting the warm glow from a late afternoon Sun. The clock however did not appear to be working - stuck at 2:10 hrs - nor were the numerals visible at least on the SW face of the tower.

How the Barony/St Johns Church got it's double barrelled name is a little confusing. Originally it started out as the New Ardrossan Parish Church way back in 1844. During the Union of the Churches in 1929 it somehow adopted the name Barony Church. I am unclear as to the reason for the name change nor even where the name Barony came from. 56 years later in 1985 discussions were abound about the number of Kirks servicing the waning congregation of Ardrossan. It was at this time that the proverbial axe fell on St John's Church in the village, and the Church of Scotland sold it off. Thus the Barony Church now became Barony St John's in memory of the demise of it's local sister.

What happened to the St John's Church in Ardrossan is part of an alarming trend within the ranks of the Church. Kirks are being sold off and turned into businesses or private residences. Buildings that have been around for hundreds of years, important pieces of local history are falling into the hands of property developers. This mentality within the Kirk brethren has to stop, for where exactly DO they stop swinging the axe? You would be doing yourself a favour to recognize this problem now, otherwise Scots shall be left praising the Lord in shopping malls.

St John's Church in Ardrossan was demolished in 1991 and replaced with a modern block of houses. We lost a Kirk that stood for 134 years to a bunch of houses. The name St Johns Place where the residencies now stand is no substitute for a piece of historical architecture of religious faith. To those with their finger on the trigger - stop killing our Churches.

Photo: Barony/St Johns Church looking across the water. Ardrossan, Ayrshire.

Barony St. John's official website.

Martin J. Galloway Editor.
(..) Thanks for showing up.