TANYARD BOX CHURCH

The current box-shaped building dates from 1831and is the oldest church building left in Cumnock.

The history of the United Presbyterian Church in Cumnock takes us back to the 1770s. In the second half of that century, a watchmaker, named Rankin, came from Glasgow to settle in the town. He belonged to the Secession Church, and when he came to Cumnock he found no sympathy in the Established Church, for in those days the points of difference in Church government were hotly contested on both sides. Rankin was a man of strong convictions and individuality, and he soon he gathered about him a group of like-minded people. The result was that he and his friends found themselves able to apply to the Burgher Presbytery of Glasgow for a regular supply of preachers. This application was granted in 1773, and preachers were sent for two Sundays in each month. At first they met in the open air and two years later the little congregation resolved to take the important step of building a church.

Dissenters were very unpopular, especially with landlords and those in authority and it was impossible to obtain a site from any of the large landowners of the district but a private individual granted a feu near the meeting of the Lugar and the Glaisnock at the Dub where the church building still stands, the direct descendant of the first church. The feu was gladly accepted, the foundation for the church was cleared, a member gave stone, and even lime was promised, and all that was needed in order to proceed with the building was a supply of sand to mix with the lime. But no-one including the Earl of Dumfries would supply the sand for the erection of the church. Matters were at a standstill, and those who sneered at the Dissenters enjoyed the dilemma.

This turn of events was regarded as a huge joke and the subject of much fun and gossip. Things looked very black for the Dissenters. If they been a rich body they would not have cared whether their neighbours envied or pitied them; but being poor, they could not afford to bring the sand from any considerable distance.

One night a great storm broke over Cumnock and rain fell in torrents, lightning flashed constantly, and the loud roar of the thunder could be heard some distance away. The storm passed with the night, and in the morning, the Glaisnock had come down in flood, overflowing its banks and covered the foundations of the church to the top with a sufficient quantity of sand to enable the builder to finish his work. They built their church in 1775, the earliest Nonconformist Church in the town.

This small church was replaced in 1831 by a substantial and comfortable building, which was referred to as a Box Church because of its shape. It was large, airy, and comfortable, with good acoustics and could seat about nine hundred. It cost £876 11s and tradesmen included Andrew Murdoch and J. Nimmo, masons, David Kier, slater, William Black and William McLetchie, wrights, Hugh Maitlen, plasterer and William Thomson, plumber. The windows were of stained glass with a geometrical pattern, those behind the pulpit being especially fine.

In 1847 it became United Presbyterian. In 1900, due to churches amalgamating, it became the Cumnock United Free Church, West. Cumnock had another United Free Church in the Crichton Church. Both United Free Churches became Parish Churches in 1929 and Cumnock United Free Church, West now houses a gym and was previously a café, the Box café, after being a Council storage facility and lying derelict for some time.

Cumnock Action Plan with Cumnock History Group . Plaques funded by 9CC.

cumnockhistorygroup.org