It was compiled by various members of the parish and sent to me by Lennoxtown resident Brian M. |
The parish of Campsie which originally included those of Milton of Campsie and Torrance, is dominated by the high wall of the Campsie Fells to the North and was consequently vulnerable until the Highlands were completely brought under centralised law and order. The Romans built their Wall well to the south, and as late as 1744 farmers were paying blackmail to one of the MacGregors. It was only after the '45 that industry ventured into the area. Lennoxtown and Milton of Campsie appeared in the closing years of the eighteenth century with an increase of population brought by calico printing mills. Tragically these closed down in 1931 leaving the two industrial villages without their industry. Street names like 'White field' bear witness to this past.
It would be a dangerous area then into which St. Machan came somewhere between 600 and 900 AD (the century is disputed). He made his little cell, the centre of his missionary work, at the foot of Campsie Glen. This then became the religious centre of the parish and remained so not only in mediaeval times but also after the Reformation until 1828. In the Middle Ages the priest was also sacristan at Glasgow Cathedral and included such names as 'Archbishop Lamberton who, in spite of the papal ban on Robert Bruce, took all the Scottish Bishops with him into the army at Bannockburn. Another was the famous Cardinal Beaton. Protestant ministers included the Rev. James Crichton who is supposed to have built the cairn at the top of the Campsie Ridge, one stone a day before breakfast (1623-1629). The Rev. John Collins was murdered, it was believed, by the Laird of BalgIass, who then married his wife. In the troubled times of the Covenants, the Rev. Archibald Dennistoun was deposed in 1655 and restored in 1661. It is told he then resumed his series of sermons where he had broken off.
But the appearance of larger communities meant the need for a larger church and one in a more central position. Actually the first church built in Lennoxtown was set up by a breakaway group offended by the presentation to the church of the Rev. James Lapslie, a local man and a strange character about whom many stories, both good and evil, are told. This group joined the Relief Church, which by a series of denominational unions became first, the United Presbyterian Church, then the United Free Church, and finally The Church of Scotland. A handsome new church, on the site of the first one, was built in 1872, the entire cost of which, amounted to £3750 and was defrayed within six years. and it was this which in 1929 was named Trinity Church and which survived until 1985.
The parish church was not long behind the original Relief Church. Mr. Lapslie's successor, the Rev. Or. Norman Macleod, pressed that the much needed new church be built in Lennoxtown and in 1828 the large handsome church which was for so long a landmark round about, was opened on high ground just above the Main Street. Miss Lennox sold the site for £480 and David Hamilton, the architect submitted a plan for a Gothic building to seat 1550 and to cost £5000. This at the union of the churches in 1929 was named the High Church. In 1888 a mission church under the parish church was opened in Milton of Campsie and, with the increasing population there, became a separate charge in 1963. There was a United Free Church in Torrance and in 1929 it became the parish church for that area.
At the opening of the new cemetery round the new church a special lair was reserved for Dr. Macleod. There not only he himself but many of his distinguished family were buried. On the tombstone can be read, among others, the names of Dr. Macleod himself and three ministerial sons, one of them the great Norman of the Barony. All four were, in their turn, Moderators of The General Assembly and Chaplains to Queen Victoria. All played a prominent part in the recovery of the parish church after the Disruption. With them in this last respect might be mentioned Dr. Macleod's successor, the Rev. Dr. Robert Lee, who later caused controversy by introducing organ music and liturgical prayers in Greyfriars Church, Edinburgh.
After the Union of the churches in 1929 there were two congregations of the Church of Scotland in Lennoxtown, the High Church and Trinity Church. In 1977 negotiations began between the two for Union, and in 1978 it was agreed to unite, the decision as to the building to be used being given to arbiters. After some delay Trinity Church was chosen in 1979. The minister of the High Church, Rev. Dr.Alex Morrison became the first minister of the united parish. He retired in 1980, and was succeeded by Rev.Jock Robertson. Mr.Robertson was deposed in 1992 and was succeeded in 1993 by the present minister, Rev.David Torrance.
It became clear very shortly after the union that the facilities of Trinity Church were not adequate. The main church was a conventional nineteenth century gothic revival building, with pillars, a gallery, a high pulpit and a pipe organ (already very much in need of attention). It was not, however, suitable for innovation, either in the form of worship or in the use of new technology, even something as straight-forward as an overhead projector. The hall to the rear of the church was in very poor condition, with insufficient rooms for the various activities now taking place, and with almost non-existent catering provision. Discussions on the replacement of the church hall were beginning, when a routine inspection of the church buildings in March 1983 showed that cracks in the walls of the main building were widening and could be serious. After consultations with the District Council and Glasgow presbytery, a survey was undertaken. The results confirmed that the foundations, inadequately prepared when the church was built in the nineteenth century, were giving way as a result of regular underground flooding from the nearby Glazert Water. A spring was also subsequently found. The survey also commented on the presence of woodworm, some dry rot and the poor state of the wiring.
An ad-hoc building committee was formed to review the options available: to repair the existing buildings, to find another site and build there or to demolish Trinity Church and rebuild on. this same site. After a great deal of heart searching and consultation it was decided to recommend to the congregation that the existing building be taken down and a new one erected on the same site. At the Congregational Meeting in January 1985, this recommendation was approved, and detailed planning began immediately, both on the shape the new church was to take and on how to raise the money.
A local builder, Fleming Buildings of Lenzie, was commissioned to design and build the new church; at the same time a parish-wide campaign was mounted to raise the sum needed for the work, then estimated at £225,000. At the May Communion, the minister was able to announce that commitments of c. £170,000 had already been made by members. In the months that followed, a devoted team continued fund-raising; as well as numerous local activities, the parish was greatly helped by loans and outright gifts from other churches and by two grants from the Church of Scotland Central Funds. In addition many individuals gave single sums, large and small, towards construction and furnishing.
The October Communion in 1985 was the final service in Trinity Church. Demolition commenced shortly afterwards. Church services continued in Campsie Memorial Hall, thanks to the generosity of Strathkelvin District Council, and in June 1988 the foundation stone was laid by the Moderator of Glasgow presbytery, the Rev Gordon Manson B.D. assisted by Dr Alex. Morrison.
The building was completed later that year and was dedicated on 15th December 1988; the service was conducted by Rev Alex. Cunningham, the Presbytery Clerk, the chancel furniture was dedicated by the Moderator and the sermon was preached by the Very Rev. Dr. Andrew Herron. For this service Rev. John Bell composed a new hymn, 'Sing and be glad, for this is God's House,' to a melody appropriately called 'Campsie'.
The intention of the Kirk Session was that the church should be paid for in as short a time as possible, with all loans repaid. This was achieved in the spring of 1994, when the final debt was paid, just six years after the laying of the foundation stone.
The church is a multi-purpose building. It consists of a sanctuary capable of seating 300 people. Behind this, and linked to it by a moveable partition is a hall which will hold a further 150 people. When required the two areas can be combined into a single space. Beyond the hall lies a small but well-fitted kitchen, toilet facilities and a suite of smaller rooms for the use of the Sunday School and the church's organisations. There is also a crèche. At the front of the church and looking onto the Main Street is a large foyer, with a cloakroom and vestry opening off it. This can be used for meetings and informal gatherings. The building, which was prefabricated, has been designed to minimise the amount of maintenance needed and to be as energy-saving as possible.
Thanks to generous donations, it was possible to provide a sophisticated electronic organ, craftsman designed chancel furniture and two stained glass panels. Subsequent additions include a sound system and improvements by way of upholstery to the sanctuary chairs.
The Communion Table, Lectern and Book-Rest were made by Neil Baird of Campsie Glen:The Font and flower holders were designed and constructed by Dave Norman, late of Milton of Campsie:
The font is a wide circular dish on a cylindrical pillar, made of hand-thrown pottery. The design is based on a drawing done by a pupil from Lennoxtown Primary School (the pillar) and residents at Lennoxtown Castle Hospital (the dish).
The flower holders complement the font.
A large cross with wooden nails hangs on the back wall of the sanctuary.
Two stained glass panels were created by Bryan Hutchison of Campsie Glen.
The panel in the foyer represents the story of Christianity coming to Lennoxtown. It contains eight designs, each taken from drawings by pupils from Lennoxtown Primary School. This was a 'world first' as children's art had never been used in this way before. They represent:
The eighth panel shows Jesus in the centre of a group of modern-day villagers, with the new church in the background.
The panel which is situated behind the Communion Table represents a wooded, hilly landscape, the Campsie Fells, with three crosses silhouetted against the rising sun and their shadows pointing to Lennoxtown. It represents the promise of Christianity remaining in Lennoxtown
In the Session Room at the rear of the church hangs a batik panel, executed by Melanie Brickley of the Aldessan Gallery, Campsie Glen, representing the Burning Bush - the symbol of the Church of Scotland.
In the past twenty-five years, the congregation of Campsie has experienced a union, the demolition of one church and the construction of another, and a vacancy. Each of these experiences could have been a cause for despair. In the event, and with God's help we have won through and are now ready to develop our mission to the parish. In the spring of 1995 the Kirk Session entered into a contract with St.Ninian's Crieff to develop a new plan for mission and evangelism in Campsie, a plan which involved a reconsideration and strengthening of all our activities, in particular, Worship, Education, Mission and Pastoral Care. Although the period of the contract is now completed, the effects of the work done at that time still continue, albeit in a modified form. We have also run a series of successful Alpha courses and outreach meals. More recently, we have begun to develop a series of home groups, where men and women can gather together to study the Bible and seek to know God’s purposes for them. These developments are part of our determination to build on our existing strengths, which include our fine, multi-purpose building, and so continue the work begun by St. Machan fourteen hundred years ago.
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