Church celebrates 250th anniversary
Carmunnock is celebrating 250 years of their Parish Church standing proudly at the heart of the village.
The building - the Kirk o’the Braes was rebuilt in 1767 for just £365 and has been a key part of the village ever since.
The tower bell also holds a special place in the hearts of locals, and has chimed in the village for 450 years after being part of the original building.
In the depths of the building there is a plaque listing a long line of ministers, dating back to the 1500s, kept in the vestry.
The big names in Camunnock and the church were the Stirling-Stuarts who came to worship every Sunday from 1710 - and the village was separated by the balance of power of the lairds at the time.
All the farmers from Cathkin Braes would be in one gallery and the farmers who came from Dripps - now known as Thorntonhall - would be facing them in the other.
The main body of the church was then filled with villagers as the Stirling-Stuarts took their seats in the main Castlemilk Gallery.
The villagers weren’t allowed to go into the church before the Stirling Stuarts arrived and they had to line up on the streets to welcome them in.
Even to this day, there is still the pale on the grounds that was used for the horses leading the carriage.
If it was raining, the Stirling-Stuarts didn’t have to go home after the morning service, they would just have their servants bring a hamper of food for lunch, before returning to the castle after the afternoon service.
The stained glass windows shine brightly in the church - including a war memorial, which is one of two in the village.
James Stirling Stewart - the laird’s son - was killed in November 1914 at 23 and is remembered in the gleaming pane.
However, a local legend states that the second was built after his father spotted that he was at the end of the alphabet.
Therefore another was built and because James was the first to be killed he was put to the top.
The grounds of the church are filled with historical interest, including a small watch house next to the gate.
The Carmunnock Watch sat in the building as they protected the church from body snatchers.
Two men would stay with a warm fireplace and live by the rules engraved over their heads on the wall - dating back to 1828 - which decrees that they would stay in the room “until an hour after sunset and continue till after day break.”
If there was a disturbance they were to take a gun and fire it out of a small hole facing the graveyard.
However, there is no record of body snatchers targeting Carmunnock
The heavy iron door at the southern end of the church gives access to the vault of the lairds of Castlemilk, with the Stirling-Stuarts buried under your feet as you walk in the eerily quiet structure.
The marble panels commemorate the family from 1474, right up to James Stirling-Stuart in 1914.
However, James is actually buried at Ypres in Flanders after being killed in battle while a Lieutenant in the Scots Guards - with a piece of the gate moved all the way from Belgium to the vault to memorialise him.
Local Ian Marshall revealed there could be another birthday bash in the village in the near future to celebrate the ancient history of the building: “We don’t quite know when to celebrate our next anniversary - because there has been a Christian presence on this site since the sixth century AD.
“Dedicated to St Caddock, it has been here for at least 1000 years but we have settled for 250 for now.”