It’s the wee hidden gems that are fun to ‘explore and discover’, and we are fortunate that Scotland has so many. This week, we head to Kirkintilloch (aka Kirky), a lovely town just a short drive to the north of Glasgow to visit the Auld Kirk Museum. So, join us- including our intrepid Golden Retriever explorers- Walter and Arthur, as we bring you on a virtual tour of one of the oldest buildings in Kirkintilloch and share a bit of its history!
Community is clearly important in Kirkintilloch and this theme shines through at the Auld Kirk Museum. The various exhibits demonstrate how the people of the town have played a vital role in its history as well as its present time. For example, during our visit, there were some beautiful pictures being exhibited as part of the ‘Scottish Photographic Circle Exhibition’.
Juxtaposed with that are the fascinating historical exhibits peppered throughout the Museum. Let’s explore some of them!
As I mentioned at the beginning of this post, the Auld Kirk (where the Museum is situated) is one of the oldest buildings in Kirkintilloch. It was built in 1644 and was first known as St. Mary’s. However, the history of the site goes back even further as it was once a 14th century chapel. Nevertheless, the Auld Kirk eventually became too small for the growing congregation, and a new St. Mary’s was built at the beginning of the 1900s. The current space has been a town museum since 1961.
The Museum highlights the fascinating Roman history of the area. The fact that Scotland was on the edge of the Roman Empire never ceases to amaze me. We’ve explored ruins of the Antonine Wall in different places here in Scotland. One of our favourites was at Kinneil House- especially as our beloved Angel, Sawyer, helped guide us around the historic grounds. As seen below, Walter and Arthur helped us explore the Roman connections to Kirky.
Unfortunately, the Scottish Reformation was particularly rough for the preservation of medieval religious artefacts. Therefore, we are always excited when we come across rare objects, and we were fortunate to do so at the Auld Kirk Museum. On display is a medieval figure of Saint Flannan. While his head is missing, the fact that it is made of wood makes it particularly special as not many medieval wooden artefacts survived the Reformation.
The Museum also discusses how, along with the railways, the building of the Forth and Clyde Canal (which we briefly discuss in our Falkirk Wheel article) helped to open up Kirkintilloch to a variety of industries as it became Scotland’s first inland port. The people of Kirky played an important part in the Industrial Revolution taking on jobs as weavers, coal miners, and shipbuilders (it was the only place in Scotland where ships were built inland!).
The iron industry was also an important part of the town’s history. Kirkintilloch was most known for creating red telephone boxes and post boxes. However, its iron foundries exported their ironwork all over the world.
Well, that's going to do it for this wee glimpse into the Auld Kirk Museum, and we hope you have enjoyed it! However, we’ve only covered some of the highlights and there is much more to see. Therefore, if you are in the area, we highly encourage you to visit this wee gem in person. The Museum is run by the East Dunbartonshire Leisure and Culture Trust, and you can visit their website for more information.
Until next time- Explore & Discover!
