A Church of Scotland matter

[Penny Tray]

I post the following link for no other reason than I stumbled across the book and note that it contains a few references to the Parishes of Ardrossan and Stevenson (Stevenston), which may be of interest to someone currently or at a later date.

The book is entitled THE HISTORY OF THE SUFFERING OF THE CHURCH OF SCOTLAND FROM THE RESTAURATION TO THE REVOLUTION – VOLUME 1 – by Robert Wodrow – Minister of the gospel at Eastwood – printed by James Watson – His Majesty’s Printer – 1721.

https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=wc1 ... AN&f=false#

REFERENCES:-

The names of subscribers – “The Reverend Mr. Thomas Clark – Minister at Ardrossan.”

PAGE 75 – “John Bell younger of Ardrossan R” - (R indicates alive at the Revolution).

PAGE 305 – “John Bell, late Minister at Ardrossan, at the same Kirk.”

PAGE 339 – “June 22 (1671) – Mr. John Bell, Minister at Ardrossan, being confined to his Parish, his father, living within a mile of him, falls sick, and he must apply to the Council to visit his dying father. They allow him indeed, by their Act of the above date; but with a proviso, that he go to no other house without his Parish, in coming and going. This may discover to us the hardship of the Act.”

SECTION 111 – “Containing some account of the damage done to, and losses sustained in the Western Shires, by the Highland Host:-

PAGE 492

ARDROSSAN – The Parish of Ardrossan, by quartering of Strathmore’s Troop ten days, L830. For dry quarters more than L666 S13 D4 sustained loss – LSD 1549 13 04.

STEVENSON– The Parish of Stevenson by quartering Airly’s Troop one night, and fifteen of Strathmore’s Riding Horses and servants, fifteen days, three companies of Athole men one night, one company three nights, L336 S18. Day quarters, and quartering till the dry quarters were paid, L285 S14 D4 – LSD 622 12 04."


‘George Ardrossan,’ incidentally, has previously mentioned The Rev. Thomas Clark in an earlier topic, viz:-

"The church (on the Castle Hill) was overthrown by a storm which occurred between the hours of divine service some time in 1695. Thereafter the minister, the Reverend Thomas Clark, conducted the services in the malt kiln at Kirkhall until a new church was built in 1697 on a site at Stanley Clachan, which adjoins the south march of Kirkhall. Material from the church on the Castle Hill was used in the building of the Stanley Kirk. The only memorials of the Stanley Kirk are the tombstone of the Reverend Thomas Clark, minister from April 1691, till his death, 20th November 1737 who according to his own request, was buried within its precincts under the session table and a few of the stones built into the wall which encloses the burial-place of the Weirs of Kirkhall. In 1744, the Stanley Kirk was taken down and rebuilt at Saltcoats at the desire of the Shipmasters and inhabitants who, agreeing with the heritors, built a new church, using part of the old materials in its construction."