2012

NS4673 : Memorial to William McCartney

taken 12 years ago, near to Old Kilpatrick, West Dunbartonshire, Scotland

Memorial to William McCartney
Memorial to William McCartney
This structure is located to the north-east of NS4673 : Old Kilpatrick Parish Church; see that item for the references cited below.

There is no longer any identifying text on the memorial itself. The tablet on the right, leaning against the wall, is from the memorial, but its inscription has largely flaked away; only fragments of text are legible ("respect ... [in]dependen[t] ... [t]he 6th day ... 66th [y]").

However, this is the memorial of William McCartney, who was a minister of this church (see [Bruce], pages 125-27, on which the following is based). He was born in 1762, and was the son of a farmer at Mains of Penninghame (NX4060). He was ordained on the 10th of April, 1794. He insisted that the previous church on this site (an ancient pre-Reformation edifice – see the link at the start of this item for more details) was no longer fit for use, and that a new church be built here (namely, the present church, which was completed in 1812).

William McCartney died on the 6th of October, 1828, in his 66th year, and the 35th of his ministry (compare the fragmentary inscription quoted earlier).

He had a keen interest in political affairs; in connection with this, he was accused of using "violent language in the pulpit". Bruce describes him as "somewhat eccentric", and recounts several anecdotes suggesting that he was a very pugnacious person. Bruce also mentions that "Mr McCartney was the means of closing up Messrs Edington's Ironworks at Dalnotter" (now spelled Dalnottar); Bruce does not offer any further comment on this topic, and the meaning of his terse statement is unclear.

(For one thing, his comment could mean that the minister was involved in the legalities of winding up the company, or it could mean that he was the instigator of its demise. In addition, Bruce may not even be referring to the well-known Dalnottar Ironworks; it is possible that he was referring to some other, possibly short-lived, ironworks in the area. Thomas Edington's name is usually associated with the Cramond Iron Works at Falkirk, not those at Dalnottar, although, to pursue some projects elsewhere (Muirkirk), the Cramond works did form a partnership with those at Dalnottar and Smithfield. Therefore, without further information, I cannot determine what Bruce meant by his comment.)
Old Kilpatrick Parish Church

The church was built in 1812 on more or less the same spot as its predecessor (the latter was a pre-Reformation church; it was of great age, although the precise period in which it was built is unknown).


Creative Commons Licence [Some Rights Reserved]   © Copyright Lairich Rig and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence.
Geographical Context: Burial ground, Crematorium Place: Old Kilpatrick other tags: Memorial Click a tag, to view other nearby images.
This photo is linked from: Other Photos: · Old Kilpatrick Parish Church ·
1:50,000 Modern Day Landranger(TM) Map © Crown Copyright
+
1:50,000 Modern Day Landranger(TM) Map © Crown Copyright
TIP: Click the map for more Large scale mapping
Grid Square
NS4673, 119 images   (more nearby 🔍)
Photographer
Lairich Rig   (more nearby)
Date Taken
Saturday, 26 May, 2012   (more nearby)
Submitted
Saturday, 9 June, 2012
Subject Location
OSGB36: geotagged! NS 4635 7309 [10m precision]
WGS84: 55:55.5757N 4:27.6429W
Camera Location
OSGB36: geotagged! NS 4635 7309
View Direction
North-northwest (about 337 degrees)
Clickable map
+
NW N NE
W Go E
SW S SE
Image classification(about): Supplemental image
This page has been viewed about 913 times
You are not logged in login | register