Description

John Robertson, 1909. Rectangular-plan Gothic church with 3-stage tower to NW angle, aisle to N elevation; hall (and vestry to SE angle) slightly later in similar style, adjoined at NE angle forming L-plan complex. Bull-faced, snecked pink and cream rubble masonry, droved ashlar dressing, grey slate roof. Deep base course, chamfered wallhead course with modillion-type decoration extending to string course at W elevation and tower; pointed windows with moulded surrounds and bull-faced outer voussoirs, geometric tracery to E and W gables and S elevation, trefoil-headed single window elsewhere, cinquefoil and sexfoil clerestorey windows in moulded round panels to N elevation, trefoil-headed single windows elsewhere; multiple moulded Gothic doorways to W elevation, 2-leaf trefoil-headed panelling to doors, reflected in fanlights above; buttresses with rounded angles, raked coping to N and S elevations, clasping at angles and corbelled to hexagonal with tall facetted pinnacles, crocketted finials; coped skews to gables with cross finials; cast-iron rainwater goods, rectangular downpipes. Tower; rounded angles, round corbelled to hexagonal at 1st stage level stair tower to NE angle, crenellated and stepped ashlar parapet. Hall; similar details except plain wallhead course, hexagonal angle buttresses, conically-roofed stair and angle towers, some cast- iron weathervane finials.

W ELEVATION: gable to right; door to centre and large window above flanked by buttresses and windows to ground and gallery level. Tower to left; door to ground floor, window to 1st stage, tall 3rd stage with louvred belfry opening to all elevations, window to ground and 1st stage left return, 2 windows to ground and 1st stage stair tower, 4 to 3rd stage.

S ELEVATION: 4 tall windows to nave articulated by buttresses; single storey vestry to right with door, 3 windows, 2 hexagonal wallhead stacks, bow-ended to right return with 3 windows, half-piended roof with 2 cast-iron weathervane finials, window to slightly lower chancel above; gable advanced to left with clasping buttresses, window to ground and upper level in recessed panel, cinquefoil window to gablehead.

N ELEVATION: 4 bays to centre articulated by buttresses, 3 windows to each aisle bay, single window to clerestorey bays; tower to right; obliquely rounded angle to left, panelled door with fanlight within crocketted pointed arch 2 chancel windows above; church hall advanced to far left.

E GABLE: window to centre, bow-ended vestry to left, window to pentice- roofed bay to right.

INTERIOR: walls rendered and lined as snecked rubble, droved ashlar dressings; 4 pointed arches with clustered piers to aisle; prominent timber roof with arch braces and collars, trefoil-headed trusses, diagonally-boarded ceiling, stone corbells at wallposts; timber narthex screen with trefoil-headed tracery and leaded glazing; pew ends with cinquefoil carving reflecting clerestorey windows; hexagonal oak pulpit with balustraded stairs, carved panels depicting vine, flowers, wheat etc; stone bowl- and-stem font; 2-manual and pedals organ in split organ case in chancel, Joseph Brook and Co, Glasgow; boarder glazed windows; stained glass panel door to choir room depicting George Wishart preaching (removed from former Free Church); memorials on

S wall to Donald Davidson, minister 1901-29 and Adam Philip, Free Church minister from 1881; War memorial plaques at chancel arch; boarded walls and ceiling at vestry, porch and WC, original chimneypiece and basin.

HALL: W ELEVATION: gable advanced to left, door, window to 1st floor, angle buttresses; 3 full-height windows to right; angle tower with windows to far right, door to right return.

N ELEVATION: gable to centre, large window flanked by buttresses; window to right; bay to left with window, continuing as bowed stair tower with 2 windows to left return.

E ELEVATION: 2 full-height windows to centre; gable advanced to right with full-height window; bowed stair tower as above to far right; angle tower to left with 2 windows; bay to far left with 3 windows to ground floor, bipartite and tripartite to 1st, bowed as angle tower at left, single storey pentice-roofed bay to left return.

INTERIOR: 2 floors, probably originally galleried; timber-clad cluster piers, 4-centred arches, border-glazed windows, boarded vestry.

GATEPIERS AND BOUNDARY WALLS: 9 ball-finialled ashlar-capped rubble gatepiers, rubble boundary wall with round coping to E, low wall with saddleback coping and cast-iron gates and railings to N and W.

Statement of Interest

St Columba's is an ecclesiastical building in use as such. The Church and hall is part of a B group with Invergowrie Primary School (earlier and later buildings), The Old School House, St Columba's Church and Hall, All Souls' Episcopal church, The Old Rectory, and The Old Rectory Former Coach House/Stables. The church began as a mission from Longforgan in 1886 in a corrugated iron building on this site. Following the erection of All Souls' Episcopal church in 1891,

St Columba's was raised to a chapel of ease and became a parish quoad sacra in 1916. The present building was erected with the financial assistance of Lady Armistead. The gable at the south west angle of the church was probably intended to house a gallery staircase. St Columba's was united with the former United Free Church congregation in 1945, when the latter building was sold (listed at 46 Main Street).

External Links

• Historic Environment Scotland Listing
• Wikidata Q17846470

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

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