Rorison Memorial Church And Memorial Obelisk, Ashgillhead Road, Ashgillhead, Dalserf, South Lanarkshire

Entry Name: Rorison Memorial Church And Memorial Obelisk, Ashgillhead Road, Ashgillhead

Listing Name: Ashgillhead, Ashgillhead Road, Rorison Memorial Church, Including Memorial Obelisk

Listing Date: 30 March 1998

Category: C

Source: Historic Scotland

Source ID: 391915

Historic Scotland Designation Reference: LB45106

Building Class: Cultural

ID on this website: 200391915

Location: Dalserf

County: South Lanarkshire

Electoral Ward: Larkhall

Parish: Dalserf

Traditional County: Lanarkshire

Tagged with: Church building

Description

Dated, 1889; refurbished 1912. Gable-ended small hall church with squat square-plan battlemented tower to left with pyramidal spire and weather vane. Stugged and snecked cream sandstone ashlar with polished and droved dressings. String course to gablehead. Chamfered reveals to pointed-arched openings; hood moulds; plain bargeboards. Gabletted 3/4 height pilasters flanking central 2 bays to pediment; droved angles to long and short quoins.

N (PRINCIPAL) ELEVATION: 4-bay gabled block to right: tall window in each bay to slightly advanced 2-bay block to centre; triple slit openings with taller slit to centre to gablehead above. Window in each bay flanking. TOWER: 2 stone steps to double chamfered doorpiece at ground; deep-set 2-leaf timber panelled door; (window at ground to E); trefoil-headed, deep-set louvered opening (also to E) below coped battlements with machicolations. Window in bay to outer left.

S (REAR) ELEVATION: irregularly fenestrated piended kitchen and youth hall additions to rear.

E (SIDE) ELEVATION: triple-gabled church hall elevation with 2 tall windows to each gable with 2-leaf timber door and letterbox fanlight and flanking window in single storey bay to outer left; drum vent with trefoil-headed openings and ?witch?s hat? roof to central gable ridge.

W (SIDE) ELEVATION: 4-bay with lower wall (windows blocked) to outer right. Window in each bay with bipartite window in bay to right. Steel/iron buttress between each bay.

Fixed small-pane leaded windows with some panes coloured; timber sash and case windows to rear additions. Grey slate roof; slate to spire; slate to additions; ashlar coped stack to S gable; ashlar skews to hall gables; cast-iron rainwater goods.

INTERIOR: church divided from hall by timber panelled and glazed folding screen doors with octagonal ashlar columns between. CHURCH: horizontally boarded coombed ceiling with corbelled stone ribs and pierced circular vent; leaf and dart cornice; modern timber panelling to S end; carved timber pulpit with pierced quatrefoil decoration on platform against N wall; similarly decorated table altar in front and gallery to right with plain octagonal font. HALL: flat ceiling with plain cornices; vertical boarding to dado rail height and exposed timber floorboards.

MEMORIAL: granite memorial obelisk commemorating 1914-18 War, sited to left (E) of front elevation. Hewn granite at lower stages with triangular-headed name plaques to each side; armorial shield with further names to lower section of obelisk; foliate band below carved flag.

Statement of Interest

Dr William Peebles Rorison was one of a long line of ministers to Dalserf Parish Church. He was educated for the ministry in Glasgow and was inducted to Dalserf in 1st May, 1851, where he spent 56 years. He was greatly respected by his parishioners as well as his peers. The son of Lord Newlands of Mauldslie, the Hon. James Hozier, showed his regard generously for the work which Dr Rorison was doing and gifted a substantial proportion of the cost for the 'New Church' and also suggested it be named the Rorison Memorial. Re-opened on 2nd June, 1912, having been refurbished.

External Links

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