Station 9 - East Door, The Curse, East Door Monuments 

Here you will see what remains of the east wall of the Kirk, although much of the wall is now ruined, it is the hope that with the help of funding, this wall will also be consolidated and preserved. The wall may not look significant, however, this wall contained the original entrance into the 1706 building before the 1744 alterations moved the entrance to the western wall. 

 

As you stand within the four walls of the Kirk, it is important to remember the centrality of the churches at Kilbride in the lives of the families who lived around the Lerags Glen. An important story was passed down from the 16th century within the generations of the MacCallum family. It goes that one Sunday as the family gathered for church service, their rivals, the MacDougall’s arrived to find the church was full and they were forced to wait outside. This inconvenience enraged Lady MacDougall who placed a curse on the MacCallum’s that unless they left their home at the nearby Cologin Farm, that every heir and son would die.  The years following The Curse saw the large family of twelve sons whittle down to only three who in fear of their own fate were forced to scatter.

 

Please exit through the vestigial east door and look to your left where you will see a large obelisk gravestone which marks the grave of Reverend Campbell, the minister mentioned at Station 3 who was keen to keep Kilbride’s public house open. 

 

When you are ready to move onto Station 10, please turn to your right and walk to the large tree with the gravestone at the base, this is the next station.

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To move on to the next station click here

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This audio clip was read by Liam Griffin.