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Tour Cunninghame, Tour Scotland

April 27, 2012 catswhiskers Comments off

: St Maur’s Glencairn Parish Church, Kilmaurs, Scotland

Today, we embarked on the second leg of our Cunningham Ancestry Tour around S.W.Scotland.

First stop was St. Maur’s Glencairn Parish Church. The Minister here was very helpful, showing us around the Church and providing records of births, deaths and marriages.

The church was endowed by Sir William Cunninghame as a collegiate church in 1413 and rebuilt by Robert S Ingram in 1888.

The annexe in centre of the picture is not part of the church but a Cunningham family mausoleum known as the Glencairn Aisle. Regrettably, this building is not open to visitors due to health and safety reasons.

St. Maur's Glencairn Parish Church, Kilmaurs, Scotland

Here is a Cunningham memorial stone in the burial ground.

Cunningham Memorial Stone, Kilmaurs Church, Scotland

Here is a Cuninghame memorial which pre-dates the current church.

: Cuninghame Memorial Stone, Kilmaurs, Scotland

This is the pretty village of Kilmaurs with the old tolbooth at its centre. This (tolbooth) was a combined community centre, tax collection point and place of imprisonment and punishment.

Tolbooth, Kilmaurs, Scotland

Here is the former Glencairn Church, now a stained glass studio. The former church probably had a Cunningham connection as the Earls of Glencairn were Cunninghams.

Glencairn Church, Kilmaurs, Scotland

Next, we paid a brief visit to Dunlop and its church.

Street Scene with Church, Dunlop, Scotland

Next a photo opportunity at the small village of Cunninghamhead.

Cunninghamhead, S.W. Scotland

Next to Stevenston to view the ruins of Kerelaw Castle which sits, incongruously, in the centre of a social housing estate. This castle was in Cunninghams’ possession when in 1488 it was sacked and burned by the Earl of Eglinton, a Montgomerie. In revenge, the Cunninghams, led by the Earl of Glencairn, burned Eglinton Castle in 1528.

Kerelaw Castle, Stevenston, Scotland

We followed the coast road round to the popular and historic town of Largs. This is where a battle occurred in 1263 when a Scottish army defeated a force of Norwegians and thus ended Viking/Norse rule in the west of Scotland. Here we stopped for a pleasant lunch at the Marina.

Largs, Firth of Forth, Scotland

After lunch we followed the coast road round the Firth of Clyde to Greenock, Port Glasgow and eventually back to the hotel near Kelvingrove, Glasgow.

Ancestry, Ancestry Tours, Battlefields, Buildings, Castles, Churches, Glasgow, Greenock, History, Kerelaw Castle, Locations, Lochs & Lakes, Port Glasgow, River Clyde, Scotland tour, Tours, Viking none

Tour Glasgow, Tour Scotland

April 17, 2012 catswhiskers Comments off

: Constantine Sarcophagus, Govan Old Church, Glasgow

This morning, I collected tour group from cruise ship at Greenock and proceeded on a tour covering some of the principal sites around Glasgow.

First we called in at Govan Old Church to view the famous Carved Stones which date from the 9th-11th centuries A.D. This collection includes the St Constantine Sarcophagus (above) which ranks as the earliest known art work in Glasgow. Below is an image of more of the stones including a ‘Hogback’.

Carved Stones, Govan Old Church, Glasgow

Next we strolled around to the waterfront at Govan to view the Clyde and Glasgow in the distance. Image below shows the Tall Ship ‘Glenlee’ and the the new Riverside Museum

Clyde Waterfront, Govan, Glasgow

Next we briefly called in at the People’s Place on historic Glasgow Green. Image below shows the Doulton Fountain, the largest terracotta fountain in the world which dates from 1888 and features carved images from around the then British Empire

Doulton Fountain, Glasgow Green, Scotland

Next to our 12.00 noon appointment for a tour of Auchentoshan Distillery, which has been producing Scotch Whisky since 1823.

Auchentoshan Distillery, Glasgow, Scotland

Here we were shown the malting, mashing, fermentation.distillation and maturation processes. Tour culminated in a tasting.

Tour Guide at Auchentoshan Distillery, Glasgow

Whisky Tasting at Auchentoshan Distillery, Glasgow

Next, we drove to the popular village of Luss to view to view Loch Lomond. Fortunately, Ben Lomond (mountain) was resplendent, basking in the sunshine with a covering of snow. This made for good photo opportunities.

Snow Capped, Ben Lomond, Scotland

: Photo Opp, Luss, Loch Lomond

Our final stop was historic Glasgow Cathedral which dates from the 13th century, albeit on a Christian site dating back to around the 5th century. This building is special in that it survived the ravages of the 1560 Reformation virtually intact. Now a Presbyterian place of worship.

Tomb of St Kentigern, Glasgow Catehdral, Scotland

Glasgow Cathedral, Glasgow, Scotland

Finally, we returned to Greenock to connect with the cruise ship.

Art, Buildings, Churches, Culture, Glasgow, Glasgow Architecture, Govan, Greenock, History, Locations, Loch Lomond, Loch Lomond, Lochs & Lakes, Luss, Mountains, Museums, Nature, Prehistory, River Clyde, Scotland tour, Tours, Whisky none

Visit Clydebank, Visit Scotland

April 16, 2012 catswhiskers Comments off

Titan Crane, Clydebank, Scotland

This evening, I am focusing on Clydebank which is a part of the Glasgow ( west of Scotland) conurbation with a long and proud shipbuilding heritage dating back to the early 1800s. The main companies associated with shipbuilding were Thomson Bros and John Brown with the latter responsible for such famous vessels as the Queen Mary, Lusitania and Queen Elizabeth 2 plus many naval vessels. Sadly, the shipbuilding industry has disappeared but there is a physical legacy in form of the giant Titan Crane at the former John Brown yard which as been transformed into a successful visitor attraction.

Going back further in time, Clydebank was (and remains) the western end of the Forth and Clyde Canal (1790), an early communications and transport route linking Glasgow to Edinburgh on the east.

Clydebank suffered heavy bomb damage during WW2.

An interesting location to visit, particularly for those who wish to connect with Scotland’s industrial history. Another aspect is the photographic opportunities from atop the Titan Crane.

Here is a view looking east towards Glasgow.

Clydebank, Glasgow, Scotland

Here is a view looking west towards the Erskine Bridge and Firth of Clyde.

Erskine Bridge from Clydebank, Glasgow

Glasgow, Locations, Lochs & Lakes, Nature, River Clyde, Scotland tour, Tours none

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