Alloway 2

The Alloway Auld Kirk having been a ruin since the end of the 18th century, a new church was opened for worship on 10 October 1858 and the first minister was called in 1859. As originally built, the new church was rectangular. Modifications in 1878 and 1890 created the present shape. The suite of halls beyond the churchyard was erected in 1965, the session house in 1977 and the octagonal hall in 1987. The minister (since 1999) is the Reverend Neil A. McNaught.

The Brig o' Doon, the 15th century hump-backed bridge over which Tam is forced to flee for his life, still stands, curving gracefully over the river, as does the ruins of Alloway Kirk where his father William is buried.

The word brig is Scots for "bridge", hence the Brig o' Doon is the "Bridge of Doon". The bridge is thought to have been built in the early fifteenth century.Read more