Description

William Smith, 1869, spire 1889. 3-bay, rectangular-plan, Gothic church with broached spire belltower to SE corner and bellcote to SW corner. Stugged granite courses with polished margins to openings and detailing. Tall, pointed-arch windows.

S (PRINCIPAL) ELEVATION: 3-bay. Saw-toothed clasped buttresses. Base course, saw-toothed triple dividing band to nave, eaves course. Polychrome voussoirs and chamfered margins to openings. 3-bay arcade to centre, small window to central bay flanked by timber panelled entrance doors. Large palte tracery rose window to gablehead, gable terminating in cast-iron cross finial, spur finial to right shoulder. Square-plan, 3-stage belltower with broached spire to bay to right, bipartite window to ground, blind oculus to 2nd stage, battered to 3rd stage with cusped bipartite louvred openings. Clasped buttresses framing narrow bay to left rising to form gableted bellcote supported on corbelled cornice.

N (REAR) ELEVATION: stepped tripartite window to gable end, single storey, gabled boilerhouse to ground with battered gable stack.

E (SIDE) ELEVATION: 6-bay. Regular fenestration with belltower abutting to outer left bay.

W (SIDE) ELEVATION: 6-bay. Regular fenestration, blind window to outer right bay.

Leaded windows. Grey slates, lead flashing, triangular roof vents. Shouldered skews to gable ends.

INTERIOR: not seen 2002

Statement of Interest

Ecclesiastic building in use as such. Smith was an Aberdeen contemporary of Alexander Ellis, whose influence is visible. Oversized for its location, this highly unusual piece of Victorian Gothic superseded the 18th century Tarland Old Parish Church in the village square. Particularly unusual is the battered bellcote to the SW corner.

External Links

• Historic Environment Scotland Listing
• Wikidata Q17780228

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.

Recommended Books

• 
  Lancashire: Manchester and the South-East (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  [(Shropshire)] [By (author) Nikolaus Pevsner] published on (January, 1958)
• 
  Northumberland (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Norfolk 1: Norwich and North-East: Norwich and North-east v. 1 (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Huddersfield in 50 Buildings
• 
  Liverpool: Pevsner City Guide (Pevsner Architectural Guides: City Guides)