The Building of the Present Church
Rev Dr Robert Duncan served as Dundonald minister from 1783 until his death in 1815. He was the son of a doctor from Boston, USA and attended Glasgow University. He became a much loved and respected minister and his death, though expected, stunned the community.
Dr Duncan’s ministry saw considerable changes in the Church here. First, in 1781, the old manse was replaced by a fine new Georgian house that still stands beside the Church. Now a private house known as Glenfoot, it served as the manse for about 170 years and Rev Duncan became its first resident. This was quickly followed by the provision of a new school building, now the Montgomerie Hall. Finally, the matter of the state of the Church itself had to be addressed.
During the 1790s Ayr Presbytery became increasingly concerned about the state of the 300-year-old thatched church in Dundonald. Inspection revealed that the roof was in poor condition but might last thirty years but the south wall was bulging and was nine inches out of plumb. The churchyard wall required complete rebuilding. There was reluctance about building a new church and various repairs were ordered, rebuilding of the lofts inside the building, removal of the stair on the east wall, rebuilding of the south west door and window. The work was carried out by James Thomson, wright in Dundonald, and five of the Heritors agreed to pay the bill. However, these repairs seem only to have postponed the inevitable and early in 1803 it was finally decided to have a new building “before next winter.” Presbytery approval was given in March 1803.
The contract was awarded to James Hodge, mason in Dundonald, at a cost of £1160 for the church and churchyard walls and the new building was completed by 11th June 1804. Fifteen months seems quite a short time to complete such a project when one considers that the old building had first to be demolished, the site cleared and the new square stone building erected, without the benefit of modern mechanical tools. It is a tribute to the skill of the tradesmen of 200 years ago. The price in today’s terms is only around £50000, a remarkable bargain even without a steeple and chancel.
The new building was not quite as we know it today. The steeple was not completed until 1809, and the front porch was added in 1817. The session house on the north wall did not appear until 1910, when it was installed to replace a smaller vestry thanks to a generous gift from the Misses Finnie of Springhill. At the same time, and as part of the same gift, the front gate and railings were installed to replace the rather high prison-like wall which originally surrounded the property. The chancel, organ and large stained-glass window, described later, were added in 1906.
While the re-building was going on worship, according to Gillespie, was carried on in a tent in the churchyard, something that would be familiar to the congregation as such accommodation was provided at Communion. The church bell was apparently hung between two trees in the churchyard. Quite why a tent would be used when there was a relatively new schoolhouse next door is rather a puzzle.