Arrochar Parish - Luss Parish Church

Arrochar Parish
Arrochar, Tarbet & Ardlui.
Location, History, Population, Medical Services, Emergency Services, Education, Transport, Voluntary
Services, The Three Village Hall, Housing, Employment, Tourism & Churches.
Location. - The parish lies on the neck of land in Argyll & Bute between Loch Long and
the freshwater Loch Lomond. From a starting point at the middle of Loch Long opposite
the entrance to Glen Douglas, the parish boundary goes straight through the middle of
that glen to meet the county boundary on Loch Lomond side; it continues northwards
following that boundary on the A82 on the east side of Loch Lomond to the road bridge
over the River Falloch, where it turns west along the county boundary until it meets the
Loin Water. At that point the ecclesiastical parish continues in a straight line to the top of
the "Rest-and-be-Thankful" on the A83, then south-east in a straight line to Loch Long at
Coilessan Farm, whence it continues south down Loch Long to the point opposite Glen
Douglas.
The parish of Arrochar contains about 30,000 acres and there is much high ground. The
highest peaks are Ben Vorlich, 3,092 feet, and Ben Vane, 3,004 feet, and there are
many others over 2,000 feet. Only a small portion of the parish can be reckoned as
arable. There are several small mountain lochs, of which the largest is Loch Sloy, which
is now the Loch Sloy Dam for the purpose of the hydro-electric scheme.
History. - This is the land of the Macfarlane clan and is steeped in legend, tradition and
history. According to the Old Statistical Account "the people of this parish are mostly
Macfarlane, but today there are few who boast the name of the ancient clan. The Barony
of Arrochar was sold by the Macfarlanes to the Colquhouns in 1784 to pay the debts of
the twenty-first chief, and the last chief, the twenty-fifth, died in 1866. All through the
ages the inhabitants of this part of Scotland seem to have had a reputation for
lawlessness and wild turbulence, but, when it is remembered that until modem times the
parish was the only door to the western and north-western Highlands from the Lowlands,
and that the superior, the Earl of Lennox, authorised his kinsman Macfarlane of Arrochar
to levy blackmail on all traffic north and south, one does not wonder at the evil name
that the men of the district acquired.
To-day a very different tale can be told.
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Things changed with the arrival of steam power. By the early 1800s paddle steamships
were plying the waters of Loch Long and by 1850 a pier had been built at Arrochar. The
arrival of the railway in 1894 changed the villages of Arrochar, Tarbet and Ardlui at the
north end of Loch Lomond.
By the start of the 1900s some larger houses were being built but still most of the
houses were ‘tied’ to employment mostly to the estates of the area notably the
Colquhoun’s. This pattern continued in the villages throughout the 20th century. By 1910
the Royal Navy had established a Torpedo Testing Range on the shores of Loch Long,
providing employment and housing for workers. Requirements for restocking the timber
used in WWI saw the arrival of the Forestry Commission who again gave work and
houses to employees. The villages were very busy during WWII; apart from the now
well-established Torpedo Range providing submarines with weapons, Loch Long was
used as a safe harbour for surface ships. This resulted in all the hotels and large houses
being utilized for accommodation for serving officers.
The war years over saw the building of the Loch Sloy Hydro Electric Dam and Power
Station, this attracted an ‘army’ of workers from all ends of the country as well as Poles
and German PoWs.
The mid 1900s saw work continuing to arrive within the Parish when Faslane was
expanded and Coulport and Glen Douglas created. The A82 from Balloch to Tarbet was
upgraded enabling commuting to and from Glasgow to be reduced to one hour which
allowed people to live in the villages but work in the towns; this heralded a change in the
way the communities of Arrochar, Tarbet and Ardlui were structured.
Population. – At the last census count in 2011 the population of Arrochar, Tarbet and
Ardlui stood at 843.
Medical Services. – There is a General Medical Practice at Tighness in Arrochar this
serves the Parish of Arrochar. The practice employs three general practitioners on a rota
basis, of one week on two weeks off. Employed on a part time basis are a nurse,
manager and three clerical assistants.The practice also covers dispensing of medicines
and has visiting opticians and chiropodists. As with all Scotland NHS24 is available for
out of hours emergency. The nearest hospital is 25 miles away at Alexandria, this does
not cater for all medical needs and emergencies are normally taken to Paisley a distance
of 50 miles.
Emergency Services. – Housed within the village of Arrochar on Church Road are a
Fire & Rescue Station, an Ambulance Service and a Mountain Rescue Post.
Arrochar Fire Station
The Fire and Rescue station is
manned on a part time basis by
ten retained men all resident within
the District, most of their call outs
are to Road Traffic Accidents on the
two trunk roads, the A82 and A83 that
run through the area. The
ambulance drivers and paramedics
are full time employees and controlled
from Paisley serving all the hospitals
within our catchment
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The Mountain Rescue is run
by volunteers not all local to
the area.
Education. – We have an excellent primary school which includes a nursery. These
deliver the curriculum to 3 to 11 year olds there after pupils are bussed to the Hermitage
Academy at Helensburgh. A playgroup run by volunteers that accommodates babies and
toddlers is held in the Village Hall twice a week.
School Concert: The local
primary school holds their
Christmas Concert in the Parish
Church every year round about
mid-December with a large
attendance from the three
villages.
Arrochar Primary School
Transport. – The villages are supported by a very efficient public transport network.
West Coast Motors and City Link coaches allow residents of the area to travel West,
North and South at regular intervals throughout the day. They are also served by Rail
with stations at Ardlui and Arrochar and Tarbet. A local bus runs three times a day to
and from Helensburgh.
Voluntary Services. - The villages have a very active Community Council and
Community Development Trust that take forward the needs of the villages in different
ways. The Community Council communicating with local authorities and service
providers whereas the Development Trust looks at bigger projects requiring high levels
of funding e.g. The Three Villages Hall.
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The Three Villages Community Hall. – This was built by the Community with help
from Argyll and Bute Council, Loch Lomond & Trossachs National Park, LEADER, Esmee
Fairbairn Foundation, Community Links Scotland (CLS), and Highland & Islands
Partnership Programme. The completed building was opened in 2010 by HRH Prince
Charles. This now provides a place where locals can meet and carry on their clubs and
gatherings so essential for a
small rural community.
To help fund the Hall various
authorities and associations such
as Argyll & Bute Council, NHS,
Transport Scotland and others
hire the hall for meetings,
allowing the Hall Management
Group to subsidise hire fees to
locals.
The Three Villages Community Hall
Housing. – No Council housing is now available in the area. All social housing is in the
ownership of housing associations mainly ACHA and Dunbritton. However the number of
these properties is small in comparison with owner-occupied homes. There are no tied
houses at all as most of these were purchased through the right to buy scheme of the
1980s.
Employment. – Most employment within the villages is through tourism which also
attracts many overseas workers. As referred to in the history of our villages it has
become easier for people to travel to work in the MoD establishments of Faslane,
Coulport and Glen Douglas and as far away as Glasgow on a daily bases. One local based
employer offering apprenticeships is SSE at the Sloy Power Station at Inveruglas on Loch
Lomondside. Some local residents are employed at the Primary School, and the
Ambulance Service along with the retained Fire and Rescue Service
Tourism. – Our villages have unique
potential being the gateway to Argyll and
the North West of Scotland, hosting assets
to boost the economy of tourism. We are
located at the very nucleus of a National
Park amid absolutely stunning scenery with
the beauty of Loch Lomond and the ribbon
of Loch Long nestled below ‘the Cobbler’
the monument that guards the Arrochar
Alps right on our doorstep. These assets
draw thousands of visitors to our area each
year.
Tourism is the biggest employer within our
area but mostly offering part time hours
and zero hours contracts.
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Churches. – Our villages house two Christian faith churches; St Peter and Paul RC
Church and Arrochar Parish Church along with a Christian Fellowship Group who use the
Village Hall for worship.
St Peter and St Paul’s was built in
the early 1950s and is situated in the
middle of the village of Arrochar.
Arrochar Parish Church at Tighness was built by the Colquhouns in 1847. There is now
no Church Manse in Arrochar although the Church Glebe situated behind the Village Inn
and Admiralty Cottages is still a Church of Scotland asset.
In the late 1990s being in a bad state of disrepair
the Church building faced the threat of closure.
However a very dedicated Church member
knocked on every door in the Parish and accrued
enough money to start a repair fund for the
Church’s restoration. The local tradesmen gave
their time and applied their skills to see the
Church being refurbished to the standards we
have today. The two communion cups in the
possession of the Arrochar Church were given by
Lady Arbuthnot, the mother-in-law of the then
Laird of Arrochar in 1742. She also left two
hundred merks (Scots) for the purchase of a bell,
and this, after hanging on a ‘Bell tree’ in the
churchyard from 1802 till 1847, was placed in the
tower of the present Church, from which it is still
rung to call the faithful.
Sunday worship takes place at 10am. The
congregation attending most Sundays stands at
about 30 with numbers increasing in the summer months with the attendance of visitors.
The electoral roll of the Church is in the region of 60 members.
Housekeeping: This task is carried out by a Church elder dedicated to keeping the
Church function diary in order that bookings for Christenings, Weddings and Funerals
along with other required services have the attendants needed for the appropriate
service requested. Church management in the form of housekeeping is carried out by an
employed person.
Sunday school: the Sunday school until recently used to be very well attended but now
consists of three young people from one family and one from another. Attendance is not
at all regular so what was once a vibrant well attended Sunday School that produced
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some excellent pieces of work, usually resulting in the young people leading part of the
service, has now diminished to such an extent that the prepared lesson gets carried over
for several weeks. There are many reasons for this, most of which are outwith the
control of the Church (e.g. school demands on older children and other clubs that run on
a Sunday.
Fund Raising: Various themes are used for the purpose of fund raising for example: a
spring and Christmas Fair, Christmas Hamper, Quiz nights and the sale of Memory Stars
take place at times throughout the year.
Guild: The Parish Church has a long established Guild. Membership records prove it has
been unbroken since the turn of the 20th century. Today’s membership fluctuates in
numbers but remains steady. It meets on the first Thursday of each month from October
to April each year and most meetings host a speaker with an ecclesiastical theme. This
year it is supporting: – Street Pastors, Breaking the cycle of FGM, All Friends Together,
Caring for Mother Earth and the Haiti Project through members’ donations. Also funded
are St Margaret’s Hospice and Erskine Hospital through small fundraising functions.
World Day of Prayer: The two Christian Churches join together for the World Day of
Prayer being hosted by the Parish Church and St. Peter and St. Paul RC Church on
alternative years.
Cenotaph: On remembrance Sunday there is a short service held in the Church finishing
in time to allow the
minister and the
congregation time to
walk up to the War
Memorial. This is
normally very well
attended and in the
region of eight wreaths
laid every year. The
arrangements for the
service are carried out
by the Community
Council and teas and
coffee are provided for
everyone in the Cadet
Centre after the
service.
Remembrance Sunday 2014
Document compiled by M Haggarty. Photos courtesy of Rhona Dick, Iain Dick and Sandra Kay
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