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Field Visit
Date April 1985
Event ID 1156436
Category Recording
Type Field Visit
Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/event/1156436
Prestwick, Old Parish Church and Burial-ground NS 3508 2647 NS32NE 4
The roofless ruin of this medieval parish church (dedicated to St Nicholas) stands within its walled burial-ground on a slight knoll close to the shore 250m NNE of Prestwick railway station. It is gable-ended and rectangular on plan, measuring 13.15m by 6.05m within walls 1m thick. The gables are buttressed; that on the W rises from a chamfered ground-course and that on the E (to which a belfry was added) has an offset at the height of the main wall-head, where there is a chamfered eaves-course. Opposed doorways, with arch-pointed heads, are situated towards the W end of the two long walls. Blocked openings include two windows at the E end of the two long walls and another in the E gable. Two moulded capitals incorporated in the blocking appear to be of 13th-century date and it is probable that the existing building was erected at this period. During the 18th century two windows were inserted in the S wall. Between 1165 and 1172 the church was granted by Walter FitzAlan to the monastery at Paisley, and during the late 16th century the parish was united with Monkton; the church continued in use until 1119.
RCAHMS 1985, visited (IMS) April 1985.
(Stat. Acct, xii, 1794, 397; NSA, v, Ayr, 169, 170, 172; Paterson 1863-6, i, 574-6, 567-73; Chalmers 1887-1902, vi, 505·6, 507; MacGibbon and Ross 1896-7, ii, 285-8; Hewat 1908, 6, 41; Scott 1915-61, iii, 55; Cowan 1967, 167).
