Undiscovered Scotland

 

Old St Peter's Kirk is a remarkable survivor. A large and elaborate ruined stone church, it stands in the heart of Thurso not far south of the shore of Thurso Bay and not far west of the River Thurso. The church has been roofless for nearly two centuries and the most surprising thing about it is that the stone of the church walls has never been robbed out for recycling into the buildings of the town that has grown and evolved around it. Catch it on the sort of day illustrated on this page and it is both attractive and fascinating.

The plaque on the gateway says that the church was founded circa 1220 by Gilbert Murray, Bishop of Caithness. Most sources now agree that its history goes back rather longer, and that there was a church here from 1125 or possibly even earlier. The first Norse church was a stone rectangular buildings with a tower that was offset to the south from the chancel at its east end. (Continues below images...)

 

A north aisle was added in the 1500s and this was later given an upper storey. In the early 1600s the church acted as a replacement cathedral for the Bishops of Caithness following damage to Dornoch Cathedral. This resulted in the building of the south aisle that is in many ways the most imposing feature of the ruin you see today, complete with its large south window.

In the 1700s a room above the chancel was used as a court house and the tower served as a prison. The tower was originally equipped with three bells, but they were recast into a single bell in the 1740s. By the end of that century, structural problems were beginning to appear and a new church was built in Thurso that held its first service on the first Sunday of January 1833. Old St Peter's Church was de-roofed later the same year and has stood as a ruin ever since.

Efforts are underway to conserve and restore the Old St Peter's Church. You can find out more via the Facebook page linked from the Visitor Information section of this page.