The
Steeple was
erected in 1755, to a design by David Kerr, a local master mason.
The buildings attached to the Steeple were originally used as
a school and meal market. A statue of Habbie Simpson,
Kilbarchan’s famous left handed piper can be seen in a
niche on the Steeple. This statue was originally carved in wood
by Archibald Robertson of Greenock in 1822, but it later
fell into disrepair and was replaced in 1932 by a bronze statue,
the cost of which was raised by public subscription.
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The Weaver's Cottage is
a typical
18th century handloom house. the last of the 800 looms which
worked in the village in the 1830s. Most Fridays and weekends,
the clack of a weaver at work brings the cottage to life again.
Locally woven shawls cover the box beds. There is an interesting
display of looms, weaving equipment and domestic utensils,
an attractive cottage garden and an informative video programme.
The cottage is in the care of the National Trust for Scotland.
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The Well at the foot
of Church Street is faced with a plaque of Robert Allan, a friend
and companion of the poet Robert Tannahill. Robert Allan was
born in Kilbarchan, on November 4th 1774. Inheriting a taste
for music, he showed early talent in the composition of songs.
He was a weaver to trade, and many of his best songs were composed
at the loom. In his more advanced years he became possessed with
the idea that he was not appreciated in Scotland as a poet, and
determined in opposition to the wishes of friends, to join his
youngest son in the United States.
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