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The Friends of Hugh Miller

East Church, Church St

East Church, Church St

The former parish church, part of which dates back to Reformation times, has recently been magnificently restored at a cost of some £2.5 million. Its flagstone floors, pews, lofts and memorials speak eloquently of centuries of Scottish Presbyterian worship. The excellent interpretation panels within tell of a fraught history, in which lairds and ministers quarrelled fiercely, and the church frequently changed hands between Presbyterian and Episcopalian ministries.
Miller has been recorded as heeding the preachings of his friend and mentor, Rev Alexander Stewart, with special intensity from the family pews in the Poor Loft. This was shortly before the congregation departed en masse in The Disruption of 1843. Visitors today note how it still exudes an aura of prayer and contemplation. Remaining  consecrated, it continues to provide a few services every year.

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