Kilallan, St Fillan's church and churchyard

Heritage listing

Date Added 24/09/2003 Type Ecclesiastical: burial ground, cemetery, graveyard; church Local Authority Renfrewshire Parish Houston And Killellan NGR NS 38267 68931 Coordinates 238267, 668931 — The monument comprises the remains of St Fillan's Church and churchyard, Kilallan, which dates from the medieval period. Today the church is ruinous, surviving as a roofless structure. The monument is situated immediately to the E of Kilallan Farm, at c.100m OD. It comprises the remains of Kilallan parish church, dedicated to St Fillan (Faelan of Cluain Moesca in Meath). The origins of the church may date back to the 10th or 11th century AD, when incoming Gaels introduced the cult to the area. This was one of the churches gifted to Paisley Abbey by Walter the Steward in 1169. The church was last used in 1771 (Kilallan parish having been united with Houston in 1760), although the graveyard surrounding the church was still in use as late as 1856. The church is a long and narrow unicameral building, measuring c.19m E-W by c.6m N-S. The walls survive almost intact, although with much altered medieval fabric and post-medieval gables. All of the openings are 17th-century work and the doorway at the W end of the S wall is dated 1635, when the pre-Reformation character of the building was changed to suit Presbyterian needs. The Barochan Aisle, where several Flemings of Barochan are buried, was later added to the N side of the church. There are records of sculpted stones from the site, although their current location is uncertain. The area proposed for scheduling comprises the remains described and an area around them within which related material may be expected to survive. It is defined by the churchyard wall and is roughly sub-rectangular in shape, with maximum dimensions of 42.5m NE-SW

From Historic Environment Scotland under OGL v3.