Present Day

The population of Glencalvie and of Strath Cuileannach in which Croick Church is situated (its Gaelic name can be translated as a ‘branching’ or ‘side glen’) is reduced to a few families although during the appropriate seasons visitors in search of fishing and stalking add to the numbers. Commercial sheep-farming that was, since the Clearances, the principal activity within the boundaries of the old parish, has now all but disappeared it is being replaced by forestry. Traces of the old farms can however still be seen in the runrigs, greens and ruins scattered throughout the glens.

Despite its distance from the main roads Croick Church is visited throughout the year (and remains open at all times) by many hundreds of people from all parts of the world, as the entries in the Visitors’ Book within the Church show.

Restoration

For many years the donations by visitors to the Church helped considerably towards the costs of its maintenance, but in 1977, when it was discovered that the weather had caused serious damage to the roof, an appeal had to be made for its repair. The response was immediate, widespread and most gratifying both from the public at large and in the form of generous grants from many official bodies. In the event the restoration had to be widened in order to deal with further defects that were found both inside and outside the building. Thus work did not start on it until 1982 when the opportunity was also taken to install electricity.

The whole project was completed in 1983 at a cost of little under £20,000. Since then a number of additions have been made to the interior furnishings of the Church.