Tundergarth Old Parish Church, Historic Building Recording and Evaluation

An enhanced historic building record was conducted within the Tundergarth Old Parish Church, including full photographic survey, annotated plans and hand drawings of relevant details. Three small evaluation trenches were excavated to examine the historic levels of the floor of the church interior relative to those of the entrance thresholds and the exterior ground surface. This specific information was required to inform development of proposals for the conservation and reuse of the structure. The trenches measured 1m by 2m. Addyman Archaeology was commissioned by Tundergarth Kirks Trust to carry out an initial assessment and record of the ruin of Tundergarth Old Parish Church near Lockerbie in order to inform the development of conservation proposals for its repair and reuse. The Old Church is located within the present graveyard a little to the south-west of the existing church building; it was in a ruinous condition and much overgrown, parts of its fabric particularly obscured by ivy growth. The works involved the clearance of the ivy and obscuring vegetation to expose the masonry structure for assessment and recording. Following the ivy clearance, the assessment and recording involved three trial trenches to investigate floor levels, photogrammetry of the upstanding ruin and a drawn plan. Cad elevations were worked up from the photogrammetry and annotated with analytical observations. A record was made of reused architectural elements within the masonry, and a further record was made of the funerary monuments located within the building and in its immediate vicinity. The existing masonry fabric of the church was built c.1770-2 in one phase, with some reused elements of an earlier structure incorporated into its fabric. The building was originally plastered on the interior with evidence for repairs or reworking in the 19th century, and a further phase of lining out with lath and plaster was indicated by lines of dook holes. The structure went out of use at the turn of the 20th century and a new church built to the north-east. The walls of the Old Church were much reduced and their lower extents retained to form a burial enclosure. A large burial monument was inserted into the south wall and other burial lairs laid out, some of which appear to have been occupied.