Memorial to Archibald McMillan

Image: © Lairich Rig Taken: 16 Apr 2011

This stone is located at the south-eastern corner of the old kirkyard of Image If the monument shown here is the original one, then most of it is now buried (the old churchyard contains other stones that are now largely buried, e.g., Image). The original is described as being about ten feet high. In addition, it was originally "surmounted by a beautifully-carved casket adorned with Greek ornaments". The inscription is as follows: "Archibald McMillan (Shipbuilder) Died 27th December 1854 Aged 61 Wife Catherine Smith Children, Peter, died 21st January 1828, aged 2 years 3 months, Peter, died 20th May 1833, aged 5." The person commemorated here was the founder of the shipbuilding firm of Archibald McMillan and Son, which was established in 1834 at a site upriver from Image See Image for further details of the founding of the firm, and for references. The firm later relocated to a site next to Dumbarton Parish Kirkyard (in which the memorial is located; click on the end-note title for related images). In 1910, McMillan was granted permission to buy part of that kirkyard (which had by then been closed to burials for many years), thereby expanding his shipyard at its expense. The shipyard closed in 1930, and its site was next occupied by a distillery, only remnants of which survive at the time of writing: Image Archibald's wife Catherine was originally from Luss (Image), and she was buried beside the church at West Bridgend (Image). Archibald's son John McMillan, along with Peter Denny, presented Levengrove Park as a gift to the town and people of Dumbarton: http://www.geograph.org.uk/snippet/5911 [For further biographical details, and for details of the memorial, see Donald MacLeod's "The God's Acres of Dumbarton" (1888).]

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