Church Overview

An earlier parish church on this spot, erected in 1812, was demolished and replaced by the present building in 1892. It is a handsome Gothic structure designed by Glasgow architects Henry Steele and Andrew Balfour, built of red stone from the Ballochmyle quarry, with a three-stage tower with spire and clock.

The sanctuary possesses three galleries, each lit by its own stained glass window and facing the marvellous carved octagonal oak pulpit. The church also houses a Henry ‘Father’ Willis organ of 1892, that has attained Grade 1 status and is generally regarded as one of the finest church instruments in Scotland. You can find out a great deal more about this impressive historic instrument on the Sowne of Organe group’s website here.

The church’s magnificent collection of stained glass windows are the works of artists including Stephen Adam, RW Winfield & Co, Cottier and Son and Gordon Webster. There was also lots to see around the church that marked the lives of former parishioners and worthies of this and the predecessor parish churches, including a memorial to General Sir Thomas MakDougall Brisbane, astronomer, soldier and Governor of New South Wales. There was also a fabulous bronze eagle lectern, perched upon a base of Numidian Marble, onyx shaft and Sienna marble capital, that was gifted in 1892 by Richard Brown of Haylie and created by Messrs Gilfillan of Glasgow.

The history of the church and the town was further celebrated and shared in the Largs Heritage Centre that opened within the church as a local visitor attraction in 2016. The heritage centre volunteers also created a heritage trail, listing and describing local historic landmarks and with an audio handset that visitors could rent as they wandered around this historic seafront town at their own pace.

During a period of rationalisation by the Church of Scotland, the very difficult decision was taken to close St Columba’s and the final service there was held on 30th June 2024. Organ specialists Sowne of Organe visited earlier in the month to survey the historic pipe organ and the volunteers from Inverclyde Church Recorders visited in July  to document the other moveable items within the building. The church was marketed for sale in Nov 2025 for offers over £145,000. 

A local community group was formed to raise the necessary funds to purchase the building, but their offer was ultimately rejected in favour of a different, as yet undisclosed, bid in March 2026. The future of the building and the historic items it currently houses is now uncertain.

Church was closed in 2024 and marketed for sale in 2025. 

Disclaimer

The information about churches in Scotland’s Churches Scheme has been provided by the congregations or taken from the Historic Scotland list and published sources, in particular, the Buildings of Scotland volumes and the RIAS Illustrated Architectural Guides. To contact this specific church please complete the Contact this Church form above. The information is not authoritative; please contact Scotland’s Churches Trust to let us know of any errors or omissions.