The New Parish of Camelon

There is some evidence to suggest that Rev John Oswald had worked for a period as a missioner in Camelon prior to his call, and the ready acceptance among his parishioners assisted greatly in the process of rebuilding the congregation and its institutions. The first Session having lapsed, a new group of elders was appointed and this time the Session looks less like an assembly of prominent men of affairs and more like the ordinary people of the congregation. Along with the Minister as moderator were Thomas Allan, a carter and farmer, James Smith, a nailer, James Campbell, a wright and John Fraser, a lock-keeper. The first list of communicants was approved in 1849 with 106 names surviving from the original group.

Shortly after taking up the charge Mr Oswald began the process which would lead eventually to the legal separation of Camelon from Falkirk. This was formally approved by the Courts of the Church on 25th October 1852. Part of the proposal involved arrangements for the funding of the Minister's stipend and to maintain the fabric of the church buildings. Responsibility from then on would rest with a group of Trustees representing once again the most influential men in the district - William Forbes of Callendar, Henry Salmond of Bonnyside, banker, William Fulton of Sunnyside, John Gunn, distiller, George Fairbairn, nail manufacturer and James Ross of the chemical works.

Thus established as Minister of an independent parish of Camelon, Mr Oswald (photo below, right) was able to concentrate on the pastoral and spiritual life of his flock. The records show a steady growth in attendance at the twice-yearly communion services and a preoccupation with discipline, which even at that late stage still played a significant part in the life of the church everywhere in Scotland. Every fortnight penitent parishioners appeared before the stern Minister and elders to confess their failings, often committed many years before. There they were 'rebuked, admonished, absolved and restored to the privileges of church membership,' and though the sackcloth and cutty stool of earlier days had long gone, it remained quite an ordeal for the participants and it is a measure of the importance attached to participation in communion and baptism that so many came forward so willingly. What is perhaps more surprising is that it persisted for more than fifty years and was still practised in Camelon in the early years of this century.

After a nineteen year ministry that had restored the congregation and established the Parish, Mr Oswald, photographed on the right, died at his home Dorrator House on 5th February 1867. After a six-month vacancy 30-year-old John Scott, a borderer who was assistant minister at Livingston, was ordained as successor to Mr Oswald. Though the new minister's forty-five year service in Camelon was the longest in the history of the parish, it was relatively uneventful in the best sense of the word. Church politics that had disfigured earlier decades played little part, and prudent management and the liberal support of an active and growing congregation avoided financial difficulties. It was a period in which the church flourished in Scottish society, recovering quickly from the disruption and playing a major role in the life of people of all ranks. In Rev John Scott the congregation of Camelon had a minister of outstanding ability who carried out his pastoral duties with diligence and steadfastness and the people of Camelon had a man of action who served on a host of committees, trusts and societies aimed at promoting the social and educational life of the people. For forty years he served as Clerk to the Presbytery of Linlithgow and as such was at the heart of developments in church life in the whole district for most of his working life. Socially he was a kenspeckle figure well remembered by one observer:

' His genial presence on the bowling green or on the curling rink was always welcome and in these pastimes he always 'played the game' '

Though there were no significant changes to the structure of the church building during Mr Scott's time, the Minister and his Session did resolve to build a manse in 1869. Mr Scott lent his considerable weight to a proposal to hold a grand bazaar - the first of its kind in Falkirk district to raise money for church purposes and the model for many which followed in the years ahead. Over £300 was raised in this way in June 1873 and along with donations made up the building cost of £500 to provide the new manse, now the lvanhoe Guest House on the Stirling Road.

One problem that regularly concerned the elders beyond the problem of discipline, was the constant need to add to their own number. Many who were approached declined the invitation, some no doubt because they felt unprepared for an office of such importance. A goodly number of others who were appointed moved away from the parish within a relatively short period and not a few accepted the position but did not seem to attend sessional meetings. But while it was a constant difficulty for Mr Scott and his Session it was not new and would remain a concern for many decades after they were gone.

Parochial life flourished. Sunday schools thrived from the earliest years and there was a Young Men's Guild, a Fellowship Association, a Ladies Work Party and regular congregational soirees. The records show many people transferring to Camelon Parish from outside the area as they arrived to work in the thriving industries in the district and there are regular lists of young communicants under the Minister's instruction. A more enlightened approach to the liturgy saw the birth of choral praise in Camelon parish in 1884:

'The Session unanimously agreed to recommend the use of the hymnal of the Church of Scotland in the public service of the church and to request Mr Wright to form a choir for the practice of sacred music and to assist in leading the public service of praise'

Soon afterwards a harmonium was installed and the transformation from precentor led metrical psalms of the previous century was almost complete. The photo (above left) shows Mr Scott with the choir

The early years of the new century brought a gradual deterioration in the Minister's health and for several periods he was unable to carry out his duties. In 1912 he asked leave to resign his charge and this was accepted with the greatest regret. His farewell service in November 1912 was a moving occasion as the parish took leave of its patriarchal pastor after forty-five years. Mr Scott died two years later mourned not only by the people of Camelon and the Falkirk district. The photograph on the right shows the imposing figure of Mr Scott in later life. In many ways his departure on the eve of the outbreak of the Great War was symbolic for he represented the best of a world which was about to change so radically that neither the people or their church would ever be the same.