Church history and St. Modan

The first name to emerge from the mists of history is that of St. Modan. Travelling eastwards from the west coast as a missionary around the 6th Century A.D., he founded a church at Rosneath, and later died there. In 1880, a finely carved stone was dug up from the grounds of the present church. From its style, it has been dated to c.800 A.D. and is thought by some to represent the tombstone of St. Modan. It is preserved inside the church.

The present church building celebrated its centenary in 1953 when it was re-dedicated as St. Modan's parish Church. It has many interesting features. In the grounds are the ruins of the previous church (1780), and the only known grave in Scotland of an African slave, Robert Story. Story came to Scotland as a freed slave, and became the servant of the then minister, taking his name as a mark of respect.