St John The Evangelist Roman Catholic Church, Abercromby Road, Castle Douglas

1. Simple gothic church with spire and 2-storey presbytery

adjoined. Whinstone rubble with red sandstone ashlar bands

and dressings, base course; hoodmoulds.

SPIRE AND ENTRANCE PORCH: adjoined to outer right bay of S

elevation. Square base to spire with small lancet windows

lighting stair, chamfered to octagonal form above eaves with

louvred round-arched openings to each face of bell-chamber,

bracketed eaves to polygonal ashlar spire; decorative

cast-iron finial. Gabled porch set in re-entrant angle with

pointed arch door, flanked by nookshafts with simple

capitals; 2-leaf boarded door; stone cross finial.

NAVE: buttresses dividing 5 bays to S elevation. Lancet in

outer left bay, paired lancets in pointed arch panels to 3

centre bays with quatrefoil carving at apex. N elevation

largely blank with set-off chimney breast to outer left with

cigar-stack at wallhead; lancet to outer right. E elevation

with large pointed arch panel comprised of plate traceried

rose window and 2 traceried windows; 2 arrowslit windows

below. Decorative stone cross finial at apex.

APSE: formed of canted W end elevation, with lancet to outer

bay to S and slender metal cross finial.

Lead diamond-pane glazing pattern. Graduated grey slates.

Decorative ridge ornament.

INTERIOR: not seen 1990.

PRESBYTERY: simple 2-storey presbytery adjoined to W end of

church. Materials as above. Bipartite windows at 1st floor

with column mullions and moulded lintels.

S ELEVATION: 3-bay; gabled porch set in re-entrant angle at

centre formed with advanced outer right bay; pointed arch

arch door in roll-moulded surround; plate glass fanlight;

arrowslit on W return. Small 1st floor window above. Lower

bays advanced to right comprised of 2 windows at ground with

moulded lintels and bipartite in gabled dormerhead breaking

eaves above; eaves swept into main roof. Gabled bay to outer

left with bipartite windows to each floor, and arrowslit at

gablehead; decorative wrought iron finial. 4-pane glazing

pattern in sash and case windows. Graduated grey slates.

Ashlar coped skews. Set-off wallhead stack to blank W

elevation.

RETAINING WALLS: saddleback ashlar coping to whinstone rubble

walls, stepped at intervals.