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The History of Allan Church

From a Victorian place of worship to a peaceful space for wellbeing

Set among the trees at Bogallan on the Black Isle, Allan Church is a distinctive former Free Church with a history stretching back to the religious and social changes of 19th-century Scotland.

Today, the building is a private residence and home to Etherealness Massage Therapy. While the church has been sympathetically converted into a family home, the former Sunday School room has found a new purpose as a peaceful treatment space. Although its use has evolved over the years, Allan Church remains a place associated with peace, reflection and care.

Allan Church, the former Knockbain Free Church at Bogallan near North Kessock

The story begins in 1843

The roots of the church date back to the Disruption of 1843, when ministers and congregations across Scotland left the established Church of Scotland and formed the Free Church of Scotland.

The first minister of Knockbain Free Church was the Reverend John Macrae, who left the Church of Scotland in 1843. The original Free Church congregation worshipped in a simple wooden building at Bogallan, close to the site of the present church.

Historical research describes this first building as little more than a large wooden shed. It had reportedly fallen into poor condition by the 1880s and was no longer considered suitable for the congregation.

A congregation divided

In 1884, plans were made to replace the original wooden church with a new stone building at Munlochy.

However, many members of the congregation lived around Bogallan and North Kessock and did not wish to travel farther to Munlochy. The disagreement became sufficiently serious that the Free Church General Assembly divided the congregation into two separate groups.

One group worshipped in the newly built church at Munlochy. The members who remained at Bogallan became known as the Knockbain West congregation and decided to build their own new church close to the original site.

The present church is built

The present building was designed by prominent Inverness architect John Rhind and erected in 1888–1889.

It was constructed in a Gothic style, with features including:

tall pointed-arch windows;
a T-shaped main body;
a distinctive stone bell tower;
an octagonal upper belfry and spire;
a vestry positioned beside the tower;
warm, varied stonework that gives the church much of its character.

Architectural commentary describes the building as appearing almost cruciform because of the positioning of its tower, transept and vestry, although its underlying plan is T-shaped.

The congregation called the Reverend John Macaskill as its first minister in 1888.

Historic Interior of Allan Church - view source

These photographs were taken during the building's transition from Knockbain Free Church to Allan Church. They provide a rare glimpse of the original interior, including the pews, pulpit, gallery and worship space that served the local community for more than 100 years.

A century of worship and community

For more than 100 years, the church served the Knockbain and North Kessock community.

Within its walls, generations of local families would have gathered for:

Sunday worship;
weddings and marriage blessings;
baptisms;
communion services;
funerals and memorial services;
Sunday School gatherings;
prayer meetings;

Following the union of the Free Church and United Presbyterian Church in 1900, the Bogallan congregation chose to remain within the continuing Free Church of Scotland. Members from Munlochy who also opposed the union rejoined the Bogallan congregation, which again became known as Knockbain Free Church.

The building therefore has an especially interesting history: it originated partly because local worshippers were determined to retain a church serving the Bogallan and North Kessock area.

The congregation moves to North Kessock

Regular worship continued at Bogallan until the congregation moved into a new church building at North Kessock in 1994.

This brought more than a century of regular church services at Bogallan to an end.

The building subsequently became redundant as a place of worship and was eventually converted for residential use.

Recognition as a historic building

The former church was listed in 1982, recognising its architectural and historical importance. The Highland Historic Environment Record identifies it as a late-19th-century church designed by John Rhind and confirms that it replaced an earlier building approximately 200 metres to the south-southeast.

Its listing helps protect important features of the building, including its form, stonework, Gothic windows and characteristic tower.

A new chapter

In 2012, a formal photographic survey of the church was prepared by architect D. Stuart as part of a planning application relating to its conversion from a redundant church into a home.

The survey is recorded by the Highland Historic Environment Record and may contain valuable photographs of the interior and exterior during the building’s transition.

Although it no longer functions as a church, its distinctive architecture remains immediately recognisable.

Allan Church today

Today, Allan Church continues its story as a cherished private home while also providing a peaceful space for wellbeing.

The former church has been carefully and sympathetically converted into a family residence, preserving the character and architectural beauty that have made it a local landmark for well over a century.

Within the building, the former Sunday School room has found a new purpose as the treatment room for Etherealness Massage Therapy. This separate area offers a calm, welcoming environment where clients can enjoy professional massage and holistic treatments, while the rest of the building remains a private home.

Although the church no longer hosts weekly services, it continues to be a place where people come to find comfort, restoration and wellbeing. In many ways, its original purpose of caring for the local community lives on in a different form. The former Sunday School room, now home to Etherealness Massage Therapy, offers a peaceful sanctuary where visitors can relax, restore and reconnect. Surrounded by historic stone walls, beautiful architecture and a tranquil woodland setting, Allan Church creates a unique sense of calm that simply cannot be recreated in a modern treatment room.

For more than 100 years, Allan Church (formerly Knockbain Free Church) was at the heart of the local community. It witnessed countless weddings, baptisms, funerals, harvest celebrations and Sunday services, creating memories for generations of families across the Black Isle.

Much of that history remains untold, and very few photographs of the church during its years of worship are available publicly.

If you, a family member, or someone you know has photographs, service sheets, newspaper cuttings or memories of Allan Church, we would be delighted to hear from you. With your permission, we hope to build a small digital archive celebrating the people and stories that have shaped this remarkable building.

Please send your images and stories to sarah@etherealness.co.uk