Capturing memories at Croick Church

Hosted by Historic Churches Scotland, the Croick Church Community Open Day in August attracted over sixty people — a wonderful reminder of how much this small church still means to so many.

By Mandy Wrenn

Conversations on the day highlighted not only Croick Church’s historic and architectural importance but also its continuing place in local life and memory. Building on that enthusiasm, two new heritage projects are now underway: one to digitise the church’s visitor books, and another to record local people’s memories of the church and strath through an oral history project. Together, these initiatives will help safeguard the stories associated with Croick Church — past and present — for generations to come.



The visitor books: a record of sixty years


For more than six decades, visitors from near and far have signed the visitor books at Croick Church, leaving behind tens of thousands of handwritten entries. The earliest pages date from the 1960s, and together they form an extraordinary social record — capturing everything from brief notes of thanks to heartfelt reflections on ancestry, faith, and remembrance. Today, the books are showing their age. Some pages are quite delicate, some of the bindings are worn and there is a risk that entries will begin to fade. To protect these remarkable records, Historic Churches Scotland, which now cares for Croick Church, is leading a digitisation project to preserve and share their contents.


The first stage of the project will involve carefully cleaning and photographing each book to create high-quality digital images of every page. These images will then be uploaded to a suitable website, storing safely and easily without handling the fragile originals.


This is where volunteers are needed. The project team is looking for people to help gently clean the pages, prepare the books for photography, and assist with scanning. No previous experience is necessary — just patience, steady hands, and care for historic materials. Training and guidance will be provided. It’s an excellent opportunity for anyone interested in local or family history to get directly involved in preserving Croick Church’s story.


A second phase, to be developed later, will focus on turning the scanned pages into searchable text. A computer programme will carry out the initial transcription, converting handwriting into digital words. The resulting data will then be checked and refined before being stored in a searchable online database, allowing visitors and researchers to explore where people came from, family connections to the area, and the threads and ties connecting people to Croick from around the world.



Capturing community voices


Running alongside the digitisation work will be an oral history project, to record memories and reflections from those who know Croick Church best — the local community. Many people at the Open Day shared recollections of services, weddings, and family gatherings, as well as stories passed down through generations. The oral history project will build on this, inviting people to share their personal memories of the church and strath, capturing what the church has meant to local life over the years.


These recordings will complement the visitor books beautifully, adding living voices to the written record. Together, they will create a richer, more personal picture of how Croick Church continues to inspire connection and reflection today.


How to get involved


If you’d like to volunteer for the cleaning and scanning stage of the visitor book project — or contribute to the oral history project by sharing your memories — we’d love to hear from you.
Please contact Historic Churches Scotland by email.