An earlier post looked at the unification of Newburn Parish Church and Largo Parish Church. The two churches united in 1958, with the Newburn Church closing completely in January 1961. Before the church building at Newburn was converted into a private dwelling, a number of important artefacts were moved from there to Largo Parish Church at Upper Largo. One of the first things to be relocated was the Newburn Parish 1914-18 War Memorial Plaque, pictured above. In the images below, captured in 1963, the empty wall space and exposed brickwork indicates the place where this was once mounted on the church wall. This plaque is still proudly displayed within the church at Upper Largo.
The Newburn communion silver (which included two cups dated 1772) was of course retained for use by the unified church. One of the cups can be seen in detail above (as featured in the book 'Largo Kirk' by Douglas Lister and James Gillies (1968)). A wider range of the Newburn communion silver can be seen in situ at Newburn Parish Church in the photograph below (from the book 'The Architecture of Scottish Post-Reformation Churches 1560-1843' by George Hay (1957)).
The largest item relocated from Newburn to Largo was the panelled pulpit and canopy (seen above in another image from the book 'The Architecture of Scottish Post-Reformation Churches 1560-1843' by George Hay (1957)). This was removed and relocated to Largo Parish Church ahead of the conversation of Newburn Church into a private dwelling. Below is a composite image showing the pulpit both in its original location at Newburn (left, from the Canmore collection) and in its home of the last sixty years, Largo Kirk (right).
In fact, the installation of the Newburn pulpit at Largo was part of a wider programme of renovations at the time. This saw the communion table relocated from the east wall of the chancel to the axis of the cross, and the re-siting of the organ. The 29 September 1965 Leven Mail reported on the works and the extract below highlights the introduction of the Newburn pulpit and font.
On Sunday 26 September 1965 a special service took place to rededicate Largo and Newburn Parish Church, including the dedication of the new church furnishings. The notice below appeared in the Leven Mail two weeks beforehand. If you remember this service or have any memories of Newburn Parish Church before its closure, please get in touch or leave a comment.