St John's Cathedral or the Cathedral Church of St John the Divine (

Scottish Gaelic Scottish Gaelic (, ; Endonym and exonym, endonym: ), also known as Scots Gaelic or simply Gaelic, is a Celtic language native to the Gaels of Scotland. As a member of the Goidelic language, Goidelic branch of Celtic, Scottish Gaelic, alongs ...

''Ard-eaglais Eòin an Diadhair'') is a

cathedral A cathedral is a church (building), church that contains the of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, Annual conferences within Methodism, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually s ...

of the

Scottish Episcopal Church The Scottish Episcopal Church (; ) is a Christian denomination in Scotland. Scotland's third largest church, the Scottish Episcopal Church has 303 local congregations. It is also an Ecclesiastical province#Anglican Communion, ecclesiastical provi ...

, located in the town of

Oban Oban ( ; meaning ''The Little Bay'') is a resort town within the Argyll and Bute council area of Scotland. Despite its small size, it is the largest town between Helensburgh and Fort William, Highland, Fort William. During the tourist seaso ...

. It is one of the two cathedrals of the Diocese of Argyll and The Isles, and one of the sees of the Bishop of Argyll and The Isles. The MacDougalls of Dunollie and Campbells of Dunstaffnage began the project to build an episcopal church in Oban in 1846. The first church was completed in 1864. The committee for the erection of the church appointed Charles Wilson as the architect, but following his death, the work was entrusted to his successor, David Thomson of the architectural practice Heath Wilson & David Thomson, Glasgow. As the Bishop of Argyll and The Isles Alexander Ewing was in Europe on account of his health, the church was consecrated by the

Bishop of London The bishop of London is the Ordinary (church officer), ordinary of the Church of England's Diocese of London in the Province of Canterbury. By custom the Bishop is also Dean of the Chapel Royal since 1723. The diocese covers of 17 boroughs o ...

Archibald Campbell Tait Archibald Campbell Tait (21 December 18113 December 1882) is an Archbishop of Canterbury in the Church of England and theologian. He was the first Scottish Archbishop of Canterbury and thus, head of the Church of England. Life Tait was born ...

on Thursday 22 September 1864. It was described as being of small dimensions, consisting only of a nave and chancel, the total length being inside. The east window was filled with painted glass and donated by Sir Donald Campbell, 3rd Baronet of Dunstaffnage in memory of his brother Sir Angus. The rose window in the western gable was filled with painted glass, the gift of David Hutcheson. The contractors for the building were John McCorquodale for masonry, Andrew Fairgrieve for plumbing, Hugh Brown for slating, George McAlpine for plastering, Charles McLaren for glazing, R. Reguson & Sons for painting, and G. Smith & Co for ironwork. The cost of the first phase of the building was around £1,400 (). In 1882 a side aisle was added to the south of the 1864 building. The 1910 additions were by architect James Chalmers of Glasgow. Funds ran out before construction finished – thus we are left with a unique cathedral (designated as such in 1920) with each phase clearly visible in the cathedral and the steel girders still supporting the incomplete vision of a grand structure. A screen was added in 1958 designed by

Ian Gordon Lindsay Ian Gordon Lindsay (29 July 1906 – 28 August 1966) was a Scottish architect. He was most noted for his numerous restoration projects, sometimes of whole villages but curiously was also involved in the design of several hydro-electric power st ...

List of rectors and provosts

*1859-1880: Robert Jackson MacGeorge *1881-1896: Arthur Ingelby (formerly curate of Hawley, Hampshire) * 1896-1930: Charles Pressley Smith * 1930-1942: George Preston Tonge (formerly Rector of Christ Church, Falkirk) * 1959–1979: Charles Copland (formerly Canon of St Mary's Episcopal Church, Arbroath) * 1980-1986: Nigel Abbott (former Vicar of Holy Trinity Coventry) *1986-2000: Alan Maclean of Dochgarroch (formerly, Rector Dunoon)Revd Dr Fergus King, Farnham Maynard Senior Lecturer in Ministry, Trinity College Theological School, Melbourne https://www.trinity.unimelb.edu.au/theological-school/faculty-and-staff/fergus-king * 2000–2012: Norman MacCallum * 2012–2017: Nicki McNelly * 2018–present: Margi Campbell

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint John's Cathedral, Oban

Churches in Argyll and Bute Category C listed buildings in Argyll and Bute Listed cathedrals in Scotland Religion in Oban

List of rectors and provosts

See also

References