FACTS


The land on which the Church of Saint Peter in Chains is built was bought on 30 January 1924 from the Earl of Eglinton and Winton for £4500.
      Golden Jubilee Book

The Church is built on three feet of Irish soil.
      Built On Irish Soil

The Church was opened on 2 October 1938 by the Archbishop of Glasgow, Donald Mackintosh.
      Opening Ceremony

The Church was part of the Archdiocese of Glasgow until it was transferred to the Diocese of Galloway in 1948.

The first Mass involved three priests all born in Ardrossan - Father Archibald McSparran, Father James McCarroll and Father Robert McCliment.
      Opening Ceremony

There have been six Parish Priests - Monsignor Archibald McSparran, Father Peter Fitzpatrick, Father William McBurnie, Canon Lawrence Fischer, Father Michael Lynch and Canon Matt McManus.
      Priests

There have been ten Curates - Canon Matthew Littleton, Father James O'Sullivan, Canon Charles Matthews, Father John Murphy, Canon John Walls, Father Alastair Tosh, Father Declan Kelly, Father Joseph Glendinning, Father John McCaig and Father Paul O'Brien.
      Priests

It is very rare for a native of a town to become its Parish Priest. Archibald McSparran was born at Harbour Lane, Ardrossan in 1882. He became Parish Priest in 1946. He died in the Presbytery at 9 South Crescent in 1950. His place of birth, his Church and place of death spanned no more than half a mile.

McSparran Road in Croy, Lanarkshire is named after the first Parish Priest of the Church of Saint Peter in Chains. Father Archibald McSparran served at Holy Cross Church, Croy from 1930 to 1933.

In the late 1950s and 1960s, Father Lawrence Fischer drove a black Morris Oxford MO car with registration mark DAG 55. He later bought a beige Morris 1100.

The Michael Lynch Centre in Princes Street, Ardrossan is named after Father Michael Lynch.

There have been six ordinations to the priesthood in the Church of Saint Peter in Chains. Five other men born in Ardrossan have been ordained elswhere. Three other parishioners have also been ordained elsewhere.
      Ordinations

Maurice Taylor's first ordination as Bishop of Galloway was in the Church of Saint Peter in Chains when he ordained Peter Magee on 2 July 1981. Twenty-two years later, he performed his last ordination as Bishop in the same Church when he ordained Stephen McGrattan on 6 July 2003.
      Ordinations

The oldest person for whom a Requiem Mass was said in Saint Peter's was Margaret Edmond previously Townsley neé Brown. Margaret was 103 years and 66 days old when she died on 16 February 1996. Her funeral was held on 22 February 1996. Margaret is buried in Ardrossan Cemetery.

The centre aisle is 20.63 metres long and 1.34 metres wide.

On the outside wall, there are 1074 panes of glass in the windows.

The Church of Saint Peter in Chains in Ardrossan is not the only one with that name. The only other one in Scotland is the Church of Saint Peter in Chains in Inverkeithing, Fife. There are two in England - one in Doncaster and one in London. The United States of America has three - in Cincinnati and Hamilton, both Ohio and Ruby, Alaska. There is a Cathedral Church of Saint Peter in Chains in Peterborough, Ontario, Canada. The most famous Church with the same name is the Basilica of Saint Peter in Chains in Rome, Italy.

The 10000th visit to Saint Peter's website was made on 11 July 2006 at 12.58 pm by Peter John Walsh. The website author does not have access to any information on who visits the site. Peter John identified himself as the 10000th visitor. The 20000th visit was made on 18 May 2007. The 30000th visit was made on 26 June 2008 at 11.39 pm. The 40000th visit was made on 22 June 2009.

The highest number of visits to Saint Peter's website in a single day was 120 on 26 October 2008. There were 111 visits on 30 June 2006 and 104 visits on 25 September 2005.

The forty-seven countries in which Saint Peter's website is known to have been viewed are Australia, Bahamas, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, Czech Republic, Denmark, Ecuador, England, Finland, France, Germany, Guatemala, Hong Kong, Hungary, India, Israel, Italy, Ivory Coast, Malaysia, Malta, Mauritius, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, Northern Ireland, Norway, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Ireland, Russia, Saint Lucia, Saudi Arabia, Scotland, Singapore, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, Uganda, United Arab Emirates, United States of America and Wales. If you have viewed it in another country, please contact WebsiteAuthor@SaintPeterInChains.net.