Let James Clerk Maxwell’s legacy live on

Parton Kirk, the burial place of the world-famous physicist James Clerk Maxwell, is being sold by the Church of Scotland.

We, the community of Parton, have been offered the exclusive right to buy the Kirk with the idea of developing a James Clerk Maxwell Science and Community Centre to celebrate the life and work of this great mind, a scientist who laid the foundations of our modern society, yet remains relatively unknown outside the world of science and engineering.

In 2023, we carried out feasibility studies that will form the foundation of our plans (read them here: Parton Kirk Reports).

BUT we only have until 1st November 2026 to raise the money necessary to secure the building and take the next step towards realising the vision.

We need to raise a minimum of £70,000 to secure the building for the community while we develop our plans. This figure is made up as follows:

• £50,000 Purchase Price.

• £20,000 Immediate costs to insure and secure the building in a wind-and-watertight condition while we move to the next phase.

Clerk Maxwell is known as the ‘Father of Modern Science ’, and his classical theory of electromagnetic radiation (the first theory to describe electricity, magnetism and light as different manifestations of the same phenomenon) is the basis of all our modern communication.

This places him between Newton and Einstein in the chronology of scientific discovery that shapes our understanding of the physical world, and yet he still remains relatively unknown in his own country!

Please will you help Parton secure the Kirk for our community, and to celebrate the life and achievements of this giant of science?

Thank you!

Parton Community Council, partoncc@gmail.com