The first steeple in Falkirk was erected at the junction of Manor Street and Kirk Wynd in the 1580s. After it became dilapidated, it was replaced by a new building, the second steeple, which was built by a local mason, William Stevenson, and completed in 1697. The design involved a three-stage tower facing west down the High Street. There was a forestair and pedimented doorway in the first stage, small square openings in the second stage, and clock faces in the third stage, all surmounted by a double
ogival roof. The bell was donated by
James Livingston, 1st Earl of Callendar. It served as the local
tolbooth and
prison for over a century. However, after construction of an adjacent building caused the second steeple to
subside, it had to be demolished in 1803. The current building, the third steeple, was commissioned by the feudal "stentmasters " who controlled the burgh. It was designed by
David Hamilton in the
neoclassical style, built by a local mason, Harry Taylor, in
ashlar stone quarried from
Brightons at a cost of £1,460, and was completed in June 1814. The building ceased to be used for judicial purposes after the
Old Sheriff Court in Hope Street was opened in October 1868, and ceased to be used for municipal purposes after the
Municipal Buildings were opened in 1879. The spire was badly damaged when it was hit by lightning in June 1927. Masonry fell on a horse and cart operated by
A.G. Barr, killing the horse and injuring the driver, but the spire was repaired the following year. The ground floor shop was converted for use as a
tourist information centre in 1973 and was then converted again, into a box office, selling theatre and concert tickets, in the 1980s. The work involved stone and window repairs, restoring the clock faces and regilding the weather vane. The building now accommodates a heritage centre managed by the Falkirk Local History Society. ==See also==