Keil Chapel and Burial Ground

It is probable that St. Columba stayed in the vicinity of Keil on at least one of his travels.  Old documents name the place as Kilcolumcille which translates as The Church of St. Columba.  It became a place of worship early on and the present ruinous building is thought to have replaced an earlier one, possibly of wood. It is vaguely dated as late medieval but there is documentation of a congregation here in 1354.  

The present building measures 12.3 metres by 5.6 metres with walls 0.9 metres thick and the original masonry is of roughly-coursed local rubble bonded with pinnings, the quoins and margins being formed of roughly-dressed blocks and slabs of the same materials.  The technique of building is generally of the so-called ‘Shiner’ build which was a West Coast one where large stones were split in half and set on edge to form a wall.  Lime mortar has been used throughout.  Much of the north wall has been repaired, mainly in the 1970s which accounts for the door, which is in the right place, being rather wider than would be expected.  Further restoration, this time to the south wall, was carried out in 2018.  At the south-east corner there are two intra-mural aumbries and, also at the east end, in the north and south walls are small lintelled windows.  There is a further window high in the west gable.   Looking at the insides of the gables it is apparent that there have been at least three different roof lines. Roofs would have been of thatch; there are thatch pegs on the outside of both gable walls.  At some time the roof must have burnt down as there is evidence of scorching of the stones on the inside of the east gable.  Both inside and outside the church there are remnants of plaster which presumably was painted white.

Was it following such a fire that the chapel ceased to be used as a place of worship?  This is not known.  There was a congregation in 1641 as there were problems caused by various lairds preventing the minister from preaching!  Or was it later?  Certainly there was no church or chapel for worship for an extended period until the Duror Parish Church was built in 1827 and St. Adamnan’s Episcopal Church in 1848.

Inside and outside the chapel there are numerous gravestones. Most of these are of Ballachulish slate.  The earliest date is 1686 and the latest 1925.  Many have no inscription, some have primitive ones but some are of superb work, especially the one commemorating the eight children of John McDougall and his wife, Rachel McColl. Several different styles are obvious, some more skilled than others.  With one exception no record exists telling us who carved the stones.  Almost certainly they were quarriers from Ballachulish.  The one exception is an obelisk commemorating John McColl who is a well known Gaelic poet, some of whose poetry has been set to music and is still sung.  Although nearly all the people buried here would have been Gaelic speaking this language is only found on three stones.  The burial ground was formally closed in 1950.

The most famous person to have been buried here is James of the Glen who was hanged on 8th. November 1752 for his alleged involvement in the Appin Murder.  Just where his remains lay is not known.

M.E.M. Donaldson in her book Wanderings in the West Highlands said that both the chapel and burial ground were small and of no interest.  She added that what graven stones there were had suffered such violence from weather and lack of care that their sculpturing has practically disappeared.  Another author, Mary Miers, in her book The Western Seaboard disagrees stating that the gravestones of the 18th and 19th century are of exceptional quality.

The commonest name on stones is McColl followed by Stewart.  Other frequent found surnames include Cameron, Colquhoun, Buchanan and Livingston.

The Chapel and Burial Ground lie within the grounds of the House of Keil and Keil Farm.  This means that the area is not open to the public but if you would like to visit it, please contact the people at Keil and ask permission.

‍