On Saturday 4th June it was exactly 250 years to the day that the Foundation Stone for the Trades Kirk was laid. To celebrate this anniversary, a special service was held at St Andrews Church, the Trades Kirk. Members from each of the Nine Trades joined a robed procession and the service was conducted by Trades Minister, Reverend Anita Kerr.
In the Eighteenth Century Dundee had three parish churches, The Old Church, St Mary’s in the Fields, and the Cross Church. As the population expanded within the City so did the church membership. Dundee urgently needed a fourth Church.
The Kirk Session and the twelve Trades agreed to fund the development and payment of another minister. Having both agreed to provide a third of the funding, their contributions were increased alongside additional help from the individual Trades and voluntary subscriptions. All the building works were based on plans drawn up by Samuel bell, a practising Architect who later became a Wright tradesman, and boxmaster of the Wright trade. The Foundation Stone was laid 250 years ago on 4th June 1772 and all the work was carried out by Trade members and completion permitted the Church to open in 1775 to much acclaim.