Douglas Swan & Sons

14/12/2024

You may have seen a number of Commonwealth War Graves vans in Kirkcudbright this week and also at St Cuthberts's Churchyard.

Our training section was running a restoration course for the commission at our local Churchyard, where the participants re-set a number of memorials while under instruction.

We had one student joined us from Dumfries & Galloway Council also on the course.

Our next course is being held at Brookwood Cemetery near Watford, also for the Commision. We will be heading off there early next year.

Thank you to Masterpiece who provided the catering and the Scout movement for the use of the hall.

19/10/2024

Over a year we travel to Churchyards and Burial grounds right accross Dumfries and Galloway, we are therefore in a good position to comment on how well our Burial grounds are kept. There is quite a variation accross the region, and the Council often gets criticised on the state the Burial grounds are in.

So we would like to mention Castle Douglas Cemetery which is in wonderful condition and a credit to the team who look after grounds there. Well done I am sure the people of Castle Douglas share our admiration of your good work.

18/06/2024

18/06/2024

We have now passed our 160th Anniversary as a family trading as Memorial Masons (or Monumental Sculptors as we used to be called). This is a marble memorial which failed a stability test. We were asked by the family to re-set the memorial and clean and re-paint the letters.

The photographs show the poor condition of the memorial, which was dismantled, had a new foundation installed and then it was re erected before being thoroughly cleaned and having all the letters re-painted. It looks almost as good as the day in the late 1890's when it was first erected.

We take great pride in still having personnel with the skills to carry out this type of renovation work.

27/03/2024

We have been asked a number of times about the safety notices attached to memorials in various cemeteries and churchyards around the region. The safety checks are being carried out by a company called Memsafe. When a memorial is deemed unsafe it is tagged.

Following the completion of the safety checks in Dalbeattie Cemetery, we checked to see if any of the memorials we have supplied in the past were tagged, if they are, we add a green circular sticker to the tag, this indicates to Memsafe that we shall be repairing the headstone. These repairs are carried out free of charge and we have still got a few to complete in Dalbeattie Cemetery and St Cuthbert's at Kirkcudbright.

If tagged memorials were not originally supplied by us, we can still carry out repairs, most repairs involve a simple pinning of the memorial to its foundation, however a few may require more extensive repairs such as a new foundation.

13/03/2024

As many people may be aware, our family come 18th May 2024, will have been trading continuously in Kirkcudbright for 160 years.

During that time we have advertised our services in the Kirkcudbright Advertiser which later became the Galloway News.

We used to advertise every week, but latterly once a month, as there are so many places to advertise these days at far less cost than through a newspaper.

The Galloway News have now informed us that they are imposing a minimum spend to advertise with them, which is much more than we pay already.

We have therefore decided to no longer advertise in the Galloway News, but rest assured we are still here.

16/02/2024

We are having issues with our broadband at the moment which is causing problems with our telephone system as well as our e mails. We are hoping to have this resolved soon. All calls are being routed to 1 mobile phone at present.

20/09/2023

Garry getting to grips with a new toy, boring out old dowels to takke a memorial apart.

06/08/2023

While we like the Garden at Banks and Braes, this is the back area of the stone workshop and yard, when it is nice weather and customers get a bit upset, they can sit here and gather their thoughts.

03/08/2023

Over our many years, we have a accumulated a lot of equipment, one of our favourites is our portable lifting gantry. We also get asked by other firms to help with bigger jobs, as we have also got the manpower. Here we are helping Kevin Roberts from Patna with a heavy job at Dunure and a tall order in Cumnock. We think Kevin enjoys the banter more than getting some assistance.

02/04/2023

The family will have been trading as Monumental Sculptors in Kirkcudbright for 160 years next May. Today sees a first for the business as Dougie and Jamie fly to Shetland to deliver a week of Training for Shetland Islands Council.

Our founder Great Grandfather James Swan started the business in 1864 when the railway came to Kirkcudbright, his mode of tranport was a pony. Borgue was considered long distance work in those days. To be honest we never really envisaged any of us would be flying to work.

19/03/2023

Wee job for an early Sunday cleaning the Jubilee Fountain in the High Street, Dalbeattie.

04/03/2023

This monument in Mochrum Churchyard has been leaning at quite an angle for some years. We were asked to level the monument which weighs about two tons.

21/11/2022

27/09/2022

It is with great sadness, we announce that Ian's wife Alison, who has been unwell for some time, passed away peacefully on 14th September surrounded by her loving family.

As a mark of respect to Alison, Ian, Jamie and Garry, our offices, memorial workshop and showroom will remain closed on Wednesday 28th September, for her funeral.

There is to be a graveside service at St Cuthbert's Churchyard, Kirkcudbright at 11.am All friends are respectfully invited to attend. Family flowers only please. If so desired, donations to Macmillan Cancer Support may be given at the service.

31/07/2022

Its a wee while since we posted on here, Hand Cut lettering is a skill which is dying out, so we decided to give Ian's grand children Martin and Iona a go, looks like papa can retire soon