Leap year wedding couple return to Cardross for anniversary

James and Margaret Crawford were married at Cardross Parish Church on February 29, 1964.

Though they no longer live in the area, the couple decided there was nowhere better to mark 60 years since the happy occasion - and only the 15th time they've actually been able to celebrate on the 29th itself - than the place where their married life together began.

The day was made extra special when today's Cardross minister, the Rev Margaret McArthur, agreed at short notice to give James and Margaret a very special blessing in the church.

Margaret and James Crawford on their trip back to the Helensburgh area (Image: Margaret and James Crawford)

The Advertiser caught up with the couple at the Rosslea Hall Hotel in Rhu as their big day drew to a close.

Margaret said: “I’ve got so many memories of Cardross Parish Church as I grew up there.

“The whole trip has been very sentimental.”

Margaret and James on their wedding day (Image: Margaret and James Crawford)

James said: “We wanted to reflect on our actual anniversary - which doesn’t happen too often!

“We felt it was important to come here on our 60th.”

Though Margaret grew up in Cardross, James hailed from the south side of Glasgow.

The pair met at Glasgow’s Kelvin Hall in 1963 and have been together ever since.

Margaret and James with their families (Image: Margaret and James Crawford)

Memories of their first meeting are still vivid for the couple - not least because of James's generous offer to walk Margaret the 16 miles to her home afterwards, with the pair eventually trekking all the way to Scotstoun.

Margaret was aged just 18, and James only 22, when they tied the knot after more than a few dates in Helensburgh.

Their wedding picture was published the following week on the front page of the long-established Helensburgh and Gareloch Times newspaper.

Margaret and James' appearance in the Helensburgh and Gareloch Times (Image: Margaret and James Crawford)

They had their reception in the Kingsclere Hotel, now the Commodore, and spent a week in Aberdeen for their honeymoon.

After their marriage the couple moved to Barrhead, living in the East Renfrewshire town for nine years before moving the short distance to nearby Clarkston.

The family expanded with two daughters and a son, while Margaret and James both kept busy at work - Margaret as a dressmaker, then in alterations, before moving into hairdressing, and finally becoming a care worker.

The couple were delighted to return to Cardross Parish Church (Image: Margaret and James Crawford)

James began his working life in sales, working for major Scottish companies such as Morton’s Rolls, before spending 30 years working as a hackney cab driver in and around Glasgow.

Now retired, and after 47 years in Clarkston, the couple are enjoying the quiet life, having lived in Doonfoot, on the southern edge of Ayr, for the last seven years.

Rather than spending just a day revisiting the Helensburgh area, the couple opted to turn their trip into a short break, and they plan on visiting Cardross Parish Church once more at the weekend for the regular Sunday service - and another chance to remember their special day 60 years ago.