The intended memorial
Family commemoration became explicit in John Stuart McCaig’s testamentary plans. His will proposed statues of himself, his parents and his siblings, connected with a wider monumental programme.
Those statues were not part of the completed outer ring and were never realised.
The court challenges
McCaig’s surviving sister Catherine challenged the will. The testamentary scheme was set aside in 1907. Academic research also records that a later proposal in Catherine’s own will to fund family statues was rejected by the Court of Session.
Legal descriptions of these arrangements helped attach the language of “folly” to the project. They should not be used to erase the earlier public and employment purposes documented for the tower.
An unintended legacy
The absence of the statues changed the monument’s meaning. Instead of a completed family pantheon, Oban inherited an open ring, garden and viewpoint.
The McCaig family remains essential to the story, but the landmark’s later public life extends beyond the memorial programme. Read the family and folly guide for a fuller account.
Sources and references
- Johnny Rodger, ‘McCaig’s Tower and a Scottish Monumental Tradition’Peer-reviewed academic article
- Historic Environment Scotland: Battery Hill, McCaig Monument (LB38814)Official designation record
- Trove / National Record of the Historic Environment: Oban, McCaig’s TowerNational heritage record