Pulteneytown Central Church

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Pulteneytown Central Church was a Christian church in the Pulteneytown area of Wick, Caithness, Scotland. It held church services from 1806 until 1990. After the Disruption of 1843 it was renamed Pulteneytown Free Church. In 1900 it became a United Free Church, and from 1929 it was part of the Church of Scotland, known as Wick Central Church. It closed in 1990 when it united with Pulteneytown and Thrumster Parish Church. Wick Central Church joined Wick West Church in 1950.

In 1862 a steeple and a tower with a loud bell were added. The interior had dark brown woodwork, a balcony and five stained glass windows (three donated in the 19th century; two added when the building was completed). The manse was at 30 Thurso Road, where the last minister, Rev. Hamish Cormack, lived until the church closed.

In the 1980s the congregation declined and the church closed in 1990. The Wick Baptist Church, seeking new premises, bought the site in 1997 and moved in by 1998 after a major refurbishment. Pews were replaced with chairs, the flooring was carpeted, the sanctuary was reduced in size, the balcony became storage and rooms for Sunday school, and a new kitchen, bathrooms, an office and a side room were added. The old Central Church at 5 Dempster Street is now Wick Baptist Church’s permanent meeting place. Documents from the old church are kept in the archive at Wick Airport.