This historic landmark opened in 1896. The money for its construction and the first phase of the Burns Memorial Cottage Homes was raised by the Glasgow - Mauchline Society.

Its designer William Fraser (left) was born in Lochgilphead on 24 October 1867. (Notably it would appear he was given no middle name, although his siblings were.) He was the second of eight children (six boys and 2 girls). (There would have been 10 except one brother died at 6 days and another brother was stillborn). Their parents were William Fraser (also no middle name, apparently), who was minister of the Free Church of Scotland in Lochgilphead, and Violet Ferguson. The boys eventually received a university education and became professionals: a lawyer who practised with the British East India Company in Bengal, India; a minister who became a missionary in Africa and a published author; an accountant who moved to the United States; an engineer who led the building of the Khyber Pass railway in India; and, my grandfather, William, the architect. Each one has a very interesting story and the BBC or ITV could make a mini-series out of it!

William Fraser attended Glasgow University and articled in architecture with a firm of architects in Glasgow. He then attended London University where he received a degree of "Associate of the Royal Institute of British Architects" in 1891. He then joined a firm of Glasgow architects and later opened his own practice in the same city. He married his wife Maud Marion Timpson in 1898 at Sandbank, Dunoon and that is where they initially settled. He designed the Dunoon Pavilion (which is still standing) and the Burns Memorial and Cottage Homes in Mauchline. In 1907, he was lured to Canada by a firm of architects in Toronto. He moved there with his two children, Sandy (Alexander) and Lula (Maud Marion). Frederick William (Fred) was born in Toronto in 1910. In Toronto William designed homes, schools and office buildings. On December 7th, 1917 a World War One munitions ship exploded in Halifax (Nova Scotia) harbour and flattened the city. William was one of several architects selected by the Canadian government to supervise the rebuilding of the city. He spent two years in Halifax but returned in 1921 having become ill with cancer. He died on 14 June 1922. On his death, his wife received a letter from the Argyllshire Association of Toronto. Among other things, they said: "He was proud of the Land of his birth, proud of Argyllshire, and his ancestry. He was a true son of the Manse. Mr. Fraser was a Christian gentleman of generous instincts, noble impulses, whose friendship once bestowed was not quickly withdrawn. His wife, Maud, passed away in 1965 at age 93.

The tower was refurbished and opened to the public once again in August 1990. On the ground floor is the Tourist Information Centre. Here information for all parts of Scotland is available. On the first floor you can view a video presentation about Burns and the Mauchline connection, while on the second floor there is a display of the area's industries, past and present.

To see magnificent views of the surrounding countryside - Galloway Hills, Arran, Ben Lomand, etc. - you can climb the full 92 steps and use the telescopes on top of the tower.
In October 1991 the tower received a certificate of Commendation from the Scottish Association of Visitors Attractions.