trade from the harbour. The lack of revenue from Dysart's harbour forced the town to merge with Kirkcaldy under a private act of parliament in 1930. Dysart Golf Club (now defunct) was founded in 1897. The club and course closed at the time of WW2. Today, Dysart is considered to be a north-eastern suburb of Kirkcaldy and the village forms one of 48 conservation areas in Fife. Important landmarks in the village include the Dutch influenced houses on Pan Ha'; the six-storey St Serf's Church Tower; Dysart Tolbooth and the Francis Collery gearhead which is situated on the northern boundaries. An £11 million pound scheme has been started by The Townscape Heritage Initiative (THI) and Conservation Area Grants Scheme (CARS) to regenerate Dysart over a period of five years, due to be completed in 2014. This will include repairing historic buildings and structures such as Dysart Tolbooth and Dysart Harbour as well as providing new housing and meeting environmental needs. Church The pre-Reformation church in Dysart was dedicated to St Serf and was close to St Serf's Cave where he supposedly lived as a hermit. It was under command of the Collegiate Church of St Mary in St Andrews. A replacement church was built in 1802. A second Free Church was built in 1874 designed by Campbell Douglas. Parish ministers: Robert Danielston (1560–1565); Andrew Forester (1565–1574); George Scott (1574–1582); John Young (1582–1584); Thomas Wood (1584); William Murray (1584–1616); William Nairn (1616–1630); James Wilson (1643–1661); John Robertson (1661–62); John Anderson of Balram (1663–1707); David Pitcairn (1708–1757); Patrick Muirhead DD (1757–1807); his son George Muirhead (1807–1816); Peter Brotherston (1816–1828); David Murray (1828–1850); William Muir (1850–1864); James Simpson (1865–1901) blind; John Waugh Gibson, second charge (1865–1906); Hugh Menzies (1907–?). Governance The Sinclair or St Clair family have held the position of feudal superiors or barons of the burgh of the estate of Dysart since 1407. They were responsible for gaining Burgh of barony status towards the end of the 15th century. Royal burgh status in the town has long been disputed. A main reason for this being the area was a commercial background. A missing charter was only confirmed in a charter granted by James VI in 1587. However the title was indeed granted to Dysart in 1594 with the honour of having a seat in the parliament. A dispute between the St Clair family and the town inhabitants about the right to