The castle was built in 1566, with additions made in various centuries thereafter. Originally the estate was owned by the Galbraith family, then passed (by marriage) to the Hamiltons of Cadzow, and later passed to the Buchanan family. It is now in private ownership after being sold for around £1 million in 2004, after being fully modernised in the 1990s.[citation needed] In his Rambles Round Glasgow, Hugh Macdonald wrote that Bardowie Castle was "an edifice of moderate size, somewhat timeworn, yet withal wearing an appearance of quiet cosiness and comfort".