Description

James Aitken, dated 1874; 1898 alterations by D Forbes Smith. 2-storey and attic, 5-bay above ground, rectangular-plan, crowstepped restaurant and public house with 1st floor closed, in irregular terrace with Dysart Tolbooth to SW. Painted, stugged ashlar to ground, squared and snecked rubble with painted margins to 1st floor. Base course, ground floor cornice. Round-arched arcade at ground, stone mullions and stop-chamfered arrises.

NW (PRINCIPAL) ELEVATION: centre bay with bracketed cornice over deep-set 2-leaf panelled timber door and radial-astragalled fanlight, 3 windows to right and 2 to left with further similar door to outer left. Slightly advanced crowstepped gablet over main entrance with panelled apron to bipartite window and Burgh Arms on dated panel in thistle-finialled gablehead; 2 windows in flanking bays.

SE (REAR) ELEVATION: asymmetrical fenestration with mansard roof.

Lying-pane glazing pattern in timber sash and case windows to ground, 1st floor windows blocked. Graded grey slates. Coped ashlar stacks and ashlar-coped skews with moulded skewputts; square-section gutters with decorative brackets and cast-iron downpipes with decorative fixings.

INTERIOR: ground floor modern; 1st floor not seen 1997.

Statement of Interest

Formerly 'The Mechanics Institute' with an earlier listing mentioning "excellent lettering", unfortunately no longer evident. The Forbes Smith drawings show the 1st floor alterations with 'Reading, Billiard and Committee Rooms' and further 'Billiard Room' in the attic. The Rev Dr Macdonald Lockhart Walker, minister of the Parish Church who died in 1905, was instrumental in establishing 'The Mechanics Institute and Library'.

External Links

• Historic Environment Scotland Listing
• Wikidata Q17806813

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

Recommended Books

• 
  [(Bedfordshire, Huntingdon and Peterborough)] [By (author) Nikolaus Pevsner] published on (January, 1968)
• 
  Somerset: North and Bristol: The Buildings of England (Pevsner Architectural Guides) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Listed Buildings: The Law and Practice of History Buildings, Ancient Monuments and Conservation Areas
• 
  Listed Buildings and Other Heritage Assets
• 
  Nottinghamshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Period property manual, victorian house manual 2 books collection set by ian rock