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Summary

Description

Thomas Brown Junior, 1846-8. Former county jail and police station in Neo-Tudor style. Rubble with polished red sandstone angles and margins. T-plan 2-storey and attic; offices to front, prison to rear.

Front Elevation: (projecting jamb of T) has tall thin advanced outer bays flanking gabled centre, originally with symmetrical windows, one now enlarged at 1st floor. Single bipartite to ground; 2 single lights and wide bipartite to 1st; small attic light. All windows hoodmoulded, sash and case with plate glass glazing. At outer bays and to gable apex tall octagonal ashlar stacks.

To rear: 5-bay, 2-storey block with cells to ground lit by small rectangular windows placed hugh up. 5 single light 1st floor windows, sash and case with mixed 2 and link walls to sides with sandstone dressings. Pedestrian gate to left, vehicular opening to right. 12-pane glazing. End skews, tall octagonal ashlar stacks. Rubble walls support decorative cast-iron railings; rusticated granite gatepiers.

Statement of Special Interest

A fine provincial prison building by Thomas Brown, architect to the Prison Board of Scotland. The building incorporated a police station, cell block (they layout of which is shown on the OS Town Plan) and house for the policeman. The array of individual octagonal stone stacks is particularly impressive and gives the building considerable presence.

Thomas Brown (died circa 1872) was the son of Thomas Brown Senior, City Superintendent of Works in Edinburgh. He trained under his father and is believed to have spent time working for William Burn, whose work was probably the inspiration for the choice of Tudor gothic here, and especially the array of chimneys. In 1837 Brown was appointed architect to the Prison Board of Scotland and designed a large number of jails across the country, including Elgin, Stonehaven, Peebles, and sections of Calton Prison. He was very prolific and designed a large number buildings across Scotland, ranging from town halls and country houses to churches and farms.

References

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