Eastbank, Loughborough Road, Kirkcaldy, Kirkcaldy, Fife

Description

Circa 1870, altered by William Williamson, 1903. 2-storey and attic, Scots Baronial villa with tower. Snecked bull-faced ashlar with polished dressings. Part base-course, moulded string course and stepped hoodmoulds to W, S and E; eaves cornice, mutuled over N stair window. 2-stage angle buttresses: segmental-headed openings; corbels; stone transoms and mullions; stop-chamfered arrises. All windows breaking eaves with monogrammed pediments (see Notes) and stone finials.

W (PRINCIPAL) ELEVATION: tower (see below) to centre bay. Bipartite windows to right of centre at ground and 1st floor with further segmental-headed window in crowstepped gable above. Bay to left with bipartite window at ground and window above breaking eaves into thistle finialled pediment with monogrammed tympanum. Conical-roofed, corbelled tower to outer left with window to NW.

W TOWER: slightly advanced tower bay to centre with projecting single storey, buttressed and crenellated porch with corbelled, domed angle bartizans and large segmental-headed windows (unglazed) to W and N, and doorway to S. Window to right at 1st floor with blind tablet below string course to left, further segmental-headed window above with flanking corbel courses incorporating windowhead; machicolations above giving way to stepped parapet and polygonal turret to SE with narrow window to S.

S (GARDEN) ELEVATION: 4-bay. Transomed and mullioned part-glazed double door in bay to right of centre at ground, tripartite window to right and canted quadripartite window in slightly advanced bay to outer left. 1st floor with window in bay to left of centre and bipartite window to each remaining bay. Attic level with dormer windows breaking eaves to right and left of centre; bay to outer left with segmental-headed window in gablehead with corbelled and finialled outer angles; slightly lower crowstepped gable to right with monogrammed tablet to centre and corbelled angle turret to right with window to SE and further corbel to square pyramid-roofed caphouse with small windows to S, E and N.

E ELEVATION: bay to outer left with bipartite window at ground and further window breaking eaves above; lower projecting wing to right with 2 bipartite windows at ground below timber dormer windows, canted bay in re-entrant angle to left with window to ground, blind tablet to left and further window breaking eaves above, with narrow window to left and fire escape door (converted from window?) to right.

N ELEVATION: 6-bay. Flat-roofed bay to right of centre with window to right at ground and 9-part transomed and mullioned stained glass stair window above; broad gabled bay to outer right with corbelled turret (see above) to outer angle and projecting single storey battered bay (inglenook?) with 2 small stained glass windows at ground, further small window to left above. Symmetrical fenestration to gabled bay to left of centre and flanking smaller gables (that to left finialled); lower advanced gabled bay to outer left with small porch in re-entrant angle to right and timber dormer window above.

4-pane and plate glass glazing patterns in timber sash and case windows. Grey slates. Coped ashlar stacks and ashlar-coped skews. Cast-iron downpipes with decorative rainwater hoppers.

INTERIOR: decorative plasterwork ceilings and cornices; panelled soffits. Boarded timber, ribbed vaulting to porch roof; vestibule with encaustic floor tiles and screen door with leaded, coloured glass flanking lights; fine original panelled hall with stone fireplace and carved and panelled, canted overmantel with flanking seats, balustrades and columns; panelled ceiling. Ground floor principal S room (drawing room) with fluted composite columns and room to NW (parlour) with coloured glass windows (see Notes) flanking former fireplace in inglenook. Dog-leg staircase with timber balusters and handrail. Stair landing with fine, 9-pane, coloured glass stair window with lozenge and square leaded lights forming trompe l-oeil picture. Pilastered and arched opening (blocked) to 1st floor landing with polygonal, decorative-astragalled rooflight in deeply-coved and panelled ceiling. Room to SE (bedroom) with low door to turret (access blocked); W tower leading to attic (billiard room) with pictures of ocean-going ships evident beneath broken plaster. Fire damage to the building in 2017 is likely to have destroyed or partially destroyed these upper level interiror features (2021).

STABLE AND WASHHOUSE: U-plan stable block with washhouse to W. Slated, squared and snecked rubble with ashlar skews, coped ashlar stacks, stone mullions and stop-chamfered arrises boarded timber doors and some timber sash and case windows remaining, all blocked.

N (LOUGHBOROUGH ROAD) ELEVATION: 5-bay. Gabled bay to right of centre with raised centre tripartite window below small opening in gablehead, further gabled bay to outer right (linked by boundary wall) with wide opening below bipartite window. 2 bays to left with door to right and window to left at ground (both blocked) and 2 pedimented hayloft openings breaking eaves; gabled bay to outer left with blocked door to right and window in gablehead.

S ELEVATION: advanced gabled bays with rounded angles corbelled to square above ground, windows to ground and in gableheads, and on returns facing cobbled courtyard: centre bay with broad opening at centre flanked by small lights and deep-set timber doors with fanlights in recessed porches; pedimented bipartite window to centre above breaking eaves. Isolated gabled bay of washhouse to outer left with door to left and window to right at ground with bipartite window in gablehead.

E ELEVATION: 3 windows with boundary wall adjoining to left.

W ELEVATION: blank.

BOUNDARY WALLS, GATEPIERS, STEPS AND TERRACES: coped, rock-faced ashlar boundary walls with semi-circular-coped quadrant walls, pedestrian and carriage openings with square-section ashlar gatepiers with rock-faced plinths, moulded stop-chamfered arrises, battered pyramidal coping and ball finials. Terraces to S with 2 flights of stone steps and flanking dwarf walls.

Statement of Interest

Eastbank House was built around 1870 for linen merchant and local magistrate, John Speedie (1822–1883) on land feued from the Earl of Rosslyn who owned nearby Dysart House at that time. The villa was bought by iron merchant and property speculator John Harley in 1885 and leased to John Scott, engineer and shipbuilder of Whitebank Engineering Works, Dunnikier Road and Abden Shipbuilding Yard, Kinghorn.

Henry William Hutchison, of East Bridge Flour Mills, purchased Eastbank in 1902 and employed William Williamson to carry out significant alterations including the canted corner at the east elevation, the hall, stair window and northwest parlour. Fife County Council purchased the building in 1929 for use as an education facility. Eastbank has been out of use since the relocation of Viewforth High School in 2011 and was damaged by fire in 2017.

A variety of initials occur on the monogrammed pediments including 'ESM' (to the west), 'PR, ES' (to the south) 'JS, JSK' (to the east). While the fire in 2017 largely destroyed the interior at the upper floors, the building retains some intricate interior plaster and timber work, and fine stained-glass windows, by Oscar Paterson of Glasgow, at the ground floor and main staircase landing (information submitted 2021). The small windows in the northwest parlour have country scenes and wording "Flowers are lovely, love is flower-like and friendship is a sheltering tree" and "The morning hour has gold in its hand".

William Williamson's 1903 drawing shows an elegant veranda to centre south, and the detached washhouse to the west of the stable block is detailed with an external stair up to laundry.

Eastbank House, including its detached former stable range and washhouse fronting the street, and gates and gatepiers, largely retains its historic suburban setting on Loughborough Street. The house is characteristic of the higher quality suburban villas that were typically constructed for wealthy local merchants and industrialists in towns and city suburbs throughout Scotland during the later 19^th century. Villas of this size and status illustrate the way important industrial Scottish towns like Kirkcaldy expanded during the 19^th century.

Listed building record revised in 2021.

External Links

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