Description

Possibly J & RS Ingram, circa 1875. 3-storey, Beaux-Arts gushet office building with octagonal tower roof. Coursed polished ashlar. Rusticated ground floor, pilasters and columns flanking principal windows. Architraved window and door surrounds. Corniced parapet surmounting eaves.

S (PRINCIPAL) ELEVATION: 3-storey, 4-bay, adjoining canted corner elevation to left. To 4th bay: pilastered surround flanking architraved arched door, bearded mask keystone with carved floriate spandrels, ornate scrolled brackets flanking supporting segmental pediment, window to flanks; giant outer pilasters to full height of building; tripartite window above door to 1st and 2nd floor, scroll bracketed baloconette dividing windows. To bays 1-3, rectangular windows with rusticated pilasters flanking; projecting cornice incorporating upper floor column plinths and rectangular architraved lintels to 1st floor; scroll bracketed balconette dividing windows to 1st and 2nd floor. Full length corniced parapet resting on capitals surmounting.

NW ELEVATION: plainer elevation with 2 regularly placed bays to each floor.

E ELEVATION: canted 4-sided end: arched windows to bays 1, 2 & 4 of ground floor, former architraved doorway, now window to 3rd bay: pilastered surround flanking architraved arched door, bearded mask keystone with carved floreate spandrels, ornate scrolled brackets flanking supporting segmental pediment. 4 regularly placed bays to 1st and 2nd floor, alternate pilaster and column flanking windows; to 1st floor, scrolls supporting rectangular corniced pediments forming sills of upper storey windows; corniced parapet resting on capitals. Octagonal platformed roof with projecting copper cornice surmounting.

2-pane timber sash and case windows, some upper sashes with horns; to ground floor of S elevation 4-pane timber windows, fixed plate glass pane to lower light, 3 horizontally placed panes to upper fixed light; 2-pane arched windows to ground floor end bays. Timber panelled door to entrance, arched multi-paned fanlight surmounting. Piended grey slate roof, partially concealed by parapet; octagonal piended and platformed roof to arched end bay, projecting copper cornice surmounting. Metal ridging, flashings and valleys. Cast-iron rainwater goods, gutter concealed behind parapet, draining into downpipe shared with Expo, the building adjacent. Coursed dressed ashlar stack to E gable, projecting ashlar neck copes and 5 tall octagonal cans; pair of similar smaller wallhead stacks with single can to N.

INTERIOR: now converted to offices: some cornicing, timber skirting boards and panelled door, timber dividers still existing.

Statement of Interest

This building is a former public house. Originally, there was an entrance on the more prominent corner elevation where the segmental pediment is sited. The ornate front elevations faced the major streets and also it is one of the first building travellers see when alighting the train at the Railway Station. The main elevation originally had vase style decoration surmounting the engaged columns and pilasters. No.13 West George Street became home to the local architectural practice of James Hay (formerly of 60 Bank Street) after World War I. By 1929, James Hay & Partners were noted as working from the building and by 1933, Hay & Steel were the named architects. 1951 saw Hay & Steel still in practise at No.13, but Gabriel Steel was also listed as working independently from No.15 West George Street. By 1976, the firm was still in existence at No. 13 - under the name Hay, Steel, Macfarlane & Partners. Nowadays, the firm has moved to Ayr.

External Links

• Historic Environment Scotland Listing
• Wikidata Q17792059

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

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  Old House Eco Handbook: A Practical Guide to Retrofitting for Energy-Efficiency & Sustainability
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  Harrow on the Hill: A photographic portrayal of listed buildings and structures (Historic Buildings Picture Guides)
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  The green guide for historic buildings: how to improve the environmental performance of listed and historic buildings
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