Kirkcudbright Town Hall | |
---|---|
Location | St Mary's Street, Kirkcudbright |
Coordinates | 54°50′10″N4°03′00″W / 54.8360°N 4.0500°W |
Built | 1881 |
Architect | Peddie and Kinnear |
Architectural style(s) | Neoclassical style |
Listed Building – Category B | |
Official name | St Mary's Street, Town Hall |
Designated | 28 May 1981 |
Reference no. | LB36604 |
Kirkcudbright Town Hall, currently operating as Kirkcudbright Galleries, is a municipal building in St Mary's Street, Kirkcudbright, Scotland. The building, which was the headquarters of Kirkcudbright Burgh Council, is a Category B listed building. [1]
The first municipal building in the town was the Kirkcudbright Tolbooth which was completed in 1629. [2] Like other tolbooths, Kirkcudbright Tolbooth had been primarily designed as a prison and, in 1859, the town clerk, William McLellan, and other burgh leaders started a campaign for new public rooms: [3] the site they selected was open land on the east side of St Mary's Street. [4] The new public rooms were erected in 1863 at a cost of £1,900 but within a few years the foundations were found to be unsafe and it became necessary to replace the building with a new structure. [3]
The foundation stone for the new building was laid by the Lord Lieutenant of Kirkcudbright, the Earl of Selkirk, on 7 August 1878. [3] It was designed by Peddie and Kinnear in the neoclassical style, built in red sandstone and was completed in 1881. [5] The design involved a symmetrical main frontage with three bays facing onto St Mary's Street; the central bay featured a doorway on the ground floor flanked by pilasters and brackets supporting a balustraded stone balcony. There was a Venetian window on the first floor; the outer bays were fenestrated by square headed windows on the ground floor and by round headed windows on the first floor. The windows on the first floor were flanked by pairs of Doric order pilasters and, at roof level, there was an entablature inscribed with the words "Library", "Town Hall" and "Museum" and, above that, a modillioned cornice. [1] Internally, the principal rooms were the council chamber, the reading room and the library on the ground floor, and the main assembly hall on the first floor. [3]
The Stewartry Museum was established on the first floor of the town hall when it opened, but after the town hall became inadequate for the increasing size of the collection, the museum relocated to its current location further south along St Mary's Street in 1893. [6] [7] The Kirkcudbright Library and Scientific Institute, later simply known as Kirkcudbright Library, which was also established on the first floor of the town hall when it opened, remained there until the 1950s [8] and then relocated to the Sherriff Court. [9]
The building continued to serve as the headquarters of the burgh council for much of the 20th century, [10] but ceased to be the local seat of government when the enlarged Stewartry District Council was formed at the council offices in the High Street in 1975. [11] [12] An extensive programme of works costing £3.1 million to convert the town hall into an art gallery under the name "Kirkcudbright Galleries" was completed in June 2018. [13] While some rooms were identified for temporary exhibitions, the management also designated a room for a permanent display of works by local artists, known as the "Kirkcudbright Artists' Collection". [13] The new gallery was officially opened by the Princess Royal on 12 July 2018. [14]
Dumfries and Galloway is one of the 32 unitary council areas of Scotland, located in the western part of the Southern Uplands. It is bordered by East Ayrshire, South Ayrshire, and South Lanarkshire to the north; Scottish Borders to the north-east; the English ceremonial county of Cumbria, the Solway Firth, and the Irish Sea to the south, and the North Channel to the west. The administrative centre and largest settlement is the town of Dumfries. The second largest town is Stranraer, located 76 miles (122 km) to the west of Dumfries on the North Channel coast.
Kirkcudbright is a town, parish and a Royal Burgh from 1455 in Kirkcudbrightshire, of which it is traditionally the county town, within Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland.
Castle Douglas is a town in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. It lies in the lieutenancy area of Kirkcudbrightshire, in the eastern part of Galloway, between the towns of Dalbeattie and Gatehouse of Fleet. It is in the ecclesiastical parish of Kelton.
Kirkcudbrightshire, or the County of Kirkcudbright or the Stewartry of Kirkcudbright is one of the historic counties of Scotland, covering an area in the south-west of the country. Until 1975, Kirkcudbrightshire was an administrative county used for local government. Since 1975, the area has formed part of Dumfries and Galloway for local government purposes. Kirkcudbrightshire continues to be used as a registration county for land registration. A lower-tier district called Stewartry covered the majority of the historic county from 1975 to 1996. The area of Stewartry district is still used as a lieutenancy area. Dumfries and Galloway Council also has a Stewartry area committee.
Wigtownshire or the County of Wigtown is one of the historic counties of Scotland, covering an area in the south-west of the country. Until 1975, Wigtownshire was an administrative county used for local government. Since 1975 the area has formed part of Dumfries and Galloway for local government purposes. Wigtownshire continues to be used as a territory for land registration, being a registration county. The historic county is all within the slightly larger Wigtown Area, which is one of the lieutenancy areas of Scotland and was used in local government as the Wigtown District from 1975 to 1996.
The Stewartry Museum is a local museum in Kirkcudbright, Scotland, which covers the history of this part of Galloway.
The Old Town Hall is a municipal building in Queen Charlotte Street, Leith, Scotland. The old town hall, which was the meeting place of Leith Burgh Council, is now used as a police station. It is a Category A listed building.
Kirkcudbright Tolbooth is a historic municipal building in Kirkcudbright in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. Built between 1627 and 1629 to serve the town as a centre of commercial administration, a meeting place for the council, and a prison, it was used for all these roles until the late eighteenth century when the council moved much of its business to new, larger premises they had constructed across the street; the tolbooth remained in use as a prison until the early nineteenth century, after which it remained in council ownership and was put to a variety of uses.
The Municipal Buildings are based on the north side of Buccleuch Street, Dumfries, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. The structure, which was the headquarters of Dumfries Burgh Council, is a Category C listed building.
Wigtown County Buildings, also known as Wigtown County Buildings and Town Hall, is a municipal building in The Square, Wigtown, Scotland. The structure primarily served as the meeting place and town hall for Wigtown Burgh Council, but was also used for some meetings of Wigtownshire County Council. It is a Category B listed building.
The Old Town Hall is a municipal structure in George Street, Stranraer, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. The structure, which is used as a local history museum, is a Category A listed building.
The Midsteeple is a municipal building in the High Street in Dumfries, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. The structure, which is used as a ticket office and a meeting place, is a Category A listed building.
The New Galloway Town Hall is a municipal building in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, situated on the town's high street. A tolbooth has existed on the site of the current building since at least 1711; in 1875, it was rebuilt and enlarged. In 1971 it was designated a Category B listed building.
Lochmaben Town Hall is a municipal building in the High Street in Lochmaben, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. The structure, which accommodates a library and a local customer services point, is a Category A listed building.
Lockerbie Town Hall is a municipal building in the High Street in Lockerbie, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. The structure, which is used as a venue for the provision of local services, is a Category A listed building.
Gatehouse of Fleet Town Hall is a former municipal building in the High Street in Gatehouse of Fleet, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. The structure, which is now in private residential ownership, provides access to a fine ornamental garden behind the town hall.
Sanquhar Tolbooth is a municipal building in the High Street in Sanquhar, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. The structure, which accommodates a local history museum, is a Category A listed building.
Dalbeattie Town Hall is a municipal building in the High Street in Dalbeattie, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. The structure, which is used as community events venue, is a Category B listed building.
Inverkeithing Town House is a municipal building in the Townhall Street, Inverkeithing, Fife, Scotland. The structure, which is used as a base by members of the local community council, is a Category A listed building.
County Buildings is a municipal building in Kirkcudbright, in the Dumfries and Galloway council area in Scotland. It was originally two houses on High Street, which then served as the main offices of Kirkcudbrightshire County Council from 1925 to 1975. A large extension to the rear was added in 1952, accessed from Daar Road. From 1975 until 1996 the building served as the offices of Stewartry District Council. Since 1996, it has been an area office of Dumfries and Galloway Council. It is a Category B listed building. Prior to the 1952 extension the name "County Buildings" was used for a different building, at 85 High Street, which was also the town's sheriff court.