Kirkwall Sheriff Court

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Kirkwall Sheriff Court
The Court House, Kirkwall - geograph.org.uk - 953071.jpg
Kirkwall Sheriff Court
LocationWatergate, Kirkwall
Coordinates 58°58′49″N2°57′34″W / 58.9804°N 2.9595°W / 58.9804; -2.9595
Built1877
Architect David Bryce
Architectural style(s) Scottish baronial style
Listed Building – Category C(S)
Official nameKirkwall Sheriff Court and Justice of the Peace Court and former Prison/Police Station, including boundary walls, gatepiers and railings, and excluding flat-roofed garage addition to south, Watergate, Kirkwall
Designated15 March 1999
Reference no.LB46010
Orkney Islands UK location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Shown in Orkney

Kirkwall Sheriff Court is a judicial structure in Watergate, Kirkwall, Orkney, Scotland. The structure, which was the headquarters of Orkney County Council and is currently used as a courthouse, is a Category C listed building. [1]

Contents

History

The first judicial building in Kirkwall was the old town hall in the grounds of the St Magnus Cathedral which was erected with a grant from James Douglas, 14th Earl of Morton in 1745. The building accommodated the county offices and courtroom as well as the burgh council offices. [2] However, by the early 1870s, the building was very dilapidated, and it was decided to establish a dedicated courthouse. [3] The site the sheriff selected was in the grounds of the Earl's Palace. [1]

The foundation stone for the new building was laid on 22 June 1876. It was designed by David Bryce in the Scottish baronial style, built in coursed sandstone at a cost of £3,900 and was officially opened on 27 August 1877. [4] [5] David Bryce died in 1876 and execution of the design was overseen by his nephew, John, who worked with him in later life. [6]

The design involved an asymmetrical main frontage of four bays facing north towards Palace Road. The second bay on the left, which was slightly projected forward, featured a doorway with a moulded surround and a panel above; there was sash window on the first floor with a corbeled and crow stepped gable above. The outer bays were fenestrated with sash windows; the left hand bay was surmounted by a stepped gable while the first floor windows in the right hand bays were surmounted by gablets. The east and west gables contained tablets depicting the arms of Bishop Robert Reid and Bishop Edward Stewart. [7] Internally, the principal room was the courtroom which featured the royal arms of Scotland carved in wood and mounted on a navy blue oblong panel. [8]

Following the implementation of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1889, which established county councils in every county, the new county leaders needed to identify offices for Orkney County Council. [9] The new county council established its offices in the building which became known as "County Buildings". [10] [11] After the abolition of Orkney County Council in 1975, the building was used solely for judicial purposes. [lower-alpha 1] The building continues to serve as the venue for sheriff court hearings in the area, [13] although, due to staffing issues with the escort services, hearings involving juries were moved to the mainland in July 2023. [14] [15]

Notes

  1. ↑ The new Orkney Islands Council established offices in the old Kirkwall Grammar School in School Lane in 1980. [12]

See also

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References

  1. 1 2 Historic Environment Scotland. "Kirkwall Sheriff Court and Justice of the Peace Court and former Prison/Police Station, including boundary walls, gatepiers and railings, and excluding flat-roofed garage addition to south, Watergate, Kirkwall (LB46010)" . Retrieved 11 December 2022.
  2. ↑ Groome, Francis H. (1885). "The Ordnance Gazetteer of Scotland: A Survey of Scottish Topography, Statistical, Biographical and Historical". Thomas C. Jack.
  3. ↑ "Timeline history of Kirkwall". Visitor UK. Retrieved 11 December 2022.
  4. ↑ "Sheriff Court Buildings and police station". Dictionary of Scottish Architects. Retrieved 11 December 2022.
  5. ↑ "Sheriff Court Open Day". The Orkney News. 30 September 2017. Retrieved 11 December 2022.
  6. ↑ "Bryce, David" (PDF). The Royal Society of Edinburgh. Archived from the original (PDF) on 19 September 2015.
  7. ↑ Gifford, John (2003). Highland and Islands (Buildings of Scotland Series). Yale University Press. p. 224. ISBN   978-0300096255.
  8. ↑ Robson, Peter; Rodger, Johnny (2017). The Spaces of Justice The Architecture of the Scottish Court. Fairleigh Dickinson University Press. p. 97. ISBN   978-1683930891.
  9. ↑ Shennan, Hay (1892). Boundaries of Counties and Parishes in Scotland: as settled by the Boundary Commissioners under the Local Government (Scotland) Act, 1889. Edinburgh: William Green & Sons – via Internet Archive.
  10. ↑ "County Buildings, Kirkwall, Orkney, Scotland". JB Archive. Retrieved 11 December 2022.
  11. ↑ Historic Environment Scotland. "Kirkwall, Watergate, County Buildings And Police Headquarters (180903)". Canmore . Retrieved 11 December 2022.
  12. ↑ Historic Environment Scotland. "Former Grammar School, School Place, Kirkwall (LB36809)" . Retrieved 11 December 2022.
  13. ↑ "Kirkwall Sheriff Court". Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service. Retrieved 3 October 2024.
  14. ↑ "Island sheriff court trials moved to mainland". The Herald. 19 July 2023. Retrieved 1 October 2024.
  15. ↑ "Court centralisation: Removal of island jury trials "undermines justice"". West Highland Free Press. 24 August 2023. Retrieved 3 October 2024.
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