Listed Building

The only legal part of the listing under the Planning (Listing Buildings and Conservation Areas) (Scotland) Act 1997 is the address/name of site. Addresses and building names may have changed since the date of listing – see 'About Listed Buildings' below for more information. The further details below the 'Address/Name of Site' are provided for information purposes only.

Address/Name of Site

ALLOWAY, BURNS COTTAGE INCLUDING BOUNDARY WALLLB21476

Status: Designated

Documents

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Summary

Category
A
Date Added
05/02/1971
Supplementary Information Updated
08/04/2021
Local Authority
South Ayrshire
Planning Authority
South Ayrshire
Burgh
Ayr
NGR
NS 33474 18591
Coordinates
233474, 618591

Description

1757, extended 1808 and with later alterations. Single storey, seven-bay, near rectangular-plan (slightly curved) cottage. Clay-bonded walls, harled and whitewashed. Thatched roof.

Southeast (entrance) elevation: square-headed timber entrances to second, fifth and sixth bays; square-headed window openings to remaining bays with timber shutters, with exception of narrow opening to outer right.

Northwest (rear) elevation: five-bay. Timber door to penultimate bay to left; flanking single arrowslit openings; single window to penultimate bay to right; small square opening to outer right.

Southwest (side) elevation: recessed timber entrance door to outer right of gabled elevation.

Northeast (side) elevation: narrow central slit opening to gabled elevation. Timber sash and case windows; timber shutters to Alloway.

Reed thatched roof with deep coping and wooden ridge. Gablehead and ridge coped chimney stacks.

Interior: reconstruction of original uses. Barn to north, used for threshing and storage. Adjacent byre, used as living space for animals, cattle, pony and sometimes sheep and goats; also used by hens and cats which had free-run of cottage. Adjacent North Room - some doubt concerning the use of this room - probably small byre, converted to combined store/milkhouse with additional sleeping space after William Burnes extended cottage. Kitchen stands to south; parts of boxbed and perhaps dresser shelves and doors, original. Stone floors and fireplaces.

Boundary Wall: stone walling to northwest of cottage.

Statement of Special Interest

The birthplace of Robert Burns (1759-1796), Ayrshire's foremost poet and satirist. The south section of the cottage, the kitchen and a small byre were built by William Burnes before his marriage, and the present byre and barn after this occasion. Subsequently an alehouse, the building remained so until 1880 when it was acquired and restored by the Burns Monument Trustees. Copies of prints held at the National Monuments Record of Scotland show the cottage prior to its 1808 extension.

It is among a relatively small number of traditional buildings with a surviving thatched roof found across Scotland. A Survey of Thatched Buildings in Scotland, published in 2016 by the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings (SPAB), found there were only around 200 buildings of this type remaining, most of which are found in small rural communities. Thatched buildings are often traditionally built, showing distinctive local and regional building methods and materials. Those that survive are important in helping us understand these traditional skills and an earlier way of life.

Description updated in 2017. Listed building record revised in 2021 as part of the Thatched Buildings Listing Review.

References

Bibliography

Maps

Thomson, J. (1828) Atlas Of Scotland: Ayrshire.

Printed Sources

Close, R. (1992) Ayrshire and Arran: An Illustrated Architectural Guide, p.155

Groome, F.H. (1892) Ordnance Gazetteer of Scotland, Vol 1, p.44.

Hume, J.R. (1988) Vernacular Building in Ayrshire: An Introduction. p.6

New Statistical Account Of Scotland (1845) p.29.

The Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings Scotland (2016) A Survey of Thatched Buildings in Scotland. London: SPAB. pp.417-420.

Strawhorn, J and Andrew, K. (1988) Discovering Ayrshire, p.108

Third Statistical Account of Scotland (1951) Ayrshire, p.534

Online Sources

Historic Environment Scotland (2018) Scotland's Thatched Buildings: Introductory Designations Report at https://www.historicenvironment.scot/archives-and-research/publications/publication/?publicationId=8b3d1317-5a56-4416-905b-a8e800bf4c3c

About Listed Buildings

Historic Environment Scotland is responsible for designating sites and places at the national level. These designations are Scheduled monuments, Listed buildings, Inventory of gardens and designed landscapes and Inventory of historic battlefields.

We make recommendations to the Scottish Government about historic marine protected areas, and the Scottish Ministers decide whether to designate.

Listing is the process that identifies, designates and provides statutory protection for buildings of special architectural or historic interest as set out in the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) (Scotland) Act 1997.

We list buildings which are found to be of special architectural or historic interest using the selection guidance published in Designation Policy and Selection Guidance (2019)

Listed building records provide an indication of the special architectural or historic interest of the listed building which has been identified by its statutory address. The description and additional information provided are supplementary and have no legal weight.

These records are not definitive historical accounts or a complete description of the building(s). If part of a building is not described it does not mean it is not listed. The format of the listed building record has changed over time. Earlier records may be brief and some information will not have been recorded.

The legal part of the listing is the address/name of site which is known as the statutory address. Other than the name or address of a listed building, further details are provided for information purposes only. Historic Environment Scotland does not accept any liability for any loss or damage suffered as a consequence of inaccuracies in the information provided. Addresses and building names may have changed since the date of listing. Even if a number or name is missing from a listing address it will still be listed. Listing covers both the exterior and the interior and any object or structure fixed to the building. Listing also applies to buildings or structures not physically attached but which are part of the curtilage (or land) of the listed building as long as they were erected before 1 July 1948.

While Historic Environment Scotland is responsible for designating listed buildings, the planning authority is responsible for determining what is covered by the listing, including what is listed through curtilage. However, for listed buildings designated or for listings amended from 1 October 2015, legal exclusions to the listing may apply.

If part of a building is not listed, it will say that it is excluded in the statutory address and in the statement of special interest in the listed building record. The statement will use the word 'excluding' and quote the relevant section of the 1997 Act. Some earlier listed building records may use the word 'excluding', but if the Act is not quoted, the record has not been revised to reflect subsequent legislation.

Listed building consent is required for changes to a listed building which affect its character as a building of special architectural or historic interest. The relevant planning authority is the point of contact for applications for listed building consent.

Find out more about listing and our other designations at www.historicenvironment.scot/advice-and-support. You can contact us on 0131 668 8914 or at designations@hes.scot.

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Printed: 28/03/2024 20:06