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

36, 38 and 40 Newhaven Road, excluding the single-storey section to rear, EdinburghLB27831

Status: Designated

Documents

There are no additional online documents for this record.

Summary

Category
C
Date Added
28/02/1975
Last Date Amended
12/01/2016
Local Authority
Edinburgh
Planning Authority
Edinburgh
Burgh
Edinburgh
NGR
NT 26059 75895
Coordinates
326059, 675895

Description

36-40 Newhaven Road is a 3-storey, 14-bay former tannery, built in 1879 and which has been converted to office use. In accordance with Section 1 (4A) of the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) (Scotland) Act 1997 the following is excluded from the listing: single-storey section to rear.

The building is of squared and snecked rubble with smooth, raised margins and pebbledash render to the sides. There is a cill course and the ground and 1st floor windows have raised scalloped margins. The 2nd floor windows are set in rectangular panels, divided by ashlar jambs and have decorative Moorish-style iron grilles. The windows are predominantly plate glass timber sash and case. The entrance is off-centre with a modern entrance door and pall stones at either side.

The interior was seen in 2015. The interior has been comprehensively altered for the purpose of office accommodation and there are no apparent 19th century features of interest.

Statement of Special Interest

36-40 Newhaven Road is a good survival of a rare tannery building and is the remaining section of a once extensive complex of tannery buildings on this site called Bonnington Tannery. The decorative iron grilles to the top storey are perhaps a unique decorative response to the more common timber louvres seen on the upper storeys of other former tanneries. The building has been altered to provide modern office accommodation, but the ventilated upper storey is a visual reminder that this was a tannery building. Situated in an area of Edinburgh which once had a great deal of heavy industry, the former tannery building is a good representative of 19th century industrial expansion in Edinburgh and an important link to the district's past.

Tanning animal hides to produce leather is an old industry and there are surviving tanning pits from around the 14th century in Scotland. As the population expanded over the centuries and industrial processes developed, buildings dedicated to tanning were established in all areas of the country. During the course of the 19th century, tanning became a more prominent industry and many new tanneries were built. The tannery at Bonnington dates to this expansion. With the change in tanning processes and the introduction of alternative materials during the 20th century, most tanneries went out of business and many former tannery buildings were demolished. Bonnington tannery closed around 1970.

The process of tanning involved soaking hides in tanning pits for between 9-12 months. After being treated by curriers, the hides were dried, normally in the upper floors of the buildings. This process required ventilation and there were usually timber louvred windows on this level for this purpose; a distinctive feature which set tannery buildings apart from other industrial structures. The long frontage of this building was necessary to accommodate the drying of hides on a large scale. At Bonnington, there were timber louvred windows at the rear of the building and decorative iron ones at the street elevation.

Statutory address and listed building record revised in 2015. Previously listed as '36 Newhaven Road'.

References

Bibliography

Canmore: http://www.rcahms.gov.uk/canmore.html CANMORE ID 51983

Ordnance Survey (1895), Edinburgh, Sheet 111.4.1. Large Scale Town Plan. Southampton: Ordnance Survey.

Hume, J. R. (1976). The Industrial Archaeology of Scotland. 1. The Lowlands and Borders. London: B T Batsford p184.

Gifford, J. et al. (1988) The Buildings of Scotland: Edinburgh. London: Penguin Books. p.647.

Stell, G. et al. (eds), (2003) Scottish Life and Society, Scotland's Buildings. Vol 3. East Linton: Tuckwell Press. p.540-1.

SCRAN. www.scran.ac.uk (accessed 16/09/2015).

Information from Britain from Above at http://www.britainfromabove.org.uk/image/spw027356?quicktabs_image=0#comment-647365 (accessed 04/11/2015).

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: 29/03/2024 04:43