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Summary

Description

1874 with later alterations. 2-storey and basement, square-plan, gabled, gothic former church with advanced central asymmetrical gabled entrance and offset tower to principal (E) elevation. Corner-sited with N elevation to Teviot River and main elevation joined to parapet wall of Albert Bridge. Coursed bull-faced sandstone with polished ashlar dressings. Moulded string course; dentilled eaves course. Shallow corner buttresses. Irregular fenestration of predominantly pointed arch windows with tabbed and chamfered margins and hoodmoulds; small rose windows to gable apexes. Pointed-arched hoodmoulded entrance doorway with two-light tracery window and paired round-arched louvred belfry openings to tower. 6-bay gabled elevation to N rising from riverbed with segmental-arched windows at basement and tall pointed-arched windows above. Later alterations to window layouts to form upper flat. Arched walkway leading to river under steps of entrance porch with door to lower halls. Later doorway to right of entrance leading to upper flat.

Fixed glazing to principal windows; timber sash and case windows elsewhere. Slate roof; fishtail slates to tower. Stone skews with beaked skewputts. Gable stacks with octagonal clay cans. Squared cast-iron rainwater goods with decorative brackets.

INTERIOR: Halls to basement with stone flag floors, timber panelling to shoulder height and plain chimneypieces. 4-panel timber doors with chamfered detailing. Cast-iron columns. Large stone pointed arch over entrance steps to upper floor. Suspended ceiling to gallery level.

Statement of Special Interest

Prominently corner-sited former church (now converted to café, shop and flat) with gabled elevations occupying a prominent position on the road into the town centre and making a good contribution to the streetscape.

The building was formerly the Orrock Place United Presbyterian Church. In 1763 members of the Parish Church who were dissatisfied with the ministers' patronage and kirk administration broke away from the established order to found the first secession church in the town. They had a church in Myrelawsgreen in the West End of the town until this building was constructed for them as a replacement in 1874. In 1951 the church reunited with St Mary's Parish and the Orrock church was converted into halls.

The building has been in commercial use since 1990 with a shop to the main floor, café at basement and flat at upper floor. List description revised following resurvey (2008).

References

Bibliography

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