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

ULLAPOOL, 1, 2 CUSTOM HOUSE STREET, DRILL HALL AND HOUSELB49788

Status: Designated

Documents

There are no additional online documents for this record.

Summary

Category
C
Date Added
24/02/2004
Supplementary Information Updated
27/05/2016
Local Authority
Highland
Planning Authority
Highland
Parish
Lochbroom
NGR
NH 12874 94294
Coordinates
212874, 894294

Description

Drill hall and adjoining 2-storey villa-like house built circa 1887 for the Seaforth Highlanders, on the site of the Custom House.South facing Custom House Street elevations, stone-built; snecked to front, rubble or rendered elsewhere, ashlar detailing; arched openings; plate glass timber sash and case windows to hall, modern uPVC replacements to house. 3-bay south front to hall, central double door with flanking windows and central timber louvred opening above door; segmental-arched corrugated iron roof.

Door with 2 windows to long elevation on Ladysmith Street with north lean-to. Timber tongue and groove to some interior walls and to arched roof with thin metal tie beams. Attached 3-bay house of similar arrangement with central door (uPVC with timber effect finish) and flanking windows. Curvilinear gable to left bay; timber-corbelled oriel breaking eaves to right bay, both with finials. Pitched and piended slate roof, stone skews, prominent stacks. Rear single storey lean-to extension.

Statement of Special Interest

It is probable that Sir James Matheson (1796-1879), Lord Lieutenant of Ross-shire and MP for Ross and Cromarty and who was involved in the British Fisheries Society and purchased the village of Ullapool [J Gifford, Highlands and Islands p464 (1992)] was responsible for the Territorial Army here and had the drill hall built. The Customs House which stood on this site was demolished sometime after 1813 when the Customs staff were withdrawn from Ullapool.

In the late 1850s there was concern in the British Government about the Army's ability to defend both the home nation as well as the Empire. Britain's military defences were stretched and resources to defend Britain needed to be found. One solution was to create 'Volunteer Forces', a reserve of men who volunteered for part-time military training similar to that of the regular army and who could therefore help to defend Britain if the need arose.

In 1859 the Rifle Volunteer Corps was formed and the Volunteer Act of 1863 provided more regulation on how the volunteer forces were run and it set out the standards for drills and a requirement for annual inspections. Most purpose-built drill halls constructed at this time were paid for by a major local landowner, the subscriptions of volunteers, local fundraising efforts or a combination of all three. The Regulations of the Forces Act 1871 (known as the Cardwell Reforms after the Secretary of State for War, Edward Cardwell) gave forces the legal right to acquire land to build a drill hall and more purpose-built drill halls began to be constructed after this date. The largest period of drill hall construction, aided by government grants, took place between 1880 and 1910. The Territorial and Reserve Forces Act 1907 (known as the Haldane Reforms after the Secretary of State for War, Richard Haldane) came into force in 1908 and the various Volunteer Units were consolidated to form the Territorial Force. The construction of drill halls largely ceased during the First World War and in 1920 the Territorial Force became the Territorial Army.

In the 20th century changes in warfare and weaponry made many of the earlier drill halls redundant and subject to demolition or change to a new use. Around 344 drill halls are believed to have been built in Scotland of which 182 are thought to survive today, although few remain in their original use. Drill halls are an important part of our social and military history. They tell us much about the development of warfare and the history of defending our country. They also, unusually for a nationwide building programme, were not standardised and were often designed by local architects in a variety of styles and they also have a part to play in the history of our communities.

Statement of special interest and references (non-statutory information) revised in 2016 as part of the Drill Halls Listing Review 2015-16.

References

Bibliography

Canmore: http://canmore.org.uk/ CANMORE ID 110253.

Maps

Ordnance Survey (surveyed 1902, published 1904) Ross-shire 014.13 (includes: Lochbroom). 25 inches to the mile. 2nd Edition. Southampton: Ordnance Survey.

Printed Sources

Gifford, J. (1992) The Buildings of Scotland: Highlands and Islands. Penguin Group: London

Historic Environment Scotland (2013) Scotland's Drill Halls Preliminary Report. Unpublished.

Osbourne, M. (2006) Always Ready: Drill Halls of Britain's Volunteer Force. Partizan Press. p.292.

Other sources

Information courtesy of Lyndall Leet, Thurso, Ullapool Museum and Territorial Army Centre, Inverness (2004).

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 08:36