Description

W Duigid and Son (Ballater) builders. Albert Memorial Hall, 1875, Gordon Institute and Victoria Hall, 1895. Predominantly 2-storey asymmetrical U-plan multi-gabled hall group with 3-stage crenellated tower at E re-entrant angle. Pink coursed granite with grey granite dressings. Courtyard directly opposite Ballater station (see separate listing). Grey granite base course, band courses and eaves course. Consoled stone balconies above entrance doors. Some later minor additions.

FURTHER DESCRIPTION: angled corner entrance to Albert Hall to left, pinnacled and advanced to 1st and attic storey with commemorative plaque (see Notes). Gordon Institute with central advanced full height gabled entrance bay. Victoria Hall to right with gable to N with 4-panel timber door set within gables and ball-finialled entrance porch.

Predominantly timber 6-pane bipartite sash and case windows. Late 20th century oculus stained glass gable window to E. Grey graded slates. Decorative ridge tiles, conical and triangular ventilation openings. Gable finials. Ashlar coped skews, some gabled skewputts.

INTERIOR: some original features retained in Albert and Victoria halls, including pine panelling at dado height and 4-panel timber doors. Other areas comprehensively modernised. Open timber ceiling with trefoil motif springs from stone corbels.

Statement of Interest

These Halls are important Victorian civic buildings for the town, built at the height of Ballater's growing prosperity and they form a distinctive U-plan group. They are well-detailed with a distinctive corner tower and retain their original glazing pattern. They show a good decorative use of granite, the main local building material. They are situated directly opposite Ballater Station of 1866 (see separate listing), where Queen Victoria would alight on her frequent visits to Balmoral in order to continue her journey by coach. The placing of these buildings here emphasised their civic importance and aided the move of the focal centre of the village towards the Station Square and hence contribute to the streetscape of the town. The Halls were gifted to Ballater by Alexander Gordon, a local man who made his fortune in the brewing industry. They were originally for public entertainment and education and continue to be used in this way with the Gordon Institute housing the local library. The other halls serve as a centre for various community groups. The commemorative plaque is inscribed "This hall is erected to the memory of the Prince Consort Born 26th August 1817 Died 14th December 1861."

External Links

• Historic Environment Scotland Listing
• Victoria and Albert Halls, Station Square, Ballater at Wikipedia
• Wikidata Q56626413

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

Recommended Books

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  Old House Handbook: A Practical Guide to Care and Repair by Hunt. Roger ( 2008 ) Hardcover
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  Listed Buildings: The Law and Practice of History Buildings, Ancient Monuments and Conservation Areas
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  Cumbria: Cumberland, Westmorland and Furness (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
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  Huddersfield in 50 Buildings
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  Gloucestershire 2: The Vale and The Forest of Dean: Vale and Forest of Dean Pt. 2 (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)