Description

Early 19th century. 2-storey with attic and basement, 3-bay hotel with flanking wings and 2-stage tower with steeple, on ground falling steeply to S. Painted stucco. Tudor hoodmoulds; stone mullions and chamfered reveals to tower.

N (PRINCIPAL) ELEVATION: small gabled porch with steps up to deep-set modern door, windows in flanking bays and regular fenestration to 1st floor, small piended dormers over outer bays with small modern rooflight to centre. Lower advanced wing abutting at outer right angle, and further projecting wing to left with window to each floor of right return.

NE TOWER: tall 1st stage with 2-leaf panelled timber door and blocked fanlight at ground N, blocked window above to N and traceried opening to W, blind roundel in rectangular panel close to apex also to N and W. Surmounting slated roof giving way to squat 2nd stage with painted 'TOWER HOTEL' to each face and billeted cornice below finialled steeple.

S (REAR/GARDEN) ELEVATION: raised basement with stone forestair leading to centre bay with door at ground floor and stair window above; bay to left with canted tripartite to basement and ground floor with single window above; further door to outer right at basement with window to each floor above and additional small window between centre and right bays at 1st floor; flat-roofed tripartite dormer windows over outer bays. Set-back lower bay, with small ground floor window below 1st floor window breaking eaves into pedimented dormerhead, adjoining at outer right and extending into screen wall.

Lying 8-pane, 12-pane and plate glass glazing patterns in timber sash and case windows, casement windows to dormers at N and coloured margins to stair window. Grey slates. Coped ashlar stacks with some cans; ashlar-coped skews; cast-iron downpipes with decorative rainwater hopper to N.

INTERIOR: decorative plasterwork cornices and moulded roundel; stone staircase with plain ironwork balusters and timber handrail. Decorative cast-iron balusters to tower staircase.

BOUNDARY WALLS: coped rubble boundary walls.

Statement of Interest

Formerly known as 'College Buildings' and converted to the Tower Hotel during the mid twentieth century, the hotel was originally part of the adjoining building at Nos 89 and 91 (listed separately). Miss Gordon-Cumming, latterly of Ochtertyre, rented a room here whilst working on the above-mentioned publication, she was also author of a work entitled The Inventor of the Numeral-Type for China, which she called her "yellow book". As part of St Margaret's Episcopal College, founded by Rev Mr Lendrum, the hotel was occupied by "The Lendrum family, the resident governesses, and a family of boarders from Calcutta" (p374). From 1850 until circa 1880 the buildings housed the rector and boarders from Morrison's Academy.

External Links

• Historic Environment Scotland Listing
• Wikidata Q17836586

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

• 
  Historic Environment Law: Planning, Listed Buildings, Monuments, Conservation Areas and Objects, Supplement 2014
• 
  Old House Eco Handbook: A Practical Guide to Retrofitting for Energy-Efficiency & Sustainability
• 
  Setting up a Listed Building Heritage Partnership Agreement: Historic England Advice Note 5
• 
  Hertfordshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Listed Buildings and Other Heritage Assets
• 
  Bedfordshire, Huntingdonshire, and Peterborough (Pevsner Architectural Guides) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)