Description

Circa 1830, incorporating earlier fabric; alterations by Dick Peddie and Kinnear dated 1875; turreted entrance wing dated 2000 by Crera and Partners - see Notes. 2-storey and attic, irregular plan, picturesque Victorian house comprising 2-bay section to centre, advanced gabled wing with pointed-arch attic windows and lean-to greenhouse to S and Scots-Baronial entrance wing to N. Painted harl with polished sandstone ashlar dressings. Raised margins. Overhanging eaves with scalloped timber bargeboarding throughout.

FURTHER DESCRIPTION: PRINCIPAL (E) ELEVATION: central 2-storey, 2-bay block with canted tripartite window to right and stone tablet above dated 1875; windows at 1st floor breaking eaves with finialled dormerheads. To left, 3-storey gabled wing with wide canted window surmounted by cast-iron balcony; tripartite window at 1st floor; tripartite pointed-arch windows above, all with diamond lattice glazing; spike finial to gable apex. Single-storey outshot with balustraded parapet to right. Turreted wing to far right in Scots-Baronial manner with conical cap entrance stairtower and corbelled-out corner turret at NE angle, both with ball and spike finials. S ELEVATION: large, timber lean-to conservatory; gabled porch outshot to left. Rear (W) elevation comprising 4 gabled ends in stepped arrangement.

Range of converted outbuildings including detached stable block to rear of house (converted to self-contained flat - 2003) and boathouse with later timber parapet fronting lochside.

INTERIOR: arched stone fireplace to drawing room with early timber panelling throughout; fine plaster cornice added circa 2000. Elsewhere, variety of marble and carved hardwood fireplaces. Unusual leaded glass cupola to main stair with decorative coloured glass roundels.

Predominantly timber glazed sash and case windows. Grey slate. Variety of ridge stacks, some with tall octagonal clay cans.

GATEPIERS: square, chamfered piers with keyhole carving and swept pyramidal caps.

Statement of Interest

Castleton House is a large, well-detailed mid 19th century dwelling that has been been extended in stages. The 2-storey and attic gabled wing addition by renowned architects, Dick Peddie and Kinnear is particularly fine with its large canted bay with pointed-arch windows and diamond glazing pattern adding interest. The distinguished Scots-Baronial wing (2000) by Crerar and Partners of Oban utilises elements drawn from earlier parts of the house. A number of interior details within the main body of the house were added during construction of this wing. Castleton is set within mature woodland grounds overlooking Loch Fyne.

The origins of the building are probably early 18th century, possibly being the home of one of the Duke of Argyll's tacksmen. The walls of the room at ground floor centre are extremely thick indicating that the house was built around the remains of an earlier structure.

A carved panel, dated 1898, is set into the N elevation above the balustraded parapet. It was moved to this position (circa 2000) from its former location above the entrance of a single-storey pedimented wing to the North with bipartite windows linked by a broad droved ashlar mullion. Buildings of Scotland suggest that this wing may have been the work of renowned Scottish Art-and-Crafts Architect Sir Robert Lorimer. Lorimer was then at work on Stronachullin Lodge (also owned by the Campbell family) on the W shore of Loch Fyne. The wing is now subsumed within the 2-storey Scots-Baronial addition of 2000. Grand open-pediment timber doorpieces were also added throughout the central hall and N wing at this time. The kitchen to rear has been extended into a gabled single-storey former boiler room with some original openings retained.

Part of an estate formerly owned by the Graham-Campbell family, the house was previously known as 'Shirvan'. John Graham-Campbell of Shirvan extended the earliest part of the house which incorporates the stone tablet initialled J.G.C and dated 1875. Copper ore was mined from the Shirvan estate between 1862 (by the Castleton and Silvercraig Mining Company) and 1910 (by the Shirvan Mining Company).

External Links

• Historic Environment Scotland Listing
• Wikidata Q77780777

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

• 
  Cork: City and County (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of Ireland)
• 
  Pevsner's Architectural Glossary (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Introductions)
• 
  Herefordshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Nottinghamshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Berkshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Northumberland (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)