Description

Lessels & Taylor, 1900; 4 bays added to northeast by Robert R Hogg, 1910. Plain 3-storey 10-bay L-plan Italian palazzo type office with castellated octagonal tower at corner and printing rooms behind. Squared, snecked sandstone with ashlar margins and long and short dressings. Windows stop-chamfered; moulded cill course at 1st floor, plain cills at 2nd floor.

Northwest (Slateford Road) Elevation: 10-bay with reused basement, cornice and coped parapet, later extension with pair of canted wooden attic dormers. Entrance in 5th bay to left of tower framed by segmental-arch with panelled keystone, cornice and 3 escutcheons above, flanked by pair of stop-fluted corinthian pilasters; escutcheons in frieze with 'WADDIE & CO LTD ST STEPHENS WORKS ESTABD. 1860' carved between (inserted 1950 or after); grand cornice at level of 1st floor cills; internal steps through 2-leaf iron gates lead to pair of 6-light glazed and panelled doors with fanlight above. Stugged ashlar base course on bull-faced plinth containing small openings with decorative iron grilles. At ground corbelled moulded cill course and mullions and transoms in windows (single window to right of door with transom only). 1st and 2nd floor windows bipartite apart from single windows to outer right bay and to tower.

Tower: swept corner at ground, detailing continuing as above; 2 windows to each floor. Integral octagonal tower rises from 1st floor cill course; cornice and parapet continued. Crowned by octagonal ashlar towerhead with cornice, castellations and windows to all 4 outward faces.

Southwest (Hermand Street) Elevation: on rising ground, 17 bipartite and single bays with modern (1968) extension beyond. From left, 1st 2 bays from tower detailed as above; remaining bays without basement, 1st floor cill course plainer and cornice and parapet ommitted. Garage door in 1st and 2nd bays. Simple base course. Door in 3rd bay with louvred ventilator to left above; further garage door in 6th bay. 13th and 14th bays with window only at ground; 14th with stack projecting from ground.

Stalk: Substantial free-standing glazed red engineering brick stalk, upper section with string course, blind panels and dentilled cornice; now serving as an incinerator.

Timber sash and case windows, some with later casements. Corniced stacks with cans. Cast-iron downpipes with guttering behind parapet.

Interior (seen 1993): offices along Slateford Road elevation, with fine panelled and grained collidor behind. Light fittings, door furniture, decorative glass, all largely intact. Oak panelled Boardroom with Renaissance fireplace; opposite Director's Toilet with etched glass door and chrome fittings, completely lined with Vitrolite. Structure of bakery to rear still evident, as are ovens. Cellar.

Statement of Interest

Originally built as a biscuit factory for Simon Henderson and Sons, and acquired by Waddie's as Head Office and Printing Works in 1950. St Stephen's Works refers to their previous premises in St Stephen's Street, Stockbridge. Described in The Buildings of Scotland: Edinburgh as 'politely eclectic'.

In 2002 the building was converted to residential apartments.

Statutory address and listed building record revised in 2016. Previously listed as '97 Slateford Road and 11 to 15 Hermand Street, St Stephen's Works Waddie & Co Ltd'.

External Links

• Historic Environment Scotland Listing
• Wikidata Q56631025

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.

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