Basic Site Details | Name: | National Bank of Scotland, Dumfries Branch | | Town, district or village: | Dumfries | | City or county: | Dumfriesshire | | Country: | Scotland | | Parish: | | | Status: | | | Grid ref: | | | Notes: | This bank building replaced earlier premises on the same site.
National Bank, Dumfries.—A new handsome building for the Dumfries branch of the National Bank, erected on the site of the premises formerly occupied by the bank, near the foot of Bank Street, has reached such a stage of completion that for the last few weeks the business of the branch has been transacted within its walls, though a good deal of work still remains to be done in the interior. The building has been constructed from designs and plans furnished by Mr. Alexander Fraser, architect. Dumfries, and will cost, when finished, about £2,500. The stone of which the edifice is built is the red sandstone of the district. The frontage of the building towards Bank Street is 40 feet in length, but at the back the length is 70 feet, the building extending upwards for about thirty feet at the back of the Custom House. The height of the building in front is 45 feet. The exterior of the edifice is in the Italian style, and the carved enrichments on the front have been executed by Mr. William Flint, stone-carver, Dumfries, who has been occupied on the work for four or five months. The vermiculated work on the first storey is a novelty in our street architecture, but the effect is good, and in keeping with the rest of the designs. The entrance doorway is arched, with pilasters on each side, forming a door piece, and the top moulding of which, as also the architrave and spandrels formed by the arch, are furnished with carved foliage, mostly designed by Mr. Flint, and in which the rose, the thistle, and shamrock are conspicuous. The second storey embraces four windows, baring pilasters at each side and surmounted with some beautifully-executed ornamentation in stone work. In the panels over these four windows the carver has introduced the designs which give a character to the whole of the front of the building. The panel over the window above the entrance door is appropriated to the figure of St Michael, the patron saint of Dumfries, and the corresponding panel over the outer window at the other end of the building to that of St Andrew, the patron saint of Scotland - the inscription on each being the 'National Bank of Scotland.' The two centre panels are filled in with shields, quartered, with stars and fleur de lis upon them, and bearing the date of the erection, 1862. The spandrels formed by each of these panels are filled in with carved foliage — the leaves of the hop and the marsh mallow; the currant and the vine; the maple and the ivy; the rose and the shamrock, etc. The carving of the foliage on the various parts of these windows, and also on the other portions of the elevation, is not executed in the conventional form common to the Italian style of architecture, but in close imitation of nature. The building is finished with a dentilled cornice surmounted by an open balustrade. The mason work was contracted for and executed by Messrs Crackston and Son, and the joiner work by Messrs Grierson and Son. The other contractors wire Messrs Adair, slater; Drummond, plumber; Fraser, plasterer; and Aitken, glazier. [Building News 4 July 1862 pp15-16]
| Building Type Classification| The building is classified under the following categories: | | | Classification | Original classification? | Notes |  | Bank | | |
Street Addresses| The following street addresses are associated with this building: | | | Address | Main entrance? | Notes | | Bank Street | Yes | |
Events| The following date-based events are associated with this building: | | | From | To | Event type | Notes | | 1861 | 1862 | Construction | | | 21 March 1861 | | | Plans approved | | 9 May 1861 | | | Estimates totalling £2066 accepted | | 13 November 1862 | | | new premises completed | | 20 May 1895 | | | Plans for alterations to be prepared, £550 |
PeopleDesign and Construction| The following individuals or organisations have carried out design/construction work. Where architects or practices worked together, matching letters appear beside their names in the Partnership Group column. | | | Name | Role | Partnership Group | From | To | Notes | | Alexander Fraser | | | 1861 | 1862 | Original building | | Alexander Lorimer | | A | 1895 | | Alterations and repairs - probably involved, as chief assistant to T P Marwick | | Thomas Purves Marwick | | A | 1895 | | Alterations and repairs, £550. |
Clients| The following individuals or organisations have commissioned work on this building/design: | | | Name | Notes | | National Bank of Scotland | |
ReferencesBibliographic References| The following books contain references to this building: | | | Author(s) | Date | Title | Part | Publisher | Notes | | Architects Engineers and Building Trades Directory | 1868 | Architect's, Engineer's and Building Trades' Directory | | London, Wyman | | | Gifford, John | 1996 | Dumfries and Galloway (The Buildings of Scotland) | | | p275 |
Periodical References| The following periodicals contain references to this building: | | | Periodical Name | Date | Edition | Publisher | Notes | | Building News | 4 July 1862 | | | pp15-16 |
Archive References| The following archives hold material relating to this building: | | | Source | Archive name | Source catalogue no. | Notes | | Historic Environment Scotland | Listed Buildings Register | 26088 | | | RIBA Archive, Victoria & Albert Museum | RIBA Nomination Papers | | Alexander Lorimer: L v19 no1425 (various branches of National Bank of Scotland around Scotland) | | Royal Bank of Scotland Group Archives | National Bank Board Minutes | | 21 March 1861, 9 May 1861, 13 November 1862, 20 May 1895, 31 July 1895 |
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