Stonehaven Sheriff Court
Judicial building in Stonehaven, Scotland From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Stonehaven Sheriff Court, formerly known as County Buildings, is a judicial structure in Dunnottar Avenue, Stonehaven, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. The structure, which was used as the headquarters of Kincardineshire County Council as well as a courthouse, is a Category B listed building.[1]
| Stonehaven Sheriff Court | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Stonehaven Sheriff Court | |
| Location | Dunnottar Avenue, Stonehaven |
| Coordinates | 56.9614°N 2.2086°W |
| Built | 1865 |
| Architect | James Campbell Walker |
| Architectural style(s) | Neoclassical style |
Listed Building – Category B | |
| Official name | Stonehaven Sheriff Court House and Police Station, including boundary walls, Dunnottar Avenue, Bogwell Lane, Stonehaven |
| Designated | 18 August 1972 |
| Reference no. | LB41617 |
  Shown in Aberdeenshire | |
After sheriff court hearings were transferred from Kincardine to Stonehaven in 1660,[2] judicial proceedings were initially held in the Stonehaven Tolbooth which had been erected on the old pier in the late 16th century.[3] However, in the early 1760s, the Commissioners of Supply decided to commission a dedicated courthouse for the county of Kincardineshire: the site they selected was in Dunnottar Avenue in the "Auld Toon" part of Stonehaven. The new building was completed in 1767 and expanded in 1788.[4]
The courthouse was rebuilt, incorporating elements of the earlier structure including three prison cells, to a design by James Campbell Walker in the neoclassical style and it re-opened in 1865.[1][5] The design involved a symmetrical main frontage of eleven bays facing Dunnottar Avenue, with the end two bays on either side slighted projected forward. The central bay, which also slightly projected forward, featured a portico which was formed by a round headed opening with colonnettes and a carved keystone, flanked by pilasters supporting a balustrade. The ground floor, which was rusticated, was fenestrated by round headed windows, while the first floor was fenestrated by square headed sash windows. At roof level, there was a balustraded parapet. Internally, the principal room was the main courtroom on the first floor.[1]
Following the implementation of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1889, which established county councils in every county, the new county leaders needed to identify a meeting place for Kincardineshire County Council[6] and decided to use the courthouse for that purpose.[7] Additional offices in Evan Street were acquired in around 1920.[8][9]
In 1930, the county council absorbed the functions of the abolished county education authority, which had been based at offices in a converted house called Viewmount on Arduthie Road in Stonehaven. Viewmount burnt down in January 1932, and the county council took the opportunity to reconstruct and extend it to become a new headquarters, including a council chamber. The rebuilt Viewmount opened as the county council's meeting place and main offices in May 1935.[10][11]
The sheriff court then reverted to being purely a judicial building. It was used for hearings of the sheriff's court and, on one day a month, for hearings of the justice of the peace court until the court hearings were transferred to Aberdeen in 2015.[12][13] Ownership of the building was transferred to the Stonehaven Town Partnership for a nominal sum in May 2018.[14][15] The Stonehaven Town Partnership subsequently initiated refurbishment works to the building costing £150,000.[16]
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