David Crow’s symmetrical U-plan poorhouse survives externally with a separate courtyard cottage, despite later fire damage and office conversion.
Quick facts
- Date
- 1861
- Architect / designer
- David Crow
- Type
- Former rural poorhouse with courtyard cottage and boundary wall
- Designation
- Listed building, Category C (LB52027)
- OS grid reference
- NR 86899 88435
Architecture and continuing use
The two-storey thirteen-bay front uses random rubble, smooth margins and projecting gables to soften an institutional plan. Long wings form a U around a separate single-storey cottage, probably associated with the former infirmary function.
Its story
The complex opened in 1861 after the 1845 Poor Law introduced supervised provision and model planning principles across Scotland. Fire damaged the property in the 1920s. Later office conversion altered interiors while retaining much of the exterior form.
Why it is included
It brings social-welfare architecture into the collection and demonstrates how symmetry, gables and a courtyard organised a rural institution.
What to notice
- The advanced central entrance and flanking gables.
- Contrasting smooth margins against random rubble.
- The separate cottage enclosed by the long wings.
Reading the surroundings
Treat the complex as working or private premises unless current signs say otherwise. Observe from lawful roads or paths and do not enter the courtyard, cottage or offices without permission.
Timeline
- 1845 The Scottish Poor Law created a new national framework for poorhouse provision.
- 1861 David Crow completed the Lochgilphead complex.
- 1920s A fire damaged the property.
- 17 April 2013 The surviving complex was listed at Category C.
What we know — and what remains uncertain
HES recorded office use in 2012 and the historic title names Health Board headquarters. No sufficiently current official source was found to assign exact 2026 occupants, so the use is stated cautiously.
Sources & further reading
- Historic Environment Scotland: Aros Building and Cottage, LB52027 — Current designation status, official mapped location, date, fabric and significance.
- Argyll and Bute Council: register of land and assets — Current public-asset context checked while researching the complex; it does not establish a specific present occupier.
- Argyll and Bute Council: Lochgilphead Conservation Area Appraisal — Official context for the town’s institutional development and setting.
- Trove search: Lochgilphead poorhouse Aros Building — National collection search for site records, surveys and archive material.
Location
OS grid reference NR 86899 88435 · Location confidence: High for the current national designation point; public text separately states access, component-identity and current-use uncertainty. · Select the marker to open its satellite view in Google Maps. On desktop, drag Pegman (the yellow figure) onto a blue road. On mobile, turn on the Street View layer and tap a blue road. Other photo markers may be user-contributed.
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