A lively Arts and Crafts library fronts Lothian Street with half-timbered gables, a corbelled corner tower and red sandstone detail, forming one half of a paired civic composition.
Quick facts
- Date
- 1909, with later additions
- Architect / designer
- Greig, Fairburn and McNiven
- Type
- Arts and Crafts former public library
- Designation
- Listed building, Category B (LB44134)
- OS grid reference
- NT 30959 65235
Architecture and continuing use
Harled walls are articulated by red sandstone bands, mullioned windows and deep eaves. The eastern corner tower changes from polygonal to circular as it rises and carries a parapet with decorative bosses. A four-centred doorway labelled Public Library and half-timbered gables make the original function and style immediately legible.
Its story
Greig, Fairburn and McNiven designed the building around 1909, and Andrew Carnegie is recorded as funding its first books. It later formed part of the Orchard Centre. Council planning evidence now describes the centre as former premises and records a proposed residential conversion, so an operating civic service is not inferred.
Why it is included
The building represents early-twentieth-century investment in public learning and, together with the former council offices opposite, creates Bonnyrigg’s strongest civic set piece.
What to notice
- The corner tower changing shape above the ground floor.
- Public Library lettering over the entrance.
- Half-timbered gables breaking the deep eaves.
Reading the surroundings
Do not assume public access from the historic inscription or Orchard Centre name. View from pavements and respect construction, security or residential-conversion boundaries.
Timeline
- 1909 The Arts and Crafts library opened as part of a new civic pair.
- 7 March 1997 Its architectural interest was protected by Category B listing.
- 2025 Council land-audit evidence recorded the former centre within a housing-conversion proposal.
What we know — and what remains uncertain
Sources differ slightly between 1908 and 1909. Planning evidence supports a proposed conversion but does not by itself prove completed occupation.
Sources & further reading
- Historic Environment Scotland: Former Bonnyrigg Public Library, LB44134 — Current designation status, official mapped location, date, fabric and significance.
- Midlothian Council: Housing Land Audit 2025 — Current planning evidence identifying the former Orchard Centre and a proposed residential conversion.
- Trove search: Former Bonnyrigg Public Library — National collection search for site records, surveys, photographs and archive material.
Location
OS grid reference NT 30959 65235 · 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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