ABERDEEN POST OFFICE (1907)
Crown Street
 
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Architects: Walter Robertson and William Oldrieve; job architect James Cumming Wynnes Year: 1907 Listed building status: Category B Archive sources Aberdeen City and Aberdeenshire Archives: BW/P60; DB/1/69 British Postal Museum and Archive: POST 32/118-119, 118/6194-6197 Canmore ID 148731 Selected bibliographical references Aberdeen Daily Journal 12 May 1902, p. 7 (illustrated); 6 Apr 1907, p. 12) (illustrated); 9 Apr 1907, p. 4 Aberdeen Journal 23 Dec 1896, p. 4 (need for); 15 Jan 1897, p. 5 (costs of proposed sites); 26 Apr 1897, p. 7 (Crown Street site favoured); 11 Sep 1897, p. 5 (site selected) Aberdeen Weekly Journal 6 Dec 1899, p. 10 (on the style to be adopted) Architect 15 Dec 1906, p. 699; 19 Apr 1907, p. 256 + illustrations Bon Accord 4 Apr 1907 Builder 10 Nov 1900, p. 424; 15 Dec 1906, p. 699; 13 Apr 1907, p. 454-455 Building News 5 Apr 1907, p. 483 History Opened: 6 Apr 1907 The online Scottish Architects Directory states that "William Thomas Oldrieve ... recognised ... [Wynnes] outstanding ability and entrusted him with the design of Aberdeen Post Office". Current use: Residential premises |
Building description
From: Building News 5 April 1907, p. 483
The new post-office will be opened on Monday next. The building, which rises three stories above the street level, covers an area of 2,582 superficial yards, and has a frontage to both Crown-street and Dee-street. The public office, has a floor area of 2,000 superficial feet and a ceiling 20ft. high. The walls are lined with marble to a height of 9 feet, the floor is of mosaic, the woodwork of wainscot, and the ceiling panelled. The public counter forms three sides of a square, and has a total length of 84ft. The top floor of the Crown-street block contains a telegraph school, telephone-room, mechanics' room, etc. The whole area of the street floor between the Crown-street and Dee-street blocks is taken up by the letter and parcel sorting office. Upon the first floor of the centre connecting block the medical officer, pay officers, telegraph engineers, etc, are accommodated, while the top floor is occupied by the telegraph instrument room. The street floor of the Dee-street block contains the telegraph delivery-room and bicycle room, also a retiring- room for postmen. Two staircases, with entry from Dee-street, give access to the first and second floors, on the former of which are placed the staff dining- and serving rooms. The second floor is almost exclusively given over to the Great Northern Telegraph Co. A basement extends under the whole area of the buildings. The whole structure is built on fire resisting principles. Both street fronts are faced with Kenmey granite. The buildings, though only three stories high, attain a general height, to the top of the parapet, of 58 feet above the street level, while gables and turrets rise still higher, and show a broken skyline. Architecturally, the design is in the spirit of the Scottish Baronial. The building was designed in H.M. Office of Works, under the direction of Mr W W Robertson, late HM Principal Architect for Scotland : but the plans were carried out by Mr W T Oldrieve, FSI, HM Principal Architect for Scotland. The cost has been over £50,000. Mr J Reid acted as clerk of works, and the general contractors were Messrs Peter Bisset and Sons, Aberdeen.
The new post-office will be opened on Monday next. The building, which rises three stories above the street level, covers an area of 2,582 superficial yards, and has a frontage to both Crown-street and Dee-street. The public office, has a floor area of 2,000 superficial feet and a ceiling 20ft. high. The walls are lined with marble to a height of 9 feet, the floor is of mosaic, the woodwork of wainscot, and the ceiling panelled. The public counter forms three sides of a square, and has a total length of 84ft. The top floor of the Crown-street block contains a telegraph school, telephone-room, mechanics' room, etc. The whole area of the street floor between the Crown-street and Dee-street blocks is taken up by the letter and parcel sorting office. Upon the first floor of the centre connecting block the medical officer, pay officers, telegraph engineers, etc, are accommodated, while the top floor is occupied by the telegraph instrument room. The street floor of the Dee-street block contains the telegraph delivery-room and bicycle room, also a retiring- room for postmen. Two staircases, with entry from Dee-street, give access to the first and second floors, on the former of which are placed the staff dining- and serving rooms. The second floor is almost exclusively given over to the Great Northern Telegraph Co. A basement extends under the whole area of the buildings. The whole structure is built on fire resisting principles. Both street fronts are faced with Kenmey granite. The buildings, though only three stories high, attain a general height, to the top of the parapet, of 58 feet above the street level, while gables and turrets rise still higher, and show a broken skyline. Architecturally, the design is in the spirit of the Scottish Baronial. The building was designed in H.M. Office of Works, under the direction of Mr W W Robertson, late HM Principal Architect for Scotland : but the plans were carried out by Mr W T Oldrieve, FSI, HM Principal Architect for Scotland. The cost has been over £50,000. Mr J Reid acted as clerk of works, and the general contractors were Messrs Peter Bisset and Sons, Aberdeen.
