Aberlour House

Date May 2007

Event ID 1091043

Category Descriptive Accounts

Type Architecture Notes

Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/event/1091043

Second part of TBS description

Miss Macpherson Grant died in 1877 but who owned the estate between her death and 1885 when John Ritchie Findlay bought it is uncertain. The plans illustrated were drawn up c.1879 presumably for the sale of the estate. Findlay immediately employed his friend Arthur G Sydney Mitchell to make proposals for the gardens, which were not carried out (SMW 1880/23/3/8) but a variety of minor internal alterations were carried out 1885-6 including a very necessary draft lobby at the front door. Mitchell also created extra bedrooms and better circulation in the service quarters. Between 1886 and 1892 Findlay made extensive alterations and additions to the house including extending the original drawing room to create a larger dining room and adding a large new drawing room to the east as well as creating a new billiard room. The original dining room was fitted up as a library perhaps adapting earlier fittings. The architect of this work is unknown but in 1892-3 he employed Robert Lorimer to decorate the interiors. The RCAHMS holds extensive records of various schemes but the work carried out includes the marble floor in the hall, the panelling of the main east-west corridor, the unusual chimneypiece in the dining room and various plaster adornments. The library was also embellished with new upper bookcases along with a very fine chimneypiece with inset antique roundels. There are no drawings for the library in the RCAHMS collections. Stylistically this refit could be attributed to F W Deas a great friend of Lorimers who did extensive work in Morayshire see for example the Kellas Lodge.survey.

The Findlay family sold the house which was turned into Aberlour House Preparatory School. Few major alterations were made except the infilling of the east service courtyard and the conversion of the stable block into classrooms. Various ancillary buildings were added but the house remaine largely unaltered. The school closed in 2005 and the house was bought by Walkers Shortbread Ltd and is now their offices. The Walkers have embarked on a major restoration of the main house, have demolished some ancilliary buildings and have yet to embark on the restoration of the stable block.

RCAHMS STG