Aberdeen, Rosemount Place, Rutherford Church And Church Hall

NMRS REFERENCE:

Aberdeen, Rutherford U.F.Church

Opened 1870

Circa 1870. T-plan church with rectangular-plan hall adjoining to W. Tooled coursed granite finely finished to margins. Base course; pointed-arched openings; chamfered reveals; rough-faced angle buttresses; eaves blocking course.

S (ROSEMOUNT PLACE) ELEVATION: asymmetrical; 3-bay; gabled central bay, deeply chamfered glazed former doorway, hoodmould with decorative drip stones, reached by stone steps; 3 windows above, centre window stepped up, triple hoodmould, carved Celtic cross finial to apex; single window to flanking bay to right, crenellated parapet, corbelled angle pinnacle to outer right breaking roofline; 3-stage, square-plan tower adjoining and advanced to outer left, window to 1st stage, glazed boarded timber door to W elevation, decoratively traceried louvred opening to S and W of 2nd stage, stone parapet on dentil mouldings with central clockface flanked by inset trefoils to 3rd stage, louvred gableted lucarnes to each elevation, granite broach spire; iron weathervane finial to apex. Former hall linked to church at outer right by single storey corridor with shouldered windows, 2-bay; tripartite window set in gable of bay to right, vesica in gablehead, flanked to left by pointed-arched doorway slightly advanced breaking eaves, 2-leaf gazed timber door with vertically paned fanlight.

E ELEVATION: pointed-arched windows, predominantly obscured by former hall: 5-bay; glazed timber door flanked to left by 2 shouldered bipartite windows in centre bays; gabled bay to outer right, with 2 windows to centre and arrowslit opening set in gablehead; gabled bay to outer left with tripartite window to centre.

N ELEVATION: near-symmetrical; gabled; opening off-centre to right of ground floor, rose window centred above.

W (LOANHEAD TERRACE) ELEVATION: asymmetrical; 5-bay; 3 flat-arched windows to ground floor of centre 3 bays, pointed-arched window above each; tower adjoining to outer right (see above); 2-bay gabled bay advanced to outer left; 2 flat-arched bipartite windows to ground floor with Y-traceried bipartites above; small quatrefoil rose window centred above, small tripartites set in gablehead, stone finial to apex.

Predominantly replacement plate-glass windows. Grey slate roof with tiled ridge and iron ventilators. Coped stone skews with predominantly simple skewputts, carved to hall. Cast-iron rainwater goods.

INTERIOR: not seen 1999.

Former Rutherford United Free Church. Rosemount Parish Church Celebration Centre is prominently situated at the corner of Rosemount Place and Loanhead Terrace. Despite the loss of much of the original glazing most of the original detailing survives, notably the fine tower, the church was described by Gammie as "A neat church...with a spire, the clock and bell in which were largely, if not entirely , the proceeds of subscriptions from residents in the district" (p173). Ecclesiastical building in use as such, part of the hall is used by an office suppliers (1999). (Historic Environment Scotland List Entry)