Lerwick, St Olaf Street, St Clement's Hall
Church Hall (20th Century), Decontamination Building (Second World War)(Possible), First Aid Post (Second World War)(Possible)
Site Name Lerwick, St Olaf Street, St Clement's Hall
Classification Church Hall (20th Century), Decontamination Building (Second World War)(Possible), First Aid Post (Second World War)(Possible)
Canmore ID 217025
Site Number HU44SE 222
NGR HU 47409 41480
Datum OSGB36 - NGR
Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/site/217025
- Council Shetland Islands
- Parish Lerwick
- Former Region Shetland Islands Area
- Former District Shetland
- Former County Shetland
HU44SE 222 47409 41480
Hall [NAT]
OS (GIS) MasterMap, July 2010.
7 x 1-bay gabled church hall with 3-stage square plan tower at SW corner, and modern 2-storey addition obscuring E gable. Bull-faced squared and snecked principal elevation and tower with stugged and polished dressings and details; harled side elevations with cement dressings.
The Woman's Guild initiated a scheme for the erection of a building that would serve the dual purpose of providing Lerwick Parish Church with a church hall of its own, and providing separate accommodation for the Dutch and other foreign fishermen. T L Bruce produced the design and Peter Thomson was appointed contractor with a tender of '1615. The work was completed in 1911 and the Rev A J Campbell performed the opening ceremony. The Dutchmen made regular use of the building, and a stained glass window was presented by the Dutch Reformed Churches from fishing communities in the Netherlands. By 1966, with St Olaf's in use as a hall too, St Clement's was sold to Lerwick Town Council for recreational use. An old photograph of the W elevation shows 2-leaf vertically-boarded timber entrance doors flanked by cast-iron lamp standards (on the existing stone plinths) with globe lanterns, and simple cast-iron railings with widely-spaced ball-finialled stanchions and 2-leaf cast-iron gates. Another view shows a single storey crowstepped building along the E elevation. The tower of this hall is a distinctive landmark in this part of the town. (Historic Scotland)
Note (27 April 2022)
A plan of civil defense buildings titled A.R.P, held by the Shetland Islands Archive shows a plan for the internal arrangement of St Clements Church Hall as a First Aid Post and Gas Decontamination Centre.
From the plan particular attention was paid to decontamination from a Gas attack with provision of gas proof doors, both male and female off the lobby at the main door. The gas lock doors lead to Male and Female undressing area, showers (annotated on plan as sprays) and dressing area, before reaching the 'Recovery and First Aid Room'. The rear of the building had two rooms. The room annotated on the plan as 'Stretchers cases for medical attention had a separate gas lock entrance for stretchers cases on the NE corners of the building. The other room is annotated as MoH & Staff and had a gas lock entrance on the SE end of the building.
It is unclear if the intended conversion was ever undertaken.
Information from HES 27 April 2022
