Fort William, Cameron Square, Cameron Centre
Cinema (20th Century), Office (Period Unassigned)
Site Name Fort William, Cameron Square, Cameron Centre
Classification Cinema (20th Century), Office (Period Unassigned)
Alternative Name(s) Tourist Information And Cinema
Canmore ID 276181
Site Number NN17SW 66
NGR NN 10251 73885
Datum OSGB36 - NGR
Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/site/276181
- Council Highland
- Parish Kilmallie
- Former Region Highland
- Former District Lochaber
- Former County Inverness-shire
Cameron Square This has been denuded of its civic pride with the loss in 1965 of the Kennedy Memorial of 1852, and the replacement of the town hall (created in 1881 from Henry Burrell's Duncansburgh Church of 1860 - itself a remodelling of the 1792 Maryburgh Church - and burnt down in 1975) with the grim apparition of Hay Steel & Partners' Cameron Centre of 1983. On the west side, the West Highland Museum, c.1835, is another converted bank with a Renaissance-style ashlar façade, pedimented outer bays with Roman Doric doorpieces, and a new stair in its large former banking hall. Attached former Wee Free chapel and flat to left converted as extension to museum. Good Jacobite relics, and a room containing painted panelling, stone chimneypiece, parts of stair and other fittings belonging to the governor's room in which the order for the Glencoe Massacre was signed by Col. Hill in 1692, salvaged and reinstated here when the old governor's house at the fort was demolished.
Taken from "Western Seaboard: An Illustrated Architectural Guide", by Mary Miers, 2008. Published by the Rutland Press http://www.rias.org.uk
Watching Brief (11 June 2013)
NN 10151 73890 (centred on) A watching brief was undertaken, on 11 June 2013, during ground investigations associated with a planned town regeneration project. Cameron Square, once known as Church Square, was the original site of the 19th-century Kennedy Monument and borders the site of the now demolished old Town House. Despite the narrowness of the test pits and bore holes, a small cobble-lined drain was identified.
Report: Highland HER and OASIS
Funder: Capita Symonds
Mary Peteranna, Ross and Cromarty Archaeological Services, 2013
(Source: DES)
Watching Brief (February 2014)
NN 10151 73890 (centred on) A watching brief was carried out in February 2014 during development work undertaken as part of a refurbishment project. Due to the methodology employed by the contractor, the watching brief and archaeological work was conducted in sections over a three week period.
The desk-based assessment identified numerous changes to the site during the development of Fort William. Cameron Square had been originally known as Church Square with a church at its SE end and the Kennedy Monument at the NW end. The Kennedy Monument had been erected in 1852 in memory of Dr William Kennedy, a local physician who died in 1851, to honour his contributions in treating the victims of a typhus outbreak. The church was later converted for use as the Town Hall. In 1965, the Kennedy Monument was taken down and the square was converted for use as a car park, and in 1975 the town hall burnt down. The square is currently an open pedestrian area.
During the watching brief, the remains of the Kennedy Monument plinth and an associated V-shaped drain were uncovered, in addition to a cobbled lane running along the S side of the square.
Report: Highland HER, OASIS and RCAHMS (intended)
Funder: Highland Council
Mary Peteranna and John Wombell – Ross and Cromarty Archaeological Services
(Source: DES)
