Club House

Amateur Rowing Club Boathouse

This boathouse, also known as the Boat House on Bank Hill, was built in 1869 for the Berwick Amateur Rowing Club and extended in 1883 by James Stevenson of Berwick. It stands on the Berwick side of the River Tweed, raised off the ground by a series of timber piles.

The building has a rectangular plan with a jetty attached to its north-west side. The east wall is constructed of stone, while the remainder of the structure features overlapping timber boards. The roof is covered with replacement metal.

The exterior is characterised by its functional design and distinctive features. The ground floor is plain, with several small square windows and a door reached by timber steps on the west side. Large wooden double doors on the north side give access to the landing stage. The first floor includes a corner viewing tower with a pyramidal roof topped by a decorative weather vane. A gabled entrance through the west side of the building leads to an external timber viewing balcony with a balustrade of diagonal crosses, which extends along the north and west sides. A stone jetty is attached to the west end of the structure.

The interior layout reflects the dual purpose of the building. The ground floor boat store comprises an open space with timber boat hangers attached to both long sides and a slatted wooden floor. A simple ladder stair in the south-west corner provides access to the first floor. The original southern half of the club house has been partially partitioned to provide ladies' facilities, while the northern half remains open with an inserted bar at the south-west corner.

The Berwick Amateur Rowing Club was formed in early 1869 to promote rowing in a gentlemanly and friendly manner. The boathouse was constructed that same year, with rowing boats built on the River Tyne and delivered to the club in spring 1869. The club held its first regatta in September 1869, with the course running downstream from the Plantation to the newly constructed boathouse. The 1883 extension added a new two-storey section and landing stage northwards, with the original plans signed by Stevenson, identified as James Stevenson of Berwick.