University College Hospital General Block Only And Attached Railings

University College Hospital General Block is a hospital building constructed between 1897 and 1906 by architects Alfred and Paul Waterhouse. It is made of red brick with terracotta horizontal bands and dressings, featuring steeply pitched slated roofs with dormers. The building has a cross-shaped plan set diagonally to Gower Street.

The exterior consists of four main storeys, attics, and basements. The central entrance lodge has three bays, two storeys, and an attic, characterized by terracotta bands and rounded angles. The ground floor has round-arched openings, with the central entrance flanked by columns that support an entablature topped with a parapet and ball finials. The first floor features segmental arched sash windows separated by pilasters, which support a projecting dentil cornice and a pediment over the central bays. The pediment is flanked by full-size sash window dormers in a steep mansard roof.

The main building includes a central staircase projection with three lancet windows and a steep pointed roof, behind which is a bell tower with a spire. Tall chimney-stacks and pots are located on either side. The wings of the building project with two-window pedimented bays, and the main range of windows has enriched surrounds and decorative grilles to the aprons. The wings end with a bay of balconies on each floor and three-window rectangular towers, which have dormers corbelled at the angles and are topped with pointed roofs featuring rectangular louvred features. A main cornice runs at attic level.

The interior has not been inspected. The building also features attached cast-iron railings with a parapet wall behind the area basement blocks. Historically, this hospital block is significant as it represents the first departure from Florence Nightingale's pavilion planning and marks the introduction of American concepts of 'towers of healing' for urban settings.