Ablution Blocks

The Ablution Blocks on Drake's Island in Plymouth are a barracks ablution block built around 1830 to 1835. The structure is made of stone rubble, with dressed limestone facing on the south and east sides, and features a dry slate roof with coped gable ends and a rendered stack at the west end. It has a rectangular plan, with doorways on the north front for the ground floor and doorways on the south front for the first floor, which is at a higher ground level. The ground floor likely contained washrooms, while the first floor may have served as living accommodation. The building is two storeys high, with a six-bay south front that includes doorways leading to 20th-century porches. There are 12-pane sash windows in bays three, four, and five. The porches are elevated on bridges over a deep area that provides access from the east and behind a high wall that steps down to the north. The north elevation features various windows and doorways on the ground floor, as well as one window on the first floor. The interior of the ground floor has been much altered and was not inspected during the 1990 listing.