Former Scottish Cooperative Wholesale Society factory ('The Scotch Stores'), SOUTH SECTION 'FACTORY WAREHOUSE', Sligo Road, Enniskillen, Co Fermanagh, BT74 7JY

Former Scottish Cooperative Wholesale Society Factory ('The Scotch Stores'), South Section 'Factory Warehouse'

This long, narrow section forms part of a substantial late Victorian industrial complex on Sligo Road in Enniskillen. Built around 1893 to designs by Thomas Elliot, the factory was originally used by the Scottish Cooperative Wholesale Society for processing livestock and cream production. The building is constructed in squared rock-faced limestone with smooth stone dressings and quoins, displaying characteristic late Victorian industrial architecture with a distinctly Highland lodge aesthetic.

The factory warehouse section is two storeys to the east and single storey to the west, reflecting the sloping ground level. It is notably taller and more ornate than the adjoining factory section, featuring three evenly spaced Jacobean gables with slated roofs, similar in character to those on the manager's house at the north end of the complex. The outer gables are smaller than the central one, with proportionally narrower attic windows.

The east elevation, facing Sligo Road, displays the ground floor with a series of large square shop windows with fixed light glazing and glazed doors, many of which represent recent enlargements of original smaller windows. However, one shop front at the restaurant level appears to be set within an original arched doorway, and a window and doorway to the far left (the meat shop) also appear original. The first floor contains 16 original windows, mainly with fixed light glazing. Each of the three gables has an additional attic window.

The west elevation faces onto a rear yard and is single storey, presenting a uniform line of windows and timber sheeted pedestrian doors, many of the windows now fitted with metal security bars. A doorway to the far left has been blocked up, and a portion of the façade to the far right is rendered. A large gabled dormer with now-sheeted opening, which originally functioned as a loft door, is visible on this elevation.

The complex, with its sheer length and varying roof heights and levels of detailing, suggests that portions may have been added in the years following 1893, though this cannot be confirmed with certainty. The facility continued operating as a livestock and animal processing plant until the mid to late 1970s, when it was converted to retail and commercial uses. Extensions with plain flat roofs, possibly dating from the 1960s or 1970s, were added to the south end. Since conversion, considerable alteration has taken place, particularly to window and door openings, with modern shop fronts and extensive signage, especially prominent on the busy east façade fronting Sligo Road. The former manager's dwelling, known as Thistle Bank House, now functions as a private residence.