56F Annan Road, Gretna

A block of flats designed by Raymond Unwin with C M Crickmer as site architect, built 1917 in the Edwardian Renaissance style. The building forms a U-plan, with a symmetrical two-storey block facing north and single-storey ranges adjoining each outer south gable.

The principal north elevation is notably long and detailed. It features pedimented narrow central and wide outer gables with blocked cornices. The outer bays contain shallow advanced ground floor Venetian windows, pedimented and architraved main door with small-paned sash windows set in shallow recessed vertical panels. The elevation is finished with an eaves course and mutule cornice, with axial chimney stacks and slated roofs. The building is constructed in red brick with some red ashlar dressings. The six-bay flanks feature architraved doorways; the westernmost low wing now serves as the Tourist Information Office.

The building stands at a key junction in Gretna village. Its architectural interest is heightened by the prominent wide chimney stacks, cornice decoration, regularly spaced windows, and the simple classical detailing of the Venetian windows and pedimented door pieces.

This was formerly the Police Barracks for Gretna village. Built between 1916 and 1918, it formed part of the new town of Gretna, which was constructed to provide housing and community facilities for workers at a nearby munitions factory. During the First World War, the government commissioned a large munitions factory stretching nine miles along the banks of the Solway to produce cordite explosives, bringing thousands of workers from Britain and Ireland. The township was designed along Garden City lines with green spaces, a wide central street with shops and community facilities, and curving streets. It included churches, a dance hall, a school, and a cinema. After the war, the factory was dismantled, leaving only scattered remnants.

Raymond Unwin (1863–1940) was a principal figure in early twentieth-century British town planning, appointed by the government as chief designer. He advocated high standards of design for social housing and planning informality, and is best known for his planning of Letchworth Garden City and Hampstead Garden Suburb. C M Crickmer (1879–1971), a London-based architect, served as resident architect for Gretna's development and had previously worked with Unwin at Letchworth and Hampstead Garden Suburb.