Crichton Hall, Crichton Royal Hospital, Bankend Road, Dumfries

Crichton Hall, part of the Crichton Royal Hospital, was originally constructed in the mid-1830s and opened on June 1st, 1839, based on designs by William Burn. Only the northern half of his intended design, which involved two linked cruciform-plan blocks, was initially executed. The hospital was subsequently extended to the south between 1867 and 1871 by William B. Moffat, who largely followed Burn's scheme but adapted it to a T-plan layout, with a prominent south front. A dining wing, designed by Sydney Mitchell and completed in 1903-4, was later extended between 1923 and 1926 with a board room and nurses’ residence, work overseen by J Flett, the Clerk of Works. Numerous smaller alterations and additions have also been made, including the addition of glazed verandahs.

The building is three stories high and constructed of stugged red ashlar with polished dressings and a band course between the two lower floors. The windows are single or tripartite, with keystoned architraves, aprons, and open or scrolled pediments on the first floor. The original building is based on a Greek cross plan, with four arms radiating from an octagonal four-story stairwell with canted angles. The wings have terminal blocks, with a substantial north block featuring nine north-facing bays, and the main west-facing entrance, remodelled by Mitchell, located in the original southern terminal. The upper floors originally included north-facing arcaded depressed-arched galleries, which are now glazed.

The 1867-71 addition features an elevation consistent with Burn’s original design. The long south elevation is symmetrical, featuring a central porch, round-headed first-floor windows with broken pediments, square windows above, and an elaborate parapet. Two circular stair turrets are located on the east elevation, the larger one added by Sydney Mitchell between 1900 and 1901. The later extensions for the dining and board rooms are plainer in appearance and include pedimented dormers; steel fire escapes have been added to these sections. The roof is slate.

The interior includes two main staircases, one original and the second by Moffat (1867-71), both enclosed by decorative cast-iron lattice work and lit by cupolas. The original staircase is octagonal and supported by Corinthian columns at each level. The dining room is in an Edwardian Baroque style, featuring Ionic pilasters, elaborate friezes, and a coffered ceiling. There is significant fine wooden panelling and ceiling plasterwork throughout, with some corridor ceilings barrel-vaulted. A recreation room above the south entrance has been converted, with movable partitions creating three rooms; the inner room features Corinthian pilasters below a remaining gallery section.