155 Central Avenue, Gretna

155 Central Avenue, Gretna

This building comprises two symmetrical terraces, each of three blocks containing four houses, designed by Raymond Unwin with C M Crickmer as site architect in 1917 for munitions workers. The terraces face one another across a wide avenue, linked by low porches.

The houses are constructed in brick, with two blocks now rendered in pebble dash. They feature piended slate roofs and prominent brick end and axial chimney stacks. The original glazing consisted mostly of small-paned sash windows, though many have since been replaced. The inner house blocks are distinguished by two advanced square bays, while the outer blocks follow an L-plan with three terminal bays set forward. The original inner doors are paired and feature semi-circular arched heads that contain both doors and side lights.

These properties form the central core of Gretna village, a unique settlement designed along Garden City principles. They line the central street and are detailed and distinctive, with architectural interest provided by the piended roofs, prominent stacks, advanced bays, round-arched entrances and small round windows. The use of red brick is unusual for domestic buildings in Scotland. The houses were originally built as dormitories for factory workers but were designed to allow conversion into private housing.

Gretna was constructed between 1916 and 1918 to house workers at a nearby munitions factory stretching nine miles along the Solway banks, which produced Cordite explosives. The town was laid out with green spaces, a wide central street with shops and community facilities, and curving streets. Beyond housing, the township included churches, a dance hall, school and cinema to serve workers and their families. The factory was dismantled after the war, leaving only scattered remnants.

Raymond Unwin, one of the most important figures in early 20th-century British town planning, oversaw the development alongside neighbouring Eastriggs. He advocated high standards of design for social housing and informal planning, and is perhaps best known for Letchworth Garden City and Hampstead Garden Suburb. C M Crickmer, a London-based architect born in 1879, served as resident architect for Gretna township and also worked with Unwin at Letchworth and Hampstead Garden Suburb.