Head Post Office, 73 John Finnie Street, Kilmarnock

This is a three-storey, eight-by-five bay Post Office, built in 1907 to a design by W T Oldrieve, located on John Finnie Street, Kilmarnock. The building exhibits Renaissance detailing and a prominent canted corner. It is constructed from coursed red Ballochmyle sandstone ashlar, with a base course, a mutule cornice, and a low parapet. Architraved window surrounds are a characteristic feature.

The principal, east-facing elevation has a modern polished granite frontage to the three bays on the left, with an architraved window in the fourth bay. The remaining four bays at the first floor have identical treatment. The second floor features a mutule cornice above four windows and a low parapet above. The fifth bay leads to a wide, slightly advanced canted corner with a triangular pediment. The ground floor of the corner bay features a Venetian window with column mullions and a broken base pediment; the first floor, a tripartite window also with columned mullions; and the second floor, a mutule cornice leading to recessed swagged oculi with a projecting keystone, all within a broken base triangular pediment. The canted angle bay has an architraved bipartite window on the ground floor, a shorter bipartite window on the first floor with an open segmental pediment, and an aedicule window on the second floor displaying a carved “E R with crown” between, topped by a decorated parapet.

The north-facing elevation begins with a bay mirroring the corner treatment, featuring the same triangular pediment, Venetian window, and detailing. Former tripartite entrance doors to the second and third bays have been infilled to form windows; the original window remains between them, with three smaller windows above. Architraved windows are present in bays four and five, a door with a rectangular fanlight in the sixth bay, and an architraved window in bays seven and eight. The first floor has architraved windows in each bay, with a tripartite window in the fourth bay. A mutule cornice leads to the second floor, where regularly placed windows are set within a parapet.

The south-facing elevation adjoins listed buildings at 75 and 77 John Finnie Street, belonging to George Tannahill & Sons. The rear, west-facing elevation abuts a more recent two-storey sorting office on Nelson Street.

The windows are predominantly 12- and 8-pane timber sash and case. The pedimented bays have 16-pane timber fixed oculus windows, while the ground floor tripartite windows feature fixed single-pane arched windows. The roof is covered with piended grey slate and rainwater goods are made of painted cast iron, with concealed gutters and partially concealed downpipes.

The ground floor has been remodelled to create a modern entrance and shop interior. Original administration and sorting offices were not accessible during a 2001 inspection.