Cameron Bridge House, Cameron Hospital, Windygates

Cameron Bridge House, Cameron Hospital, Windygates

This two-storey Scottish house with single-storey elements was designed by David Bryce in 1849 and converted to an administration block for an Infectious Diseases Hospital in 1911. The building sits on ground falling to the north-west and is characterised by distinctive stacks.

The exterior is constructed of stugged ashlar with squared and snecked rubble and ashlar dressings. It features a deep, chamfered base course, dividing course and eaves cornice, with corbels, keystone, moulded crowsteps, hoodmould, and roll moulded and chamfered arrises. Stone mullions are throughout.

The north-east (entrance) elevation is of five bays. Steps with a dwarf wall lead to a two-leaf panelled timber door positioned to the left of centre in a roll moulded, keystoned doorcase with a hoodmould. Below this is a corniced, moulded panel bearing a galleon in a swagged roundel dated 1911 and inscribed "INFECTIOUS DISEASES HOSPITAL". A stepped corbel at first floor flanks a mutuled window and a glazed arrow slit in a finialled gablehead, flanked by dominant square, grouped stacks. A broad, gabled bay to the left contains windows to both floors. The lower centre bay has a window with an adjacent small light to the right on both floors; the first-floor light has a finialled, pedimented dormerhead breaking the eaves. The penultimate bay to the right contains windows to both floors and an arrow slit in the gablehead, with an advanced, massive four-stage, square stack to its left. The first stage is corbelled, while the remaining stages are coped and battered (the second stage on the south side only). The outer right bay features a slightly advanced, gabled porch to its left with a segmental headed opening and open return, adjoining a projecting, low, pitch-roofed extension with a blocked opening and a blind gablehead above with a gablehead stack.

The south-east elevation contains a bay to the right of centre with windows at both floors, the first-floor window having a finialled, pedimented dormerhead breaking the eaves. A broad bay to the left has a canted window with a blocking course below the gable, which contains two windows and a corbelled three-stage stack piercing the crowsteps to the right. A modern steel fire escape is positioned to the left.

The south-west elevation has a low, modern stone porch with ramp at the centre, abutting a full-height tripartite window to the right at ground level with two windows above, each with finialled, pedimented dormerheads breaking the eaves. A bay to the outer right features a canted window at ground level corbelling out to the first floor with a window and arrow slit in the gablehead. A recessed face to the left of centre contains a window to the right at ground and first-floor levels, the latter finialled and pedimented as above. A broad gable to the left has windows to both floors, and a low, flat-roofed, slightly recessed extension with a window stands to the outer left.

The north-west elevation is partly concealed by a large, flat-roofed garage to the left, above which are two windows, the left one with a pedimented dormerhead breaking the eaves. A lower, gabled projection to the right features a dominant stack. An outbuilding adjoins a link section to the left.

Throughout the building, small-pane glazing patterns are employed, except to the canted windows which feature plate glass. All windows are timber sash and case. The roof is finished with graded grey slates, with large slates to the right on the north-east elevation. Stacks are coped ashlar with polygonal and moulded cans; the skews are ashlar coped with moulded skewputts. Cast iron downpipes with decorative rainwater hoppers complete the exterior.

The interior contains square-headed alcoves flanking the main entrance and a part-glazed screen door to the inner hall. The staircase features decorative cast iron balusters and a timber handrail, with a carved heraldic shield bearing the motto "TYDE WHAT MAY" and a lantern above the stairwell. Principal rooms on the ground floor include one to the south-east with a bracketed, black marble fireplace, decorative cornice, shutters and picture rail, and one to the south-west with a white marble fireplace, cast iron inset and decorative cornice. A further staircase also features decorative cast iron balusters and timber handrail. Minor alterations were made for use as a nurses' residence, particularly to the inner hall.

A linked outbuilding to the north-east stands on ground falling to the north-west. Constructed of crowstepped, squared and dressed rubble, it features a timber door with fanlight in its south-east gable, three windows with pedimented dormerheads breaking the eaves to the north-east, and a basement accessed via a two-leaf timber door to the right, with two blocked openings to the left. A window serves both ground and basement levels to the north-west.