8 and 9 Market Place, Kilsyth

A two-storey, eight-bay former court house and police station occupying the centre of the historic burgh of Kilsyth. Designed by William Simpson in 1862, the building possibly incorporates earlier fabric and underwent early 20th century additions and alterations.

The structure is built in coursed and squared rubble with a stone base course and chamfered window openings. The right part of the south principal elevation (Nos 8 and 9) features four stone gabled dormer windows breaking the eaves of the former courtroom at first floor level. Ground floor openings are irregular, with a central door and three windows beneath a stepped hoodmould, and a pend opening to the far right providing access to the rear yard. The left part of the principal elevation (Nos 6 and 7) has a large wallhead gable and chimney, below which sits a plainer stepped hoodmould over two doors with a small window between them. Four applied colour panel crests and flagpoles are thought to have been added in the later 20th century.

The rear elevations of Nos 8 and 9 contain a variety of early 20th century brick additions constructed to create a police station and cells. A larger perpendicular range, now reduced, formerly housed the police cells. The 1862 forestair is now enclosed by these later additions. An earlier 19th century curved stone stair serves the rear of Nos 6 and 7, with this elevation mostly built in rubble and a small upper floor infill section in brick.

Windows throughout are predominantly 12-pane glazing in timber sash and case pattern. Ridge chimney stacks are corniced ashlar with clay cans and stone straight skews featuring shaped skewputts. The roofs are graduated slate with cast iron rainwater goods. A single stone wallhead chimney stack stands to the rear, and remnants of a street light bracket survive above the rear first floor entrance door of No 8.

The former courtroom occupies the first floor of No 8 and features three windows, a plain coved ceiling and an external door to a rear staircase. Adjacent is a small room with similar ceiling detail and a painted stone or marble fireplace surround. The ground floor comprises a suite of offices, two of which retain timber panelling to dado height and late 19th century style cast iron and tiled fireplaces.

The early 20th century rear addition to No 8 contains part of the former cell block corridor and two former police station cells. The cells are clad in glazed white tiles, with one retaining a heavy metal door featuring a viewing hatch. No 9 operates as simple two-room retail premises sharing ancillary accommodation with No 8 to the rear. Both Nos 8 and 9 have half-margined glazed vestibule doors.

No 6 is a retail premises with early 21st century detailing; No 7 is a residential upper floor flat. The interiors of Nos 6 and 7 were not inspected.

The detached brick shed and boundary walls to the rear are excluded from the listing.