Lindenlea Cottage, Carlops

Lindenlea Cottage is a single-storey house dating to circa 1900, incorporating a portion of an earlier building (circa 1800), which formed part of a schoolhouse. It combines a former three-bay gabled church hall and a former three-bay weavers cottage, joined internally to form a single residential property.

The church hall section has a round-arched doorway on the right-hand side, with chamfered arrises. It features two round-arched windows with diamond-pattern leaded glazing, and shouldered pedimented dormers breaking the eaves. A pair of round-arched windows are visible on the north gable elevation. The building has ashlar skews with corbelled skewputts, a tiled ridge with finials, and a grey slate roof. The cottage section has three windows facing the street, a later gabled addition to the rear, and an entrance to the rear. It features timber plate glass sash and case windows and a grey slate roof, with a gable end stack.

The property is prominently situated beside Carlops Road, contributing to the streetscape. The church hall’s leaded dormer windows contain the donor's initials. The earlier schoolhouse was adapted for use by Carlops Parish Church and is the subject of a separate listing.

The village of Carlops was founded in 1784, when Robert Brown, the laird of Newhall, established a cotton-weaving industry, laying out rows of weavers cottages on either side of the Edinburgh to Biggar road. As the textile industry declined in the late 19th century, the village became a health resort for summer visitors from Edinburgh.

The village is characterized by its rows of single-storey former cotton-weavers cottages and retains its traditional character. Ordnance Survey maps from 1856-9 and 1896, as well as The Buildings of Scotland - Borders (2002, p151) contain further information.