Gleneden, Laighlands Road, Bothwell

Gleneden, Laighlands Road, Bothwell

This is a Grade A listed building designed by Alexander Thomson in 1855, with later alterations and additions. It is a 2-storey villa (single storey to the right), asymmetrical in plan with four bays, featuring a prominent 3-stage Italianate tower to the right and a modern glazed entrance porch to the left. The main architectural interest lies in its shallow gabled bays with overhanging eaves and exposed rafters, and a striking semicircular 7-light bay at the centre.

The building is constructed in stugged and snecked pink sandstone with polished and droved ashlar dressings. Detail work includes a base course, a bossed eaves course to the semicircular bay, an eaves course to the entrance bay to the right, and a band course between ground and first floors. Windows on the ground floor feature columnar mullions, whilst first floor windows have chamfered reveals. Bull-faced long and short quoins with droved strips define the building's angles. The tower is articulated by string courses dividing its stages, with a machiolation course around the third stage.

The principal (east) elevation presents four bays with a slightly advanced gabled bay at centre and a long, single-storey rectangular-plan entrance bay set back to the right with the tower behind. The centrepiece is a projecting 7-light bay at ground level with a single window at first floor above. To its left is a window with a raised, toothed lintel within the bay and a monogrammed shield above. A bipartite round-arched window at ground level appears in the outermost left bay, with a dormer window above at first floor featuring a bracketed cill and decorative wrought-iron parapet. To the right of centre stands a 5-light round-arched bay; the tower behind displays three blind slits evenly disposed at its second stage, and three small square windows to all faces at the third stage above.

The north (entrance) elevation is irregularly composed of four bays. The leftmost bay features a recessed entrance porch flanked by tapered square-plan cast-iron lampstandards with ball supports above the lamp shafts; these stand on sandstone plinths and are embossed with fleur-de-lys and anthemion motifs, with ram's heads at the angles and opaque glass (possibly replacement) globes above. The doorway has a keystoned lintel and is fitted with a 3-leaf timber panelled door with boss details. To the right, the tower at ground level has a small bipartite round-arched window below a round-arched stair window at first stage. The advanced gabled bay to the right contains a 3-light round-arched window at ground with a window at first floor above. A replacement timber door appears at ground level in a flat-roofed, single-storey bay to the outer right.

The south (side) elevation is an irregular 3-bay composition with a gable to the right. The gabled bay houses a modern glazed rectangular-plan entrance porch at ground level with a modern steel balcony, and a round-arched window set to the right at first floor above. The central bay contains a narrow window with a small flanking window at ground, and two closely-set windows at first floor. The leftmost bay has a replacement door at ground level.

The west (rear) elevation presents an irregular 4-bay arrangement with a gable at centre, featuring bipartite and tripartite windows at ground level. A lean-to brick addition extends along the outer left.

The roof comprises grey slate and decorative cast-iron ridge detailing to the shallow pitched and piended roofs; the tower roof is of shallow pyramidal form with a flag-pole and slate covering. Modern roofing material covers the lean-to addition. Chimneys are constructed of ashlar with coped stacks, panelled and dentilled cans, and cast-iron rainwater goods. Windows throughout display varied glazing patterns including 2- and 4-pane timber sash and case windows, with fixed windows to the tower (including stained glass border to the stair window) and modern plate glass to the south porch.

The interior was not inspected in 1997.

The building now forms part of a divided property.