Glenshellish House And Steading

Glenshellish House and Steading is a rare and unusual classical, symmetrical farmhouse dating to circa 1826. It features a U-plan courtyard to the rear, enclosed by curving wing ranges, a design uncommon for houses of its size and date, especially those not connected to a larger estate. The house is prominently situated on the side of Glenbranter and is recognised for its rarity, architectural character, and connection to David Napier, an important figure in the area’s communications development.

The house itself is a central three-bay, two-storey building with a piend roof. The main (north) facade has decorative details, including hood-moulds to the chamfered-surround windows and the central door, raised margins, and a cavetto eaves cornice. A prominent gablet sits above the centre, with a slightly off-centre blind oculus. The rear, courtyard elevation is three-bay and symmetrical with a central door, but remains plain. The side elevations are largely without openings, dominated by heavy wallhead stacks on shallow corbels. Attached pitch-roofed, curved wings extend from the sides, continuing to the rear to form a cobbled courtyard.

The wings are almost identical externally, incorporating a series of windows, single doors (some blocked, some as vents, and some blind), and terminating in flat gables. Openings on the front of the wings are hoodmoulded, with chamfered surrounds. Polygonal stone stacks are located at the gable end of the east wing and towards the front of the west wing. The courtyard elevations exhibit greater variation, with a segmental cart-arch in the east wing. A break in the masonry indicates that the wings were originally shorter, being extended by the time of the first edition Ordnance Survey map (circa 1863). At that time, a separate block also closed the courtyard on the South side, later replaced by the present 20th-century corrugated structure that abuts the South gable of the east wing.

During the 20th century, Glenshellish was owned by the Forestry Commission, resulting in interior work to the house, including the removal of an octagonal stack from the central gablet, the removal of skews and a stack from the west wing, and the rebuilding of the main stacks in brick. Conversion work for dairying also led to some alterations to the interiors of the wings, though the majority of the roof structure remains.

The interior of the house retains its original layout, with features such as shutters, four-panel doors, simple plaster cornices, a stone main staircase, and a timber staircase to the attic.

The building is constructed of painted rubble with painted sandstone ashlar dressings. Predominantly uPVC windows are present, along with some timber top-hoppers in the wings. Slate piended roofs are topped with a stone skew on the west wing, alongside stone and brick wallhead and polygonal stacks. Clay cans and cast iron rainwater goods are also present, along with a cobbled courtyard.