Boundary Walls and Gatepiers, Dumbarton Sheriff Court

Dumbarton Sheriff Court is a classical-style courthouse constructed in 1824 to a design by James Gillespie Graham, with subsequent modifications by Robert Scott, William Spence, and Duncan McNaughton in 1861, 1895, and 1898. It is a two-storey, symmetrical building arranged in a U-plan, with a prominent three-bay central section that is taller and projects forward, topped by a pediment. A two-storey extension to the east is not considered to have special architectural merit.

The building is constructed of sandstone ashlar, with channelled detailing at ground level. It features a base course, band courses, cill courses, a corniced top, and a blocking course to the central bays, as well as balustrades to the outer wings. The central section is distinguished by a Doric-columned porch with a round-arched doorway and paired Ionic pilasters at the first floor level. A central first-floor window is recessed within a round-headed panel, flanked by windows with decorative aprons and consoled cornices. Pilastered and corniced door surrounds with round-arched doorways are found in the outer bays.

The windows are predominantly timber sash and case windows with four panes to each sash. The roofs are piended and covered with grey slate.

The interior was inspected in 2014. While a refurbishment around 1998 resulted in some alterations to the court furnishings and office layouts, several early and mid-19th century features remain. The 1824 courtroom (Court No 1) and the 1898 courtroom (Court No 2) are located on the first floor. Courtroom 1 retains panelled timber doors with consoled cornices and an anthemion and palmette frieze. It has a small gallery with a delicate cast-iron balustrade. Court No 2 is accessed via a replacement door set within a former Venetian window frame and features timber panelled doors with carved, lugged architraves, timber panelling, a timber panel behind the sheriff's bench, and a timber-framed ceiling with pendants. Other rooms retain decorative cornicing and timber panelled doors. The stairwell is timber panelled, featuring a dog-leg stair with timber balusters, decorative square-plan newels, and pyramidal newel posts, alongside a separate spiral staircase with metal balusters.

A low, coped boundary wall and railings are present to the west, punctuated by a pair of square-plan gatepiers.