Now serving as one part of the official National Register of Scotland, the building was originally built in 1814 as part of the construction of Charlotte Square and known as St George's Church.
The site was originally intended in the 1765 masterplan to be the location of two large houses overlooking Charlotte Square but was never built on, with Robert Adam drawing up plans for the plot in 1791 that were not realised either.
It was only in 1810 that Robert Reid, a former pupil of Adam's started work abandoning his teachers plan and designing what stands today. It features and Ionic portico with a Corinthian colonnade fronting on to Charlotte Square. Above it stands a large dome of green copper that was said to be inspired by St Paul's Cathedral in London.
Construction began in May 1811 and was completed 1814 and came in at £6,000 over budget thanks to Reid's failure to properly assess the design costs. It then served as St George's Church for almost 150 years.
In 1959 dry rot was found riddling the structure. The church was unable to pay for repair and so it was closed in 1961. The building then lay empty until it was converted to part of the Scottish Record Office in 1968 after plans to demolish it and build a road through the site failed.
Conversion of the building involved keeping the external facade and dome, but completely destroying the interior which houses five floors of archives and records facilities within a concrete structure.
Companies
If your company has been involved with the Design/Build, Supply or Maintenance of this building please submit your details.
