Millburn Street and Crown Street, Hydro-Electric Board Offices and Warehousing

Aberdeen Corporation Engineer's Office, 1903 and 1904. Tall 3-storey, 3-bay entrance block fronting Millburn Street, 2-storey wing to rear; 7-bay rectangular-plan workshop and warehouse fronting Crown Street; 2-storey wings to rear forming long U-plan. Granite, ashlar to Crown Street and Millburn Street, coursed and ladder pinned to remainder. Base course; dividing band course above ground floor; 1st floor cill course; eaves cornice and raised wallhead with cornice; pilaster quoins.

S (PRINCIPAL) ELEVATION: symmetrical. Ground floor quarry faced; consoled and corniced doorway to centre, 6-panel door flanked by panelled sidelights, timber dentil cornice, 3-light rectangular fanlight, decorative cast-iron lamp-holder above; bipartite windows with chamfered reveals flanking to left and right. Bipartite window to centre of 1st floor with fluted pilaster mullion, consoled capitals and pediment; 2-light window to flanking bay to left and right. 3 regularly placed architraved windows to 2nd floor. Raised wallhead with inscription reading "CORPORATION ELECTRICITY WORKS", surmounted by curvilinear gable with carving of the Arms of the City of Aberdeen. 2-storey link to left; round-arched former entrance to ground floor, now with mullioned glazing, corbelled band course above, 2 windows at 1st floor; 3-storey modernised wing flanking to left.

E ELEVATION: asymmetrical; front block to left; blind round arch to ground floor, 4-bay 1st and 2nd floors, window to each bay. 2-storey wing extending N with modern 2-storey block adjoining.

N ELEVATION: asymmetrical; gabled 3-bay wing advanced to left, 3 windows to 1st floor, modern addition to ground floor extending along right return, irregular window openings to right return, large round-arched pend entrance to far right. Modern raised link corridor to centre. M-gabled warehouse advanced to right, 2 depressed-arched windows to each gable, louvred bull's-eye opening with moulded surround set in gablehead, spherical stone finial to apex of gables; 6 depressed-arched openings to left return, modern additions and alterations.

W ELEVATION: asymmetrical; 3-storey, 4-bay modernised wing to right, window to each of 2 central bays, flanked to left and right by bipartite windows, at ground 1st and 2nd floors. 7-bay warehouse adjoining to left; pilastered bays; 2 central bays, and bay to outer left pedimented; depressed-arched doorway partly infilled with door and window to bay to outer left; depressed-arched window to remaining 6 bays to right.

Predominantly modern glazing, 16-pane to warehouse. Grey slate roofs, some piended with lead ridges; square platform balcony to centre of Millburn Road block with decorative cast-iron brattishing and corner finials, steel pylon to centre, ridge ventilators with conical caps. Granite wallhead and gablehead stacks. Cast-iron rainwater goods.

INTERIOR: tiled mosaic floor to entrance lobby with Aberdeen Coat of Arms. All offices modernised in 1970s and subsequently, wood panelling used extensively.

This complex comprises the former Electricity Works and offices, and the former Tram Car Depot and workshops. Aberdeen Corporation purchased the tramways in 1898 and planned to build a new generating station with the tram depot adjacent. "Dee Village" was levelled and the site of approximately 2 acres cleared in 1901. The Generating Station opened in March 1903 and the Tram depot in 1904. An extraordinary part of the scheme is the (surviving) cable subway which runs under Crown Street for some 1500 yards to Holburn Street (see separate listing of decorative ventilator, Justice Mill Lane and Holburn Street). The turbine hall has been replaced by an office block, and the site chimney demolished. The tram depot is now in use as warehousing.

What is a listed building?

Designation is the legal recognition of some of Scotland’s most important historic sites and places. Historic Environment Scotland (HES) designates scheduled monuments, listed buildings, historic battlefields, and gardens and designed landscapes.

HES makes recommendations to the Scottish Government about historic marine protected areas, and the Scottish Ministers decide whether to designate.

Listing is the process that identifies, designates and provides statutory protection for buildings of special architectural or historic interest as set out in the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) (Scotland) Act 1997.

HES list buildings which are found to be of special architectural or historic interest using the selection guidance published inDesignation Policy and Selection Guidance (2019) - external link.

About listed building records

Listed building records, like this one, provide an indication of the special architectural or historic interest of the listed building which has been identified by its statutory address. The description and additional information provided are supplementary and have no legal weight.

These records are not definitive historical accounts or a complete description of the building(s). If part of a building is not described it does not mean it is not listed. The format of the listed building record has changed over time. Earlier records may be brief and some information will not have been recorded.

Legal requirements

The legal part of the listing is the address/name of site which is known as the statutory address. Other than the name or address of a listed building, further details are provided for information purposes only.

HES does not accept any liability for any loss or damage suffered as a consequence of inaccuracies in the information provided. Addresses and building names may have changed since the date of listing. Even if a number or name is missing from a listing address it will still be listed.

Listing covers both the exterior and the interior and any object or structure fixed to the building. Listing also applies to buildings or structures not physically attached but which are part of the curtilage (or land) of the listed building as long as they were erected before 1 July 1948.

While HES is responsible for designating listed buildings, the planning authority is responsible for determining what is covered by the listing, including what is listed through curtilage. However, for listed buildings designated or for listings amended from 1 October 2015, legal exclusions to the listing may apply.

If part of a building is not listed, it will say that it is excluded in the statutory address and in the statement of special interest in the listed building record. The statement will use the word ’excluding’ and quote the relevant section of the 1997 Act. Some earlier listed building records may use the word ’excluding’, but if the Act is not quoted, the record has not been revised to reflect subsequent legislation.

Planning and consents

Listed building consentis required for changes to a listed building which affect its character as a building of special architectural or historic interest. The relevant planning authority is the point of contact for applications for listed building consent.

Further information

Searchtrove.scot for information on scheduling andother designationsor visitHistoric Environment Scotland - external link.

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