Building record MAB37649 - BALNACRAIG HOUSE

House, walled garden and possible site of manor.

House, walled garden and possible site of manor. Now known as Balnacraig Farmhouse, the house is a plain rectangular non-castellated 'Laird's House', the building has been considerably altered with a large shed being built in the middle of the open court. The existing house probably occupies the site of a manor belonging to the Chalmers. The central 5-bay farmhouse (Listed) forms the oldest part of the structure built in the 17th century with later 18th century wings on either side forming U-plan open courtyard. The central 2 storey structure is harled with stone margins and has a rubble base course with chamfered reveals. It has five bays with a graded grey slate roof with stone and terracotta ridges, regular fenestration with 6-pane sash and case windows and a central attic gablehead. Corniced, harled gablehead stacks with circular and octagonal cans. Cast-iron rainwater goods. The west face of the south wing contains a blocked archway with a datestone of 1755 above it. The walled garden and gate piers are included within the Listing. There are random rubble boundary walls with flat coping to the west and east of house, and a lean-to structure built into wall to east. Low rubble walls advance to south of the house with 2 V-jointed, square-plan gatepiers to each wall surmounted by spherical finials with spherical finial capped uprights along top of walls. Renovation works to the house between November 2002 and September 2003 enabled analytical assessment which identified three main phases: the original mansion and two flanking wings, a major reordering of circa 1800 (including reconstruction of the west wing), and a further remodelling associated with tenant farmer occupation in the earlier 20th century.

Period Notes
House listed 24/11/1972, steading listed 30/03/2000. On the site of a possible manor. The house was built in 1673 and steading 1735; 3 principal phases; 18thC wings added later. Cattle court early 19thC. Reconstruction of west wing c.1800. Further remodel early 20thC.

GR/04/CT49-67, 73-76, GR/04/CT49-67, 73-76 (Ground Photograph). SAB37003.

MACGIBBON, D, 1892, THE CASTELLATED AND DOMESTIC ARCHITECTURE OF SCOTLAND, 1-5, VOL 2, 463 (Bibliographic reference). SAB1140.

Feb 10 2011 , AAS/2011/1/DG3007, AAS/2011/1/DG3007 (Air-oblique Photograph). SAB13187.

Jun 17 2004 , AAS-GR-04-06-017 - 025, AAS-GR-04-06-017 - 025 (Ground Photograph). SAB35714.

SDD, n.d., BLDS OF ARCH & HIST INTEREST, ABOYNE 10 (Bibliographic reference). SAB1827.

Author unknown, n.d., NSA, No12(1842) 1056 (Bibliographic reference). SAB1269.

Record last edited

Nov 13 2025 3:22PM