August 1884 Glen Albyn Plan of Alterations

 

Here we have the oldest site-specific plan relating to Glen Albyn, dating from August 1884, and in doing so, marks the beginning of our exploration of the distillery plans. Thank goodness someone pencilled in the date on the cover of the application, as without it we'd never when these were drawn and submitted for approval. 

The plans drawn up by a firm located on Church Street, Inverness, herald the advent of a new era for the distillery, which ceased operations in 1855 and suffered the loss of all its equipment as a consequence of the stripping of assets undertaken to discharge the debts of its previous proprietor, James Sutherland. A particular character as you can see from my prior research. 

These are a highly distinctive set of plans, particularly in comparison to those of other distilleries in the Inverness area that I have had the opportunity to examine. The document is entitled 'New Distillery Buildings, Muirtown' and its primary focus is to illustrate the location of block drains and floor levels. It seems reasonable that this plan was necessary in order to assess the series of developments that were incoming for Glen Albyn. Given its history as a brewery, a short-lived distillery that burned down, and a maltings that preceded these uses, the distillery is a markedly different site from Glen Mhor, which was specifically designed by Charles C. Doig from the ground up. Glen Albyn, is in comparison a cluster and collection of bygone uses, somehow being fashioned into a new entity.

The year 1884 is of particular significance for Glen Albyn, as it was during this period that the site was purchased by grain merchant A.M. Gregory and the process of reviving the distillery commenced. I'd suggest that's what we have here, and that the plans were intended to establish a foundation for future developments.

The buildings depicted on the top of the plans are presumed to be the original structures, or perhaps more accurately, the surviving structures that have retained their original functions and names.

The 'old stout house' suggests the presence of a former inn of some kind, or even dating back to its original use as a brewery. This structure is an intriguing possibility, and it prompts the question of whether this structure may have been part of the illicit alcohol supply network operated by Mr Sutherland, which was responsible for supplying alcohol to one of his public houses. 

To the right of this is a flour mill, which represents the site's previous use prior to its return to its distilling roots. Immediately behind this is a boiler house with a chimney stack and an engine house on the canal bank side.

To the left of the boiler house is a site that appears to be the suggested location of a new engine house, with a yard in between. This is a replacement structure for the aforementioned original engine house, which is incongruous on the fringes of the site. Moving this back into the centre of the new design would be a logical solution, as it would free up a valuable site on the canal side and more access.

The thick black lines indicate that these were existing buildings constructed from stone. Additionally, there appears to be a wall that extends along the canal bank on the site's periphery. 

It could be argued that the new structures behind these, or those that are drawn as foundations, may be the remnants of the fire in 1849. It is known that rebuilding work was undertaken in 1850 and completed in 1852. However, it is likely that the rebuild was not on the same scale as previously noted. Additionally, it is important to consider Sutherland's finances, which prompted its closure by 1855, partially arguably accelerated by the cost of rebuilding and running a distillery.

Also on the above plans we have either a proposed new structure or the remnants of a prior building, with the lowest floor foundations noted. A further building is similarly noted below this and to the right, another 2 small potential structures. 

The present drains on the site are noted, and the direction of these will also be captured on our next set of plans due for publication shortly, dating from 1892.

The above image is situated on the left-hand side of the plans. The structure, labelled as a new kiln, is situated to the left of the other buildings and is markedly independent, exhibiting the customary thick walls.

The plans appear to indicate the presence of an unnamed room to the right of the structure, the purpose of which is not immediately apparent. Additionally, an open courtyard is situated to the north of the kiln room, with two substantial outer walls depicted as remaining in situ.

Additionally, the outer boundary of the Glen Albyn site on the left is visible, with Inverness Tweed Mills identified as its neighbour. The plans also show a further lower foundation floor behind the kiln room, which is identified as the Receiving House. 

Ultimately, these plans provide a sense of stasis prior to the significant investment from the new ownership, which subsequently transformed the site. 

A reappraisal of the surviving remnant of the original distillery/brewery, unearthed as part of the Caledonian Canal plans dating from 1840-1844, reveals a significant insight into the evolution of the site. The plans illustrate the square dimensions of the site. It is curious to note that a temporary tun room, warehouse and coal store are all situated as separate entities on the Muirtown basin side. Very much away from the main distilling hub and underlining the ramshackle nature of the original site. Unfortunately, these are only replicated by my sketches as I'm unable to publish the original plans, as the Canal & River Trust do not grant such permission, regardless of who you are or how nicely you ask. 

The canal plans also note the length of the Glen Albyn site to be 144 feet along the quayside, unfortunately no depth is provided - presumably canal officials didn't care and focused on the footstep on their waterway. And returning to the 1884 plans, you'll see there's no recording of the building dimensions or sizes. Just a very rough scale guide at the bottom of the plan. However, we can used this and it suggests that the width of the 1884 Glen Albyn site up for planning was approximately 120ft (taking into account the walls extending out from the new kiln building), suggesting that there was more land along the canal bank to be utilised, unless this had been sold off for other purposes. The depth of the site back from the bank would be 140ft, which when I return to the 1840s draft, is roughly the same in terms of result. 

This canal plan underlines the belief that the rebuild James Sutherland undertook was very different to that of the original distillery. Potentially building to the eastern side of the site and only using the open ground that previously didn't house any buildings, as none of the thick black lined structures on these 1884 plans appear on the 1840-1844 documents that I've examined.

Interesting, and let's see where this takes us. 

My thanks to the Highland Archive Centre in Inverness for making these materials available for my research. Their generosity ensures that the wider whisky population can enjoy these resources. Images have been watermarked as agreed.