Basic Site Details

Name: North British Railway Hotel
City or county: Edinburgh
Country: Scotland
Parish:  
Status: B Listed
Grid ref:
Notes: CHECK: the George Arthur Mitchell work may in fact be on a North British Hotel in Fort William (this is suggested by his FRIBA papers, but 'Who's who in architecture 1923' may suggest Edinburgh; ensure that this is correct and any superfluous references are deleted).

Alternative Names

The following alternative names are associated with this building/design:
 NameCurrent name?Notes
Item 1 of 2Balmoral HotelYes 
Item 2 of 2North British Station Hotel  

Building Type Classification

The building is classified under the following categories:
 ClassificationOriginal classification?Notes
Item 1 of 1Hotel  

Street Addresses

The following street addresses are associated with this building:
 AddressMain entrance?Notes
Item 1 of 1North British Station Hotel, Princes StreetYes 

Events

The following date-based events are associated with this building:
 FromToEvent typeNotes
Item 1 of 518951902  
Item 2 of 51895 Competition design 
Item 3 of 515 October 1902 OpenedOpening
Item 4 of 519191920 Restoration
Item 5 of 52011 RehabilitationRefurbishment of 78 bathrooms and 4 cloakrooms. Phase I Completed 2011.

People

Design and Construction

The following individuals or organisations have carried out design/construction work. Where architects or practices worked together, matching letters appear beside their names in the Partnership Group column.
 NameRolePartnership GroupFromToNotes
Item 1 of 20(Sir) Robert Rowand Anderson  1895 Competition design
Item 2 of 20Wardrop & Anderson  1895 Competition design
Item 3 of 20William Leiper  1895 Competition design
Item 4 of 20Andrew Robb Scott A18951902Chief assistant under William Hamilton Beattie and subsequently in partnership with George Lennox Beattie
Item 5 of 20George Beattie & Son A18951902Won competition to secure job
Item 6 of 20James Forbes Smith A1895c. 1896As apprentice to George Beattie & Son - worked on winning competition design
Item 7 of 20William Hamilton Beattie A18951898Won competition to secure job
Item 8 of 20Dunn & Findlay C1895 Competition design
Item 9 of 20James Bow Dunn C1895 Competition design
Item 10 of 20James Leslie Findlay C1895 Competition design
Item 11 of 20(Sir) John James Burnet D1895 Competition design - not successful
Item 12 of 20Burnet Son & Campbell D1895 Competition design - not successful
Item 13 of 20John Archibald Campbell D1895 Competition design - not successful
Item 14 of 20Alexander McRae A18961898As assistant to George Beattie & Son
Item 15 of 20George Lennox Beattie A18981902Took over after the death of his brother William Hamilton Beattie
Item 16 of 20John Sidey A1898 As assistant to Beattie
Item 17 of 20North British Railway Company A18981902 
Item 18 of 20James Dorward A19001902As assistant to North British Railway Company, and presumably in association with George Beattie & Son
Item 19 of 20George Arthur Mitchell  19191920Restoration
Item 20 of 20Comprehensive Design Group B2011 Refurbishment

References

Bibliographic References

The following books contain references to this building:
 Author(s)DateTitlePartPublisherNotes
Item 1 of 8Academy Architecture1895 Supplement pp25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31 (Beattie)
Item 2 of 8Academy Architecture1896 part 1 p73 (Dunn & Findlay)
Item 3 of 8Geddie, John1902Souvenir of the Opening of the North British Station Hotel Edinburgh Edinburgh: Banks and Company 
Item 4 of 8Gifford, John, McWilliam, Colin and Walker, David M1984Edinburgh (The Buildings of Scotland) Harmondsworth: Penguin Books Ltdp285
Item 5 of 8http://www.cda-group.co.uk/projects/hotelleisure/balmoral/2011http://www.cda-group.co.uk/projects/hotelleisure/balmoral/   
Item 6 of 8RSA1895   650 Dunn & Findlay design and 652 (Burnet design)
Item 7 of 8RSA1896   498, 501 Leiper design
Item 8 of 8Who's Who in Architecture1923   Mitchell restoration

Periodical References

The following periodicals contain references to this building:
 Periodical NameDateEditionPublisherNotes
Item 1 of 6British Architect22 February 1895  Artilcle and letter from Anderson
Item 2 of 6British Architect19 April 1895  Burnet design
Item 3 of 6Building News16 October 1896   
Item 4 of 6Building News23 October 1896   
Item 5 of 6Scotsman16 February 1895  Description of W H Beattie's winning design
Item 6 of 6Scotsman14 April 1896   

Archive References

The following archives hold material relating to this building:
 SourceArchive nameSource catalogue no.Notes
Item 1 of 6Edinburgh City ArchivesEdinburgh Dean of Guild 23 July 1896 and 27 October 1897
Item 2 of 6Edinburgh University LibraryAnderson Collection (Plans and drawings)  
Item 3 of 6Historic Environment ScotlandListed Buildings Register30315 
Item 4 of 6National Monuments Record of Scotland/NMRS, RCAHMSDunn and Findlay Collection EDD/171/3-17 for Dunn and Findlay competition entry.
Item 5 of 6RIAS Collection, NMRS, RCAHMSAnderson scrapbook  
Item 6 of 6RIBA Archive, Victoria & Albert MuseumRIBA Nomination Papers George Lennox Beattie: F v17 p68 no1130 (microfilm reel 12); Alexander McRae: L v19 no1442; George Arthur Mitchell: F no1964 (microfilm reel 16); John Sidey: L v15 no1022; James Forbes Smith: L v11 no656 (microfilm reel 33)