Basic Site Details

Name: Edinburgh Royal Lunatic Asylum
City or county: Edinburgh
Country: Scotland
Parish:  
Status:  
Grid ref:
Notes: See separate entry for its predecessor, also the Edinburgh Royal Lunatic Asylum

Alternative Names

The following alternative names are associated with this building/design:
 NameCurrent name?Notes
Item 1 of 5MacKinnon HouseYes 
Item 2 of 5Morningside AsylumYes 
Item 3 of 5Royal Edinburgh Hospital for Mental Disorders  
Item 4 of 5Royal Morningside AsylumYes 
Item 5 of 5West HouseYes 

Building Type Classification

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

Street Addresses

The following street addresses are associated with this building:
 AddressMain entrance?Notes
Item 1 of 2Morningside TerraceYes 
Item 2 of 2Royal Edinburgh Hospital/ 23, Tipperlin RoadYes 

Events

The following date-based events are associated with this building:
 FromToEvent typeNotes
Item 1 of 1718391842 Original building
Item 2 of 176 August 1842 OpenedOpened; only central block and east range built
Item 3 of 171845  Addition
Item 4 of 1718521857 Completion of W range of Burn's incomplete hospital and addition of wash-house at West House, kitchen at East House, octagonal building, and separate building for noisy patients
Item 5 of 171858  Westerley House and laundry
Item 6 of 17Before 1861  Addition of laundry and block for refractory patients, HS gives date as 1852
Item 7 of 171867  North west range
Item 8 of 17May 1868  Plans for alterations and improvements drawn up
Item 9 of 171874  New wing
Item 10 of 17c. 1883  Alterations
Item 11 of 171912  Nurses home, new quadrangular pavilion
Item 12 of 171936  Further work
Item 13 of 1715 April 1960 Proposedextension - not started as of 1 Dec 1959; £601,000 est. expenditure to complete work per Builder p747
Item 14 of 1730 September 1960 Scheme accepted£500,000 extension to West House and Jordanburn hospitals approved last week, scheduled complete by 1964; professorial unit also to be built on site within the next 2 years per Builder p636
Item 15 of 171 December 1960 Plans prepared, construction not yet begunfor extension to Royal Edinburgh Mental Hospital; £620,000 (total estimated cost - equipment costs not known), £54,000 (probable expenditure to March 31, 1961), £100,000 (estimated expenditure in 1961-62) per Builder 14 Apr 1961 p721
Item 16 of 171 December 1960 Plans prepared, construction not yet begunfor professorial unit at Royal Edinburgh Mental Hospital; £130,000 (total estimated cost - equipment costs not known), nil (probable expenditure to March 31, 1961), £5,000 (estimated expenditure in 1961-62) per Builder 14 Apr 1961 p721
Item 17 of 171969 Alterations and additionsWard upgrading

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 27William BurnArchitectA18391842Original building
Item 2 of 27Burn & BryceArchitectural practiceB1845 Addition
Item 3 of 27David BryceArchitectB1845 Addition
Item 4 of 27William BurnArchitectB1845 Addition
Item 5 of 27David BryceArchitectC18521857Completion of W range of Burn's incomplete hospital and addition of wash-house at West House, kitchen at East House, octagonal building, and separate building for noisy patients
Item 6 of 27David BryceArchitectD1858 Westerley House
Item 7 of 27David BryceArchitectEBefore 1861 Addition of laundry and block for refractory patients, Mackinnon House
Item 8 of 27Robert PatersonArchitectF1867 North west range
Item 9 of 27William Lambie Moffatt (originally William Lambie Moffat)ArchitectL1868 Alterations and improvements
Item 10 of 27William Lambie Moffatt (originally William Lambie Moffat)ArchitectG1874 New wing
Item 11 of 27John HuttonArchitectIc. 1883 Alterations
Item 12 of 27Knox & HuttonArchitectural practiceIc. 1883 Alterations
Item 13 of 27William Knox (or Wilm Knox?)ArchitectIc. 1883 Alterations
Item 14 of 27Henry & MaclennanArchitectural practiceJ1912 Nurses home, new quadrangular pavilion
Item 15 of 27James Macintyre HenryArchitectJ1912 Nurses home, new quadrangular pavilion
Item 16 of 27Thomas Forbes MaclennanArchitectJ1912 Nurses home, new quadrangular pavilion
Item 17 of 27Frank Coutts WebsterArchitectKc. 1920c. 1930Plans for outpatient clinic, teaching unit - perhaps at Royal Edinburgh?
Item 18 of 27Auldjo Jamieson & ArnottArchitectural practiceLc. 1923 Alterations - verandahs, kitchen etc
Item 19 of 27Ernest Arthur Oliphant Auldjo JamiesonArchitectLc. 1923 Alterations - verandahs, kitchen etc
Item 20 of 27James Alexander ArnottArchitectLc. 1923 Alterations - verandahs, kitchen etc
Item 21 of 27David John ChisholmArchitectL1936 Further work?
Item 22 of 27Dick Peddie, Todd & JamiesonArchitectural practiceL1936 Further work?
Item 23 of 27George Lindsay Auldjo JamiesonArchitectL1936 Further work?
Item 24 of 27William James Walker ToddArchitectL1936 Further work?
Item 25 of 27South East Regional Hospital Board, Architect's Department (or South Eastern Hospital Board)Architectural Department (New Towns etc) 30 September 1960 J. Holt, Board's chief architect announced extension work and professorial unit per Builder p636
need to CHECK role
Item 26 of 27Alan Reiach Eric Hall & PartnersArchitectural practiceM1969 Ward upgrading - with James Stewart Renton as partner in charge
Item 27 of 27James Stuart RentonArchitectM1969 Ward upgrading - partner in charge

Clients

The following individuals or organisations have commissioned work on this building/design:
 NameNotes
Item 1 of 1Morningside Asylum Managers 

Related Buildings, Structures and Designs

Child Structures

This structure or site has the following component or child structures (click on an item to view details):
 Building NameNotes
Item 1 of 3Morningside Asylum, Jordanburn Lecture Hall, West House 
Item 2 of 3Royal Edinburgh Hospital, adolescent unit 
Item 3 of 3Royal Edinburgh Hospital, University of Edinburgh, Department of Psychiatry 

References

Bibliographic References

The following books contain references to this building:
 Author(s)DateTitlePartPublisherNotes
Item 1 of 5Colvin, Howard2008A Biographical Dictionary of British Architects 1600-1840 London: YUP. 4th edition 
Item 2 of 5Darragh, Alison2011Prison or Palace? Heaven or Hell? An architectural and social study of the development of public lunatic asylums in Scot Unpublished PhD thesis, University of St Andrewsvol 1, pp 72-4, 184-6
vol 2, p 350 (dining hall)
vol 3, pp 65-8
Item 3 of 5Gifford, John, McWilliam, Colin and Walker, David M1984Edinburgh (The Buildings of Scotland) Harmondsworth: Penguin Books Ltdp620
Item 4 of 5Richardson, HarrietN.D.Scottish Hospitals Survey Unpublished typescript (copy in DMW Archive)Listed as Royal Edinburgh Hospital
Item 5 of 5Royal Edinburgh Hospital Royal Edinburgh Hospital annual reports   

Periodical References

The following periodicals contain references to this building:
 Periodical NameDateEditionPublisherNotes
Item 1 of 5Architect and Building News1934Jan-Jun p22
Item 2 of 5Architect and Building News1936Jul-Dec p227
Item 3 of 5Builder15 April 1960  'The Week in Parliament: The Hospital Building Programme' pp746-747; summarizes expenditure on hospital buildings as published in 1960-61 Civil Estimates for the National Health Service of England, Wales and Scotland, published on March 29; 17 Scottish schemes already in progress as of 1 Dec 1959, 8 works not started in Dec are reported in Builder article
Item 4 of 5Builder30 September 1960  'Hospital Extensions, Edinburgh' p636
Item 5 of 5Builder14 April 1961  'Civil Estimates, 1961-62: Health Estimates, The Scottish Estimates' p721

Archive References

The following archives hold material relating to this building:
 SourceArchive nameSource catalogue no.Notes
Item 1 of 8Edinburgh City ArchivesEdinburgh Dean of Guild  
Item 2 of 8Historic Environment ScotlandListed Buildings Register27718 
Item 3 of 8Lothian Health Board/Edinburgh Univ, Spec Collns …Lothian Health Board Archives Plans, Annual Reports and Minutes
Item 4 of 8National Archives of Scotland (formerly SRO)Register House PlansRHP 93765 
Item 5 of 8National Archives of Scotland (formerly SRO)William Lambie Moffatt Cash Book 1859-1881 GD 1/412/1 p14
Item 6 of 8National Monuments Record of Scotland/NMRS, RCAHMSSydney Mitchell & Wilson Collection SMW 1880/34/1-21 (the reference is for work by Bryce, Knox & Hutton, Jamieson & Arnott etc)
Item 7 of 8RIBA Archive, Victoria & Albert MuseumRIBA Nomination PapersF no6844 (Combined Box 163)Fellowship paper
Item 8 of 8Royal Edinburgh Infirmary ArchivesAsylum Minute and Report Books 1850-1867