SUNNYBRAE COTTAGE HISTORIC ENVIRONMENT SCOTLAND STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE

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1 Property in Care (PIC) ID: PIC044 Designations: Listed Building (LB39866, Category A) Taken into State care: 1998 (Ownership) Last reviewed: 2005 HISTORIC ENVIRONMENT SCOTLAND STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE SUNNYBRAE COTTAGE We continually revise our Statements of Significance, so they may vary in length, format and level of detail. While every effort is made to keep them up to date, they should not be considered a definitive or final assessment of our properties. Historic Environment Scotland Scottish Charity No. SC Principal Office: Longmore House, Salisbury Place, Edinburgh EH9 1SH

2 Historic Environment Scotland Scottish Charity No. SC Principal Office: Longmore House, Salisbury Place, Edinburgh EH9 1SH

3 SUNNYBRAE COTTAGE BRIEF DESCRIPTION Sunnybrae Cottage stands at the junction of Atholl Road and Larchwood Road at the west end of Pitlochry. It consists of a small cottage of rectangular plan, built of lime-washed rubble. Although apparently of late eighteenth or early nineteenthcentury date in its present state, it may incorporate earlier structures. The cottage has a double pitched roof, which is now covered by red painted corrugated metal, beneath the metal is the remnants of the cottage s last thatched roof, which was supported by two cruck frames. The main facade has a central doorway flanked by a single window on each side. Internally the main body of the cottage was divided into three compartments by timber partitions, (but is likely originally to have been of two main compartments). At the rear is a modern offshoot containing a kitchen and bathroom. The cottage had timber sheds at the side of the house and lies within rubble boundary walls surrounding the small garden to south and east. CHARACTER OF THE MONUMENT Historical Overview Because of the modest nature of the house its history is elusive and little is known of the origins. According to the 1841 census, it was part of the estate of Archibald Butter of Pitlochry (Faskally Estate) and was occupied by Alexander Scott, farmer and distiller, his wife and daughter, plus four others, all either labourers or servants. By 1871 Arthur Anderson, Inspector General of Hospitals had bought the land including the cottage and erected Sunnybrae House to the NW; feued to Anderson from Archibald Butter of Faskally. By which time the tenants of the cottage were Alexander Strang and his wife and daughter, plus one farm servant. John Ward, the gardener of Sunnybrae House lived in the Cottage in 1881 and had passed the tenancy to his 18-year old son a decade later. He and his 14-year old sister were mill-workers and had to support their mother and three brothers and sisters. In 1896 David Murie Stewart purchased the estate and it remained in his ownership until sold to Thomas M Nisbet. Donald Cameron and his wife Ann were tenants. Some time after 1900, Donald died leaving first his wife and then their daughter, Annie, to keep the cottage until It then stood empty for a year, the final recorded tenant was Annie MacDonald It was only in 1945 that the property was sold separately from Sunnybrae House, when Jane MacDonald, the wife of a painter in Pitlochry, purchased it outright. 1/4

4 In 1986 John MacDonald acquired the house and after his death, Historic Scotland bought the cottage in During the MacDonalds ownership, Sunnybrae became bed and breakfast accommodation during the summer as well as a family house. Archaeological Overview Sunnybrae Cottage appears on the 1st edition OS map when it is attached to a building running to the north in the position of the first house in Larchwood Road (and possible surviving as part of the existing house in that location). This indicates that the cottage may have had a yard and associated buildings to the north. Sunnybrae is a now rare vernacular building of a type whose form and construction was once very common. It has changed over the years to meet the aspirations and requirements of its different owners and inhabitants. Because little detailed study of such structures had taken place in the past, when Sunnybrae was offered for sale in 1997 it was seen consciously as an opportunity to examine in considerable detail the construction methods and materials used on a building of this type. The painstaking work of investigating the structure of the building has revealed several periods of build, each of which has been archaeologically recorded and partially or wholly removed in order to gain as complete a picture of the buildings history as is possible. An analysis of the timber of the roof was unable to provide a secure date, but did identify species for the major elements of the structure. Externally, only small-scale excavation, including trenching for power cables and to assess the potential for archaeology on the site west of the house, where Grandad s Hut stood and the likely site of any additional building at the monument. Artistic/Architectural Overview A small traditional whitewashed rubble cottage of rectangular plan, single storey, 3-bay, centre doorway, small windows with modern glazing and end stacks. When it came into care Sunnybrae Cottage survived in a late twentieth century condition, with all of the internal wall surfaces and ceiling covered with plasterboard over a complete timber lining. The finest feature of the cottage is the roof. It is formed by two sets of Highland Couples ( ceangail or crucks ) of ash, each pair is a single timber cut along its length (only 3 of the 4 survive intact) The apex of the blades are joined by a short collar that forms a saddle into which the main ridge or roof tree sits. Supported on the crucks are three sets of roundtimber purlins, mostly doubled, on which rest cabair or thin branches of unhewn birch and pine; these timbers are overlain by tough overlapping divots of turf or sgrathan, topped with alternating layers of rye and turf. This would have been regularly top-dressed with additional straw as well as requiring annual repair and frequent replacement. 2/4

5 Both chimneys are now solid built, but at the west end the remnants of the hanging lum are still retained within the thatch. Both gables have several stones protruding in roughly symmetrical fashion, these may have been footholds to assist with the regular returfing and repairs to the roof. Archaeology has identified several phases of build, including:- a. A highland house formed with stone footings, turf walls and thatched cruck roof structure. Little is known of the layout internally but it may have had a central hearth. There is no clear dating but it is assumed to be 18 th century. b. 19 th C, early improved house, turf walls replaced with walls of claymortared stone masonry, the insertion of a canopy chimney [or hanging lum] at the west end and with a halan or screen forming a partial division of the space and a mezzanine floor over the east end lit by a small window in the east gable. c. Later improved house, externally the building attains the form it has today, raising the skews and covering the thatch with corrugated iron. Internal timber lining inserted and the space divided into 3 rooms and a lobby. d. 20 th century extension and internal plumbing. A small brick extension was added about 1950 to accommodate a bathroom and kitchen to the north of the cottage, the insertion of its door into the cottage removed the wall section of the north west cruck blade. Social Overview Local interest in Sunnybrae Cottage is very strong, in particular the local history society have been very supportive and interested in developments throughout the project. It is local tradition that Sunnybrae Cottage was the site of a murder in the 18 th century. Stewart of Bonskeid and his brother-in-law Stewart of Shierglass, were among a group of men drinking in an illicit alcohol store in the house, when a brawl broke out and Bonskeid was stabbed in the chest. This event was recorded as taking place at the west end of Pitlochry, but it is not possible to verify its connection with Sunnybrae Cottage. Information about the recent history of the cottage has been gathered from local visitors to the cottage. Spiritual Overview None known Aesthetic Overview Viewed from outside, Sunnybrae is a picturesque sight with its limewashed walls and red-painted roof. In its setting at the end of the, largely 19 th and 20 th century, main street in Pitlochry it adds a charming antique air. Just before it was acquired the interior was described as exhibiting little of interest, being lined and furnished in later 20 th century style. Currently the internal aesthetic of the cottage is a guddle of periods and variously 3/4

6 exposed building elements, with the smell of the fire and the blackening of the roof timbers What are the major gaps in understanding of the property? There are very considerable gaps in our knowledge, because of its modest origins little is known of the early history of the house, access to the Butter of Faskely archive could provide vital background. ASSESSMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE Key points Sunnybrae Cottage represents the type of house that was once very common in upland Scotland. Sunnybrae tells the structural story of cruck frame cottages, while houses with more complete interiors, like Morlanich can be used to illustrate internal fittings much more clearly. The cruck roof provides an excellent opportunity to examine in detail the structure of roofs of this type. Evidence charting the complex history of this simple building survives and can be interpreted. Sunnybrae is one of the oldest buildings in Pitlochry and its history reflects the prosperity and development of the town. Associated Properties Campserney Longhouse, Morlanich, Killin, Bridge of Brown (Now gone), Highland Folk Park, Auchindrain Township, Argyll, Arnol Blackhouse is an island vernacular house of similar period Keywords sgrathan, Cruck, thatch, halan, cottage, hanging lum, corrugated iron, ceangail, 4/4