Last week Sue and I stayed in Alison’s apartment within the impressive building called Marine House, overlooking the golf course in Montrose. It’s an impressive building, dating from 1907, when it was built as an hotel.
However the site has been occupied by buildings for much longer than that. In 1781 the town of Montrose was unique among Scottish towns and cities in being the first to have an asylum for the insane. The Montrose Lunatic Asylum, Infirmary and Dispensary was completed after the institution of a subscription by local woman Mrs Susan Carnegie of Charleton, following concerns about "mad people being kept in a prison in the middle of the street".
It was described as "a house and garden in the links of Montrose". It occupied the site now bounded by Barrack Road, Ferry Road and Garrison Road, approximately where Marine House and the Fire Station now stand. A plaque to mark the site was mounted on the wall of the first Marine Hotel, which was apparently originally the Physician Superintendent's house, but unfortunately this building was demolished a few years ago and the whereabouts of the plaque is unknown.
The second, and current, Marine Hotel is a large gabled 2-storey, attic and basement, tall 3-bay house with extensive 4-storey and attic wings to the rear forming approximate an L-plan.
Alison’s and other apartments now occupy the large wings to the rear.
It’s a Listed Building, the current Category 3 listing arising from the interest of the east facing house, surprisingly vertical, and disguising the expanse behind, as pictured below (with thanks to Pinterest for this picture).
Thanks again to Alison for her generous loan of the apartment.
The above information is all I could find on Marine House. It is scant and slightly contradictory. Were there really two Marine Hotels? Any further information would be gratefully received.
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