Balrossie School, Kilmalcom

Another visit on a recent road trip with JFRsteve, also met up with UAPScotland.com (Excellent Site) and a Fake Snowman.

The day turned up being pretty miserable with pouring rain to start the explore, and got soaking wet on the hike to this explore!

Balrossie School was originally built as an orphanage by The Sailors Orphans Society of Scotland. It was designed by Glasgow Architect, David Barclay and built in 1898-1899. Money to build the orphanage was raised by various donors and was designed to home 82 boys and 32 girls.

It remained an orphanage until the 1930's, when it was purchased by The Boys Brigade and utilised as a training centre. In the 1960's, it was converted to a List D, residential school for boys. The school closed in 1997 and has been on the market for sale with planning consent for a large housing scheme.

Maison Dieu Church, Brechin - Sept 2012

After visiting a nearby Asylum this was a quick explore on the way home, JFR420 and and myself waited for a good opportunity too see if access to the imposing church was possible.  It is situated on a busy road surrounded by overlooking neighbours, we took a brief opportunity with the passing traffic and got into the site.  Finding an access point was a different story, never have I had to clamber through as much brambles, nettles and thistles before and they hurt, we were in!

Maison Dieu is a Former Church of Scotland Property built in 1891 by Architect Sir George Washington Browne.

The church has lain empty since the 1980's and in surprisingly good condition externally, unfortunately with it being on a busy road we didn't stop to take externals before going in, and by the time we came out it was dark.  Another visit maybe required!

The church was sold in 2004 to a private developer who applied for planning permission to convert the church into residential accommodation.  The developer went into liquidation sometime in between 2009 and 2011 with the property being back on the market for sale.

The main church chapel, this is laden with pigeon sh!t so if attempting a visit make sure you wear a mask!  Someone has been making passageways through it all though!

A very cool and impressive Chandelier 

Few shots of the upper balcony level.

Rear halls

A very interesting item, the Hood & Bisset Automatic Dart Counter

Couple of old school record players

Brunswick Bing Crosby Record

Glen o' Dee, Banchory - August 2012

The original building was built in 1900 and started its life as Nordrach on Dee Hospital, a sanctuary for tuberculosis patients. When TB died down it served as a luxury hotel (when it became "Glen O' Dee"), but was taken over during the war to serve as a billet for troops. It reprised its role in contagious diseases when the typhoid epidemic hit nearby Aberdeen in the 1960s, but its last use was as a residential home for the elderly. The original building closed in 1998, when a new purpose built building was built on the same site.

  

 

Polphail Village - Sept 2012

The small abandoned village called Polphail was built during the early 1970s to provide accommodation for up to 500 workers at a nearby oil platform construction yard in Portavadie.  Unfortunately the yard was never completed  and the village then lay dorment having never been occupied.

There have been development plans brought to thetable including demolishing the site for a new marina, however due this was abandoned due to bats roosting there, although I never saw any!