This looks like an art gallery or
a grand public building in the Baroque style but was originally a car factory. It was constructed in
1905/6 to house Argyll Motors. At the time it was the biggest car factory in
Europe. The company went bust in 1914 and it became a munitions factory in the
First World War.
It was empty for most of the
interwar period before becoming a torpedo factory in 1937 until the '50's. In
the '60's it is said to have housed "Chevaline" - a secret nuclear weapons project. The
building lay empty between the early '70's and 1997 when it reopened as
shopping centre now called "Lomond Galleries"
Wasn't there a motor museum in this building about 20 years ago? I seem to remember visiting one there or thereabouts with either the MZ or Trabant club.
ReplyDeleteThere was a museum of Argyll cars in the basement until 2007.
ReplyDeleteThat'll be the one then. I had forgotten all about that trip until I saw your photos.
ReplyDelete