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In Memoriam St. Nicholas House 1970-2011
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In Memoriam St. Nicholas House 1970-2011

Online Exhibitions
David Oswald
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In Memoriam St. Nicholas House 1970-2011
Online Exhibitions
In Memoriam St. Nicholas House 1970-2011
The plans for the St. Nicholas House development of municipal offices were given the go-ahead by the city council as early as February 1961 but it was not until 1st May 1970 that the building was officially opened by the Secretary of State for Scotland, William Ross.

As the development took shape, in the late Sixties, much comment in the local press was favorable, emphasizing the advantages of gathering many civic services, which had, hitherto, been spread over town, in one place, and appreciating the sleek contemporary design of the tower block. "I had no idea that Aberdeen had anything on this scale" a visitor from London said to me the other day, gazing up in admiration at the white cliff of St. Nicholas House (reporter in the Press and Journal, 13 December 1968).

This has to be contrasted, however, with the comment of a former City Librarian, Marcus Milne, who described St. Nicholas House as "a complete blot on the landscape" (Evening Express, 3 April 1969). It is fair to say that, over the intervening years, the majority of citizens, who had views on the subject at all, probably sided with Marcus Milne.

They preferred to regard St. Nicholas House, particularly the high rise tower block, as a "blot on the landscape" rather than as a light, elegant example of mid 20th Century modernism yielding a striking contrast to the older, substantial, granite buildings of Marischal College and Provost Skene's House in the immediate vicinity.

Whichever side one might take on this debate, the fact remains that, for some decades, the tower became a familiar landmark, clearly identifiable from a number of locations throughout the city.

City Architects Office, City Architect, George Keith. Job Architect, with main responsibility George Malcolm Heddle. Builder, Alexander Hall & Son (builders) Ltd.

Photographs by Roddy Millar
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