The Crichton Site

A Victorian hospital with a difference, the Crichton was founded by Mrs Elizabeth Crichton in memory of her husband, an East India Company doctor. It came to boast its own ballroom, 85 acres of grounds laid out with seed and cuttings from The Royal Botanic gardens, Edinburgh, and its own water and electricity supply. The Crichton still surprises today, as its transformation into a modern facility for learning and enterprise continues.

Take a tour, visit the buildings and finish with some refreshment at AY-JAY's cafe grill bar. Buildings include: 1. The Crichton Royal Museum, Easterbrook Hall (1934-38) The Museum charts the history of the Crichton Royal Hospital. Exhibits include a world-class collection of 19C patients' paintings, and a 1930s operating theatre where brain surgerywas performed. 2. Rutherford/McCowan Building Imaginative glass, sandstone and stainless steel link building by Page and Park in association with Robert Potter and Partners transforms art deco McCowan House and architect Sydney Mitchell's Rutherford House, to create Crichton College for the University of Glasgow. 3. Maxwell House Originally designed as a convalescent men's ward before World War I, Maxwell House is today part of Dumfries' own university campus, run by the University of Paisley in association with Dumfries and Galloway College. Visit the Internet Suite. 4. Crichton Hall The earliest building on the Crichton site. Begun in 1835 to plans by architect William Burn, and finished in 1839, with later additions. Features notable octagon design.