Lerwick Old Tolbooth

The first tolbooth on Commercial Street was completed in the 17th century. By the mid-18th century, the old tolbooth had become dilapidated and the Commissioners of Supply decided to procure a new building on the same site. The foundation stone for the new building was laid in June 1767. It was designed in the Scottish medieval style, built by Robert and James Forbes in stone with a cement render finish and was completed in 1770. The design involved a symmetrical main frontage of five bays facing onto Commercial Street. The centre bay featured a short flight of steps leading up to a doorway with a stone surround and a cornice. The other bays on the ground floor and all the bays on the first…