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Broad Street, St Magnus Cathedral, (Cathedral Church of St Magnus the Martyr), (Church of Scotland), Including Boundary Walls, Railings, Graveyard and War MemorialBroad Street, St Magnus Cathedral, (Cathedral Church of St Magnus the Martyr), (Church of Scotland), Including Boundary Walls, Railings, Graveyard and War Memorial · Photo: Stevekeiretsu · CC BY-SA 3.0
–Not graded
History of Kirkwall · Historic Environment Scotland

186 listed buildings, 2 of them in the top category

On the Historic Environment Scotland list, all of them stand inside Kirkwall’s locality, 252 for every 10,000 residents. It also has 4 scheduled monuments. We have photos of 26 of its listed buildings.

2Category A101Category B4scheduled monuments21on Victoria Street
Listed buildings
186
252 per 10,000 residents
Category A
2
national importance
Category B
101
regional importance
Scheduled monuments
4
nationally important sites
In pictures

Kirkwall in 26 photos

Tap a photo to step through them full screen.

Earl's Palace, KirkwallEarl's Palace, KirkwallScheduled monumentHarbour Street, The Kirkwall HotelHarbour Street, The Kirkwall HotelCategory B listed1 Junction Road, The Orkney Wireless Museum1 Junction Road, The Orkney Wireless MuseumCategory C listedBignold Park PavilionBignold Park PavilionCategory C listedKirkwall Sheriff Court and Justice of the Peace Court and former Prison/Police Station, including boundary walls, gatepiers and railings, and excluding flat-roofed garage addition to south, Watergate,Kirkwall Sheriff Court and Justice of the Peace Court and former Prison/Police Station, including boundary walls, gatepiers and railings, and excluding flat-roofed garage addition to south, Watergate,Category C listed+21See all photos

Photos from Wikimedia Commons and Geograph, copied to our own server, each credited to its photographer with its licence; names open the building’s page or its official list entry.

The map

Where Kirkwall’s history is

Every Category A and B building, monument and historic park.

Bishop's Palace, Kirkwall, scheduled monumentEarl's Palace, Kirkwall, scheduled monumentGrain Earth House and Grainbank, two souterrains, Hatston, scheduled monumentPickaquoy,burnt mound & settlement, scheduled monumentAyre Road, Grainbank House, Including Ancillary Range and Walled Garden, Category BBerstane Doocot, Category BBerstane Road, Papdale House, Category BBerstane Road, Papdale House, Walled Garden Including Doocot, Category BBroad Street, Town Hall, Category BBuilding in Victoria Street Attached to Rear of 8 Clay Loan, Category BDundas Crescent, St Olaf's Church, (Episcopalian), Including Boundary Walls, Gatepiers and Railings, Category BEast Road, Alton House, Including Boundary Walls, Category BEast Road, Daisybank House, Including Boundary Walls and Gatepiers, Category BHarbour Street, Former Fish Processing Plant, Category BHarbour Street, The Ayre Hotel, Category BHarbour Street, The Kirkwall Hotel, Category BLaing Street, Kirkwall Public Library, Category BMill Street, Garmisgarth, Including Boundary Wall, Category BQueen Street and Bridge Street Wynd, Former Storehouse, Category BSchool Place, Orkney Islands Council Offices, Formerly Kirkwall Grammar School, Including Boundary Walls, Category BSchool Place, Paterson Church/East Church, Including Boundary Walls and Railings, Category BThe Strynd Walls Including Store House, South Side, Category BThe Strynd, The Strynd Tea Rooms, Category BWatergate Street and Victoria Road, Colwyn, Including Boundary Walls and Railings, Category B1 and 2 Spence's Square, Category B1-6 (Inclusive Numbers) the Strynd, North Side, Category B1-9 (Odd Numbers) Cromwell Road, Category B10 King Street, Including Boundary Walls, Category B12 Clay Loan, Category B12 High Street, Category B12 Wellington Street, Including Boundary Walls, Category B12 and 14 Queen Street, Including Boundary Walls and Railings, Category B13 Bridge Street, The Orcadian Offices, Category B13 and 14 St Catherine's Place, Category B14 Main Street, The West End Hotel, Including Railings, Category B14 Victoria Street, Category B14 Wellington Street, Category B15 and 17 Bridge Street, Category B15-18 (Inclusve Numbers) St Catherine's Place, Category B16-18 (Even Numbers) Shore Street, 'John Pottinger's House', Category B18 East Road, Including Boundary Walls, Category B18 and 20 Wellington Street, Category B19 and 20 St Catherine's Place, Including Ancillary Building, Category B19-23 (Odd Numbers) Victoria Street, Category B2 King Street, Including Boundary Walls and Gatepiers, Category B2-4 (Even Numbers) Wellington Street, Including Ancillary Building and Boundary Walls, Category B20 Albert Street, Category B20 Harbour Street, Girnel Keeper's House, Category B20-22 (Even Numbers) Bridge Street, Category B21 and 22 St Catherine's Place, Including Ancillary Buildings, Category B21 and 23 Bridge Street, Including Boundary Walls and Railings, Category B22 Harbour Street, The Girnel House, Category B22 Shore Street, 'Tounigar', Category B22-26 (Even Numbers) Victoria Street, Category B23 Main Street, Category B23 and 24 St Catherine's Place, Including Ancillary Building, Category B24 Bridge Street, Including Arch from St Olaf's Church, Category B25 Main Street, Category B25 Victoria Street, Category B25 and 26 St Catherine's Place, Including Ancillary Building, Category B27 Victoria Street, Category B28, 28A and 28B Main Street, Category B29 Victoria Street, Category B3 Main Street, Category B3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 Spence's Square, Category B30 Wellington Street, Category B31 and 33 Bridge Street, Category B32 Broad Street and 1 Palace Road, Category B33 Albert Street, The Old Custom House, Including Boundary Walls and Railings, Category B34 Albert Street, Category B34 Wellington Street, Category B36 Broad Street, (Former Grammar School), Category B37-39 (Odd Numbers) Victoria Street, Category B4 Broad Street, Category B43 Albert Street (II), Category B43 Albert Street, (I), Patrick Traill's House, Including Boundary Walls, Category B5 Broad Street, (Formerly Provost Riddoch's House), Including Boundary Walls, Gatepiers and Railings, Category B5 Main Street, Category B5 School Place, Including Boundary Walls, Category B51 Victoria Street, Category B54 Clay Loan, Including Boundary Walls and Railings, Category B54-56 Victoria Street, Category B56 Albert Street, Bank of Scotland, Category B6 Broad Street, Orkney Tourist Board, Category B6 Nicolson Street, Including Boundary Walls, Category B6 Union Street, Category B6 Watergate Street, The Old Manse, Including Boundary Walls and Railings, Category B6 and 8 King Street, Including Ancillary Building, Boundary Walls and Railings, Category B6 and 8 Wellington Street, Category B60 Albert Street and 2 Broad Street, Category B60 Victoria Street, Category B61 Victoria Street and 2-8 (Even Numbers) Gunn's Close, Category B62 and 64 Victoria Street, Category B7 Bridge Street, Category B79 and 81 Victoria Street, Category B8 Albert Street, Former Commercial Bank, Category B8 Broad Street, Category B8 Clay Loan, Category B8 Old Scapa Road Including Boundary Walls and Railings, Category B83 Victoria Street, Category B86 Victoria Street, Category B87 Victoria Street, Category B9 King Street, Including Ancillary Building, Boundary Walls, Gatepiers and Railings, Category B9-12 (Inclusive Numbers) St Catherine's Place, Category B91 Victoria Street, Including Boundary Walls, Category BBroad Street, St Magnus Cathedral, (Cathedral Church of St Magnus the Martyr), (Church of Scotland), Including Boundary Walls, Railings, Graveyard and War Memorial, Category A35-39 (Odd Numbers), And Number 41 Broad Street, The Orkney Museum, Including Garden Walls, Category A
Category ACategory BScheduled monument

Hover a dot for its name; tap one with a photo to open it.

186 listed buildings by grade
2 Category A101 Category B83 Category C

Historic Environment Scotland lists buildings in three categories: Category A for buildings of national or international importance (about 7.5% of listed buildings), Category B for buildings of regional importance (about 50%), and Category C for buildings of local importance (about 43%). Listing protects the whole building, inside and out.

Every entry on Historic Environment Scotland’s designations whose point lies inside the NRS 2022 locality boundary. One list entry can cover a terrace or a group of buildings.

Category A

The 2 Category A listed buildings in Kirkwall

Buildings of national or international importance, about 7.5% of all listed buildings. 1 is photographed. Each opens its own page, with the official list entry.

Category B

The 101 Category B listed buildings in Kirkwall

Buildings of regional importance. 22 are photographed.

Show the other 89
House · listed 19718 Clay LoanPhoto: Stevekeiretsu · CC BY-SA 3.0
Historic streets

Victoria Street has the most listed buildings

Streets by the listed entries with an address on them. One entry can be a whole terrace, so long rows count once.

Victoria Street21 listed · 12 II*
79 and 81 Victoria Street86 Victoria Street
Including Boundary Walls14 listed · 7 II*
43 Albert Street, (I), Patrick Traill's House, Including Boundary Walls
Albert Street12 listed · 2 II*
34 Albert Street
Including Boundary Walls and Railings10 listed · 5 II*
21 and 23 Bridge Street, Including Boundary Walls and Railings33 Albert Street, The Old Custom House, Including Boundary Walls and Railings
Main Street9 listed · 5 II*
Bridge Street7 listed · 3 II*
High Street7 listed · 1 II*
School Place6 listed
Wellington Street6 listed · 5 II*
Clay Loan4 listed · 2 II*
8 Clay Loan
Gatepiers and Railings3 listed · 2 II*
Including Ancillary Building3 listed · 3 II*

Of the 186 entries, 143 are named by a street address; the rest are named buildings such as churches, halls and bridges.

What’s protected

Most of Kirkwall’s listed buildings are homes

Every listed building sorted by what its list name says it is.

Houses, terraces & villas164
Walls, gates & bridges17
Public & civic buildings2
Inns, shops & warehouses2
Memorials, crosses & tombs1

164 entries (88%) are houses, terraces and villas.

Buildings are sorted by words in each entry’s name (church, gate, inn, memorial…): the list’s open data has no building type. An entry named only by its address counts as a house.

Category C

83 Category C listed buildings

This category covers buildings of local importance. Open any building to read its official list entry.

All 83 Category C listed buildings, A to Z
Ayre Road, Former Ayre MillsBerstane Road, Park CottageBerstane Road, Vorsheed, Including Ancillary Structures, Boundary Walls and GatepiersBignold Park PavilionBignold Park Road, Mandras Villa, Including Boundary Walls and PiersEast Road, Eastbank HouseEast Road, Lilybank House, Including Garage, Boundary Walls, Gatepiers and RailingsGlaitness Road, Glaitness House, Including Boundary Walls, Gatepiers and GatesKing Street Church, Church of Scotland, Including Boundary Walls, Railings and GatesKirkwall Sheriff Court and Justice of the Peace Court and former Prison/Police Station, including boundary walls, gatepiers and railings, and excluding flat-roofed garage addition to south, Watergate, KirkwallKirkwall, Watergate, Old Brandyquoy Bowling ClubhouseSt Magnus Cathedral Green, Drinking FountainVictoria Street, Kirkwall Baptist Church, Including Hall and Boundary Walls1 Bridge Street1 Junction Road, The Orkney Wireless Museum1 Nicolson Street, Including Boundary Walls and Gatepiers1 School Place1 Victoria Street, Royal Bank of Scotland, Including Boundary Walls, Railings and Gatepiers10 Clay Loan10 Laing Street10 Main Street10 Queen Street10 School Place10 St Olaf's Wynd11 Bridge Street11 School Place12 School Place13 East Road, Including Boundary Walls17 East Road, Including Boundary Walls and Railings17-21 (Odd Nos) Broad Street18 High Street18 and 20 Clay Loan19 Bridge Street19 and 21 East Road, Including Boundary Walls and Railings2 Bridge Street and Shore Street2 High Street20 High Street20-26 (Even Numbers) East Road, Including Boundary Walls and Railings22 High Street22 Main Street24 High Street24 Main Street26 Bridge Street26 Wellington Street27 and 29 Albert Street3 School Place, Including Boundary Walls3 Wellington Street, Including Ancillary Building and Boundary Walls3-9, (Odd Numbers) Palace Road30 High Street, Including Boundary Walls31 Albert Street33 Victoria Street35 Albert Street35 Victoria Street41 Albert Street, Including Boundary Walls41 Victoria Street42 Albert Street45 and 47 Albert Street47-49 (Odd Numbers) Victoria Street5 East Road, Including Boundary Walls and Railings5 Walls Close, Including Boundary Walls52 and 54 Albert Street58 Victoria Street59 Albert Street59 Victoria Street6 Albert Street, Including Boundary Walls6 High Street6 Old Scapa Road, Including Boundary Walls and Gatepiers6 School Place6 and 8 Dundas Crescent, Including Boundary Walls, Gatepiers and Railings63 and 65 Albert Street66 Victoria Street66A and 66B Victoria Street67 and 69 Albert Street7 Nicolson Street, Including Boundary Walls7 Victoria Street, Including Courtyard Walls and Railings76 and 78 Victoria Street8 Main Street8 School Place8 St Olaf's Wynd80 Victoria Street9 Albert Square, (Off Mounthoolie Place), Including Boundary Walls and Railings9 and 11 Albert Street9 and 11 East Road
Conservation areas

1 conservation area covers 7% of Kirkwall

Areas the council protects as a whole: demolition and changes to how buildings look need consent, and trees are protected.

Kirkwall 197031 ha
31 hain conservation areas, of 447 ha inside the locality.

147 of the 186 listed buildings stand in one.

Historic Environment Scotland’s conservation areas layer, supplied by councils (incomplete in places, so a page fact, never graded). Hectares are the part of each area inside the locality.

How the list grew

More than half of Kirkwall’s listed buildings were added in one year, 1971

The year each building now on the list was first listed.

1971 · 981999 · 661977 · 17
19501960197019801990200020102020

The first 98 entries were listed in 1971, 2 of the 2 Category A buildings among them. Only 0 have been added in the last 15 years.

Monuments & landscapes

Monuments, parks and gardens

Designations that overlap the town by a tenth of their area or half a hectare.

4 scheduled monuments

Nationally important archaeological sites and monuments, protected by law; work on them needs consent from Historic Environment Scotland.

Bishop's Palace, Kirkwall
Earl's Palace, Kirkwall
Grain Earth House and Grainbank, two souterrains, Hatston
Grain Earth House and Grainbank, two souterrains, HatstonPrehistoric domestic and defensive: souterrain, earth-house
Pickaquoy,burnt mound & settlementPrehistoric domestic and defensive: burnt mound
Born here

9 notable people born in Kirkwall before 1900

Their lives on one timeline, earliest first.

Magnús Jónsson, Earl of Orkney
James Aitken
Thomas Stewart Traill
George Broadfoot
Mary Anne Baikie
John Flett
John William Bews
Angus Buchanan
Stanley Cursiter
13501500165018001950
TT
Thomas Stewart Traill1781–1862 · Scottish physician, chemist, mineralogist, meteorologist, zoologist a…
John Flett
John Flett1869–1947 · Scottish physician and geologist (1869–1947)
JB
John William Bews1884–1938 · Scottish born South African botanist (1884-1938)
Angus Buchanan
Angus Buchanan1886–1954 · British explorer, naturalist, photographer and filmmaker (1886-1954)
MO
Magnús Jónsson, Earl of Orkney1250–1321 · Scottish Earl
SC
Stanley Cursiter1887–1976 · Scottish artist (1887-1976)
George Broadfoot
George Broadfoot1807–1845 · British East India Company Army officer
MB
Mary Anne Baikie1861–1950 · Scottish suffragist who established the Orcadian Women's Suffrage Soc…

Everyone born in Kirkwall → Birthplaces from Wikidata; portraits from Wikimedia Commons.

Towns its size

Kirkwall has the 46th most Category A buildings of 223 towns its size

Scottish towns of 3,000–18,000 people, by Category A listed buildings.

Lanark25
St Andrews20
Helensburgh13
Montrose11
Banff11
Kelso10
Haddington9
Linlithgow9
Dalkeith8
Jedburgh8
Rothesay7
Kirkwall2
#11 of 223for listed buildings per resident (252 per 10,000). Kirkcudbright, Banff and Anstruther lead.

45 have more. The typical town its size has 0.

In brief

Kirkwall in brief

The official list counts 186 listed buildings in Kirkwall, 2 of them in the top category, including Broad Street, St Magnus Cathedral, (Cathedral Church of St Magnus the Martyr), (Church of Scotland), Including Boundary Walls, Railings, Graveyard and War Memorial. Only 45 of the 223 towns nearest its size have more Category A buildings. On Victoria Street alone there are 21 listed buildings. A conservation area has protected part of it since 1970.

Of the whole list, 88% are houses, terraces and villas. Thomas Stewart Traill (1781), John Flett (1869) and John William Bews (1884) are among the 9 people born here before 1900. More than half went on the list in a single year, 1971: 98 of 186. The rest is about typical: it also has 4 scheduled monuments.

Questions about Kirkwall’s history

How many listed buildings are there in Kirkwall?

Historic Environment Scotland lists 186 buildings inside Kirkwall’s locality: 2 Category A, 101 Category B and 83 Category C.

What are the Category A listed buildings in Kirkwall?

2, including Broad Street, St Magnus Cathedral, (Cathedral Church of St Magnus the Martyr), (Church of Scotland), Including Boundary Walls, Railings, Graveyard and War Memorial and 35-39 (Odd Numbers), And Number 41 Broad Street, The Orkney Museum, Including Garden Walls.

Which street in Kirkwall has the most listed buildings?

Victoria Street (21), Including Boundary Walls (14) and Albert Street (12) have the most listed entries named by an address. One entry can be a whole terrace.

Are there scheduled monuments in Kirkwall?

Yes, 4 scheduled monuments, including Bishop's Palace, Kirkwall, Earl's Palace, Kirkwall, Grain Earth House and Grainbank, two souterrains, Hatston and Pickaquoy,burnt mound & settlement.

How many conservation areas are there in Kirkwall?

1, covering about 31 hectares of the town. The largest is Kirkwall.

When were Kirkwall’s buildings listed?

The first in 1971; the most, 98, in 1971.

Who was born in Kirkwall?

Among people born before 1900: Thomas Stewart Traill (1781), John Flett (1869), John William Bews (1884), Angus Buchanan (1886) and Magnús Jónsson, Earl of Orkney (1250).

Kirkwall has no History Grade.

Listed buildings, scheduled monuments, gardens and designed landscapes, battlefields, conservation areas and World Heritage Sites: Historic Environment Scotland, Open Government Licence v3.0. Check an entry on Historic Environment Scotland’s portal before relying on it.

Sources: Historic Environment Scotland designations (listed buildings, scheduled monuments, gardens and designed landscapes, battlefields, World Heritage Sites), October 2026, inside the NRS 2022 locality boundary · Historic Environment Scotland conservation areas (compiled from councils; October 2026). All under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026 (ONS boundaries). Northern Ireland: Source: NISRA; contains Land & Property Services data and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland information, © Crown copyright, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Scotland: contains National Records of Scotland data, Registers of Scotland data and SEPA data, © Crown copyright / © SEPA 2025, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.