Doxford and Sons Ltd, gatehouse

This 'West Yard' was purchased by Doxford in 1869 (see HER 4693). The Doxford Shipyard gatehouse is a detached building, 2 storey, hipped roof with a central tri-partite gate opening, the centre gate being used by vehicles, the gates on either side for the ship yard workers. The gateway is formed of red brick with arched heads made up of red terracotta with large keystone features. The gate openings still retain the original decorative iron gates. On either side of the main block lie two storey elements standing forward of the main block with curved swept walls leading back to the pedestrian gates. The front façade is rendered (possibly a later addition). The roofscape includes two broad chimney stacks complete with tall pots.The gatehouse was built during the first decade of the 20th century during a recovery period following a fire at the Doxford Engine Works. It was the building where workers clocked in and out of their shifts using the Bundy clock. Ancillery buildings adjoined the north and south blocks of the gate - a brass foundry (north) and a drawing office (south) of which only adjoining walls survive. Recorded in 2015 ahead of proposed demolition for the Sunderland Strategic Corridor Scheme. The overall form of the building remains largely unchanged, although the positions of the doors and windows have been altered over time and the façade rendered. The interior was not surveyed in 2015 but it appears that little remains of the original historic interior. Building retains decorative brickwork and brick arches, iron gate, shipyard buzzers, one original chimney stack.