Clan House, Galle

Clan House is a two-storey white stone building, located at 24 Church Street, Galle.

Clan House
The front façade of the Clan House Building (2016)
General information
Address24 Church Street
Town or cityGalle
CountrySri Lanka
OwnerAitken Spence and Co.

Clan House was constructed by John Black and Company, a British mercantile firm, who established themselves in Galle Fort in 1847.[1] The company acted as the coal and shipping agency for the Clan Line shipping company.[2] John Black (1819-1869), a Scotsman, was appointed as the first American Commercial Agent (Consul) in Ceylon[3] in September 1850[4] and later became a member of the Galle Municipal Council.[5] Following Black's death in February 1869 the company continued to operate under the management of his widow, Isabel, until her death in 1905.[6]

The company of Clark Spence and Company was established on 1 September 1868 after the signing of a formal partnership agreement between Thomas Clark and Patrick Gordon Spence—Scottish merchants and shipping agents[7] in Galle.[8][9] In 1873 Clark Spence & Co. became the sole agent of Lloyd’s of London in Ceylon and in 1876 the company was renamed Aitken Spence PLC.[8] In 1929 the building was purchased by Clark Spence and Company, with Clan House becoming the Head Shipping Office of Clark Spence and Company.

The building also housed the shipping agencies for the following companies:

As well as the offices of the Sri Lanka Insurance Corporation and the Inland Revenue Department.[1]

In 1999 the Galle office of Aitken Spence Shipping was permanently closed and the operations consolidated at the company's Colombo headquarters. The building is currently owned by Clark Spence and Company, a subsidiary of Aitken Spence and Co.[1]

In June 2014, Aitken Spence revealed plans to convert the building and land to a 20-room boutique hotel, at an estimated cost of Rs 600M.[10]

In 2013/14, we made a concerted decision to strive and revive a property that has a lot of meaning not only to the Aitken Spence Hotel Group but also to our holding company Aitken Spence PLC with the planned renovation of the original Shipping Head Office of Clark Spence Company building to a new heritage hotel within the UNESCO World Heritage Site at Galle Fort.

— Rajan Brito - Aitken Spence Hotel Group Managing Director

References
  1. de Silva, Rajpal Kumar; Beumer, Willemina G. M. (1988). Illustrations and views of Dutch Ceylon, 1602-1796: a comprehensive work of pictorial reference with selected eye-witness accounts. Serendib Publications. p. 471. ISBN 9789004089792.
  2. de Silva, Janeeka Koshini (July 2013). "International Journal of Arts and Commerce". Proprietary Class in the Galle District (1880-1948): A Historical Analysis. 2 (7): 83. ISSN 1929-7106.
  3. Sherman, Richard Morey (1990). "Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Sri Lanka". American Contacts with Ceylon in the 19th Century - An Introduction to their Impact. Royal Asiatic Society of Sri Lanka. 35: 1–8. JSTOR 23731152.
  4. Crowe, Philip K. (1957). "Foreign Service Journal". A Century's Changes in Ceylon. American Foreign Service Association. 34: 12. ISSN 0146-3543.
  5. Roberts, Norah (1993). Galle as Quiet as Asleep. Vijitha Yapa Publications. p. 10. ISBN 978-9559557906.
  6. "List of Inscriptions on Tombstones and Monuments in Ceylon, of Historical or Local Interest, With an Obituary of Persons Uncommemorated". Mocavo. Retrieved 24 November 2015.
  7. Wright, Arnold (1907). Twentieth Century Impressions of Ceylon: Its History, People, Commerce, Industries, and Resources. Asian Educational Services. p. 437. ISBN 9788120613355.
  8. "History of the Company". Aitken Spence. 2011. Retrieved 17 November 2015.
  9. M.Z.M. Nazim (17 November 2009). "The Rootage of Insurance in Sri Lanka". The Island. Colombo, Sri Lanka. Retrieved 17 November 2011.
  10. Chandrasekera, Duruthu Edirimuni (1 March 2015). "Aitken Spence plans rebranding hotels". The Sunday Times. Retrieved 6 June 2014.

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