The Custom House is a former custom house at Weymouth,

Dorset Dorset ( ; archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the unitary authority areas of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole and Dorset (unitary authority), Dors ...

, England, operated by

HM Customs HM Customs (His or Her Majesty's Customs) was the national Customs service of England (and then of Great Britain from 1707, the United Kingdom from 1801) until a merger with the Department of Excise in 1909. The phrase 'HM Customs', in use si ...

to handle the trade of Weymouth Harbour. The building, which has origins to the late 18th century, has been Grade II listed since 1970.

History

The Custom House was originally a warehouse and residence, completed around 1794. The warehouse was operated by Messrs Robilliard and Ahier, the former of whom lived in the ground floor residence. In the early 19th century, the building went through much modification. Later in 1874, the then-owner Sir Frederick Johnstone, leased the building to HM Customs, who continued to use the building as a Custom House until 1985. Portland's

HM Coastguard His Majesty's Coastguard (HMCG) is a section of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency responsible, through the Secretary of State for Transport to Parliament, for the initiation and co-ordination of all maritime search and rescue (SAR) within the ...

then took over and renovated the building for use as a Maritime Rescue Sub-Centre, which opened in 1988. In 2010, it was announced that the centre would be closed as part of government cuts. The centre closed in September 2014 and was subsequently sold. In 2016, planning permission was approved to turn the ground floor of the building into a water sports training facility with a cafe, and the first, second and third floors into residential apartments.

References

{{coord, 50.60731, -2.45305, format=dms, type:landmark_region:GB, display=title Grade II listed buildings in Dorset Custom houses in the United Kingdom Grade II listed government buildings Buildings and structures in Weymouth, Dorset