The Maker with Rame Institute provides the iconic image of Kingsand, on the Rame peninsula. It is the third building on the site, at the head of Girt beach. The first was a pair of cottages, one of which was swept away in a storm in 1817, along with its wooden-legged occupant.
The replacement tenements were, in 1877, purchased to found an institute to provide a teetotal meeting, reading and educational facility for young men. This was later again used as a house and run as a tea shop. The last inhabitants moved out in 1910, and the building was demolished in 1912.
The drawings for the current building were prepared in July 1913, by architect Harold Hosking. The foundation stone was laid in November the same year. Although an integral part of the building, the clock tower was separately financed - £80 for the tower and £42 for the clock - to retrospectively commemorate the coronation of King George V (22 June 1911). The tower was completed in 1914, but WWI caused final completion of the building to be delayed until 1921.
The construction is of sandstone rubble, with limestone dressings. The Institute was Grade II-listed in 1987. The tower was seriously undermined by the storms of February 2014, but squeaked past demolition. The £600,000 restoration included the construction of protecting sea defences beneath the tower.
