Basic Biographical Details
| Name: | John Ronald Beaton |
| Designation: | |
| Born: | 25 March 1915 |
| Died: | 28 August 1990 |
| Bio Notes: | John Ronald Beaton was born at 58 Ashvale Place, Aberdeen on 25 March 1915, the son of William Robertson Beaton, grocer's assistant and his wife Mary Ann Robb. They had married in St Machar's in Aberdeen in 1912. John Ronald Beaton commenced his studies at Aberdeen School of Architecture on 29 August 1932. He was apprenticed in the Aberdeen office of A Marshall Mackenzie & Son from 15 July 1935, returning to the School of Art on 25 October 1937 to complete his studies. He obtained his diploma on 17 June 1938 and was appointed assistant architect in the Edinburgh firm of Dick Peddie, Todd & Jamieson the following month. In February 1939 he moved to Glasgow to join the Glasgow Corporation Housing Department as an assistant, and four months later on 19 June he was admitted ARIBA, his proposers being Alexander George Robertson Mackenzie, Robert Leslie Rollo, and John Gibb Marr who described him as 'a good all-round man & interested in the Profession'. Beaton served with the 14th Army of the Royal Engineers from March 1940, spending the war years in India and Burma. He was Lieutenant-Colonel under General Slim and latterly Lord Louis Mountbatten. He attained the rank of Major. He returned to the Glasgow Corporation as Principal Architect on his demobilisation in March 1946. He emigrated with his wife Margaret A Beaton and baby daughter to South Africa in October 1948, and was appointed Senior Assistant to Durban Corporation. He moved again in April 1950 and joined the offices of the Government of Northern Rhodesia. He was working for the Ministry of Transport in Lusaka when he was elected FRIBA on 11 April 1961, proposed by Peter Dunbar Lawson, Alfred Lloyd Spencer and George Clifford Duke. By that time he had been responsible for a large programme of school building: £900,000 in 1954-7, £700,000 in 1957-8, £600,000 in 1958-9 and £400,000 in 1959-60. He was subsequently appointed Assistant Director Buildings in the Ministry of Public Works, and he remained in that position until the end of 1965 when he commenced independent practice in Durban. He seesm to have been in partnershiop with Alfred Lloyd Spencer as Beaton & Lloyd Spencer. Beaton retired in 1985 and died suddenly of leukaemia on 28 August 1990, survived by his wife, daughter, son-in-law and two grandsons. In a letter notifying the RIBA of his death, his widow described him as an 'all-round sportsman, but he was a keen golfer first and foremost all his life'. |
Private and Business Addresses
| The following private or business addresses are associated with this : | |||||
| Address | Type | Date from | Date to | Notes | |
 | c/o Miss Young/307, Crofthill Road, Croftfoot, Glasgow, Scotland | Private | 1939 * | ||
| Lusaka, Zimbabwe (Southern Rhodesia to | Business | 1960 * | ||
| Durban, Zimbabwe (Southern Rhodesia to | Business | 1965 | ||
| Suite 1807, Eagle Buildings/355-361, West Street, Durban, Natal, South Africa | Business | 1970s | ||
* earliest date known from documented sources.
Employment and Training
Employers
| The following individuals or organisations employed or trained this (click on an item to view details): | |||||
| Name | Date from | Date to | Position | Notes | |
| A Marshall Mackenzie & Son | 15 July 1935 | June 1938 | Apprentice | |
| Dick Peddie, Todd & Jamieson | July 1938 | February 1939 | Assistant | |
| Glasgow Corporation Housing Department (later Architectural & Planning Department, Glasgow Corporation) | February 1939 | March 1940 | Assistant | |
| Glasgow Corporation Housing Department (later Architectural & Planning Department, Glasgow Corporation) | March 1946 | October 1948 | Principal Architect | |
| Durban Corporation | November 1948 | April 1950 | Senior Assistant | |
| Government of Northern Rhodesia | May 1950 | Mid 1965 | Various posts | |
RIBA
RIBA Proposers
| The following individuals proposed this for RIBA membership (click on an item to view details): | |||
| Name | Date proposed | Notes | |
| George Clifford Duke | 11 April 1961 | for Fellowship |
| Peter Dunbar Lawson | 11 April 1961 | for Fellowship |
| Alexander George Robertson Mackenzie | 19 June 1939 | for Associateship |
| John Gibb Marr | 19 June 1939 | for Associateship |
| Robert Leslie Rollo | 19 June 1939 | for Associateship |
| Alfred Lloyd Spencer | 11 April 1961 | for Fellowship |
References
Archive References
| The following archives hold material relating to this : | ||||
| Source | Archive Name | Source Catalogue No. | Notes | |
| RIBA Archive, Victoria & Albert Museum | RIBA Nomination Papers | A no7209 (stored under F5506, combined box 84); F no5506 (combined box 84); letter from wife, 15 Nov 1990, following his death | |
| School of Architecture, Garthdee, Aberdeen, RGIT: former pupils, 1937-1970 | Galletly, James | ||