Basic Biographical Details

Name: Maclaren Soutar Salmond
Designation:  
Born: 1920
Died: 1972
Bio Notes: John Turnbull Maclaren was born in Monifieth, Angus on 19 April 1863, the son of James Maclaren, architect, Dundee, and Jemima Margaret Miller. He was sent to an unspecified office in the United States to gain experience, returning to Dundee on his father's death in 1893 to continue the family firm with his brother, George Gordon Maclaren. After George Gordon Maclaren's death on 31 June 1899, John Turnbull Maclaren continued the practice as sole practitioner into the early years of the twentieth century but his American experience was not significantly reflected in the firm's buildings. The more ambitious designs of the later 1890s and early 1900s were known to be the work of Andrew Graham Patrick, born in Perth in 1864. He had been recruited as leading draughtsman from David Smart's office in Perth in 1894. He had attracted the Maclarens' notice by winning an open competition at Port Townsend, USA, but his fiancée had declined to emigrate with him.

In 1908 Maclaren took Charles Geddes Soutar into partnership, a move which took the practice back into the premier league, the office now being at 10 Reform Street. Soutar was born in 1878 of a Forfar family and apprenticed to Charles & Leslie Ower, 1892-98, latterly working under William Gillespie Lamond by whom he was profoundly influenced. During this period he took classes at Dundee Technical College, latterly under Patrick Hill Thoms who also had a considerable influence on the development of his domestic style. In 1899 following the break-up of the Charles & Leslie Ower partnership he moved to the office of John Murray Robertson to widen his experience, but returned to Leslie Ower in 1900, remaining with him as chief assistant until 1902, from which year he practised on his own account with some success. He remained on good terms with Charles Ower, for whom he designed Aystree in 1903. With his white or cream suits and stylish boating hats, Soutar brought a breath of fresh air to the Maclaren Sons & Soutar practice, which had remained somewhat staid despite the recruitment of Patrick: a staff photograph of around the time of the partnership's formation, now in the RCAHMS, well illustrates the difference between the partners, Maclaren being a portly figure in a sombre city suit.

In 1920 the practice merged with J & F Salmond, a firm of civil engineers, land surveyors and architects based at 6 High Street, the firm now becoming Maclaren Soutar Salmond with John Turnbull Maclaren, Charles Geddes Soutar and William Salmond as partners. In 1921 Maclaren retired and Patrick was taken into partnership, but the name of the firm remained unchanged, the merged practices now moving to 15 South Tay Street.

Maclaren enjoyed a very long retirement, dying at the house he had built for himself, Whinsby, Abercromby Street, Barnhill on 20 March 1948. Although described in his RIAS obituary as 'always easily approachable,' in later years at least he was remembered by the Patrick family as somewhat humourless. He left the then very substantial sum of £75,123, and endowed an RIAS student scholarship.

In 1929 Maclaren Soutar Salmond took over the practice of David Wishart Galloway who had been killed in a motorcycle accident in that year, and for rather more than a decade maintained his office at 2 Market Street, Brechin as a branch, but this was de-merged to A B Roger as an independent practice in the 1940s.

Around 1933 the practice was joined by Thomas Steuart Fothringham, born 5 April 1907, who had been educated at Wellington and had read architecture at Trinity College Cambridge with Ian Gordon Lindsay and R A C Simpson. In the event his association with the practice was relatively short as he inherited the Pourie and Fothringham estates in April 1936 and did not return to the practice after serving as a Major in the Black Watch during the Second World War.

Charles Soutar's interest in the practice did not survive the Second World War either, and without him it went into a gradual decline. Although his practice was not particularly large, Soutar was a prominent figure in Scottish architecture between the wars. He was an outstanding Arts and Crafts architect with wide artistic interests and was remembered by his friends as generous in spirit and of infinite human kindness. Along with his client David Band of Band & Whyte and the schools inspector John Taylor Ewen, he was one of the principal patrons of the Arbroath artist James Waterston Herald. Although a very able designer and a fine draughtsman and watercolourist Patrick was content to take a secondary role in charge of the drawing office, producing beautiful presentation drawings for clients. Soutar became a very active member of the RIBA, and was elected to the Council for 1923-24, 1925-26 and 1935-44, serving as Vice-President from 1939 to 1944. Thomas Forbes Maclennan recalled that at these meetings he remained informal in style to the end, preferring plus fours to a city suit. Soutar moved house to Wheatfields, Forfar in 1941. In 1946 he began to suffer from Alzheimer's disease and had to withdraw from the practice completely. He died on 14 November 1952, leaving £5,166 13s 5d.

Soutar's architect son David did not remain with the practice, preferring to take a civil service job in Aberdeen. The practice was continued by the ageing Andrew Patrick and by William Salmond whose expertise lay chiefly in valuation. The latter was an old-fashioned gentleman of impressive presence, very tall, infinitely courteous and patient, qualities which served him well as the long-serving chairman of the Dundee rent tribunal. After Andrew Patrick died in 1951 the architectural work was in the hands of the practice's middle-aged chief assistant Stuart O Barron who had become a partner on Soutar's retirement. Salmond remained senior partner until his death on 2 March 1956, Barron thereafter becoming sole partner. He took Ian Imlach into partnership c.1970, but it was too late to save the practice, which closed in 1972. At the date of closure very few of the practice drawings had survived. A card index to them compiled by Soutar during the First World War survives at RCAHMS, but gives no indication of what was built anew, what was altered or which were competition drawings that may not have been successful.

Private and Business Addresses

The following private or business addresses are associated with this :
 AddressTypeDate fromDate toNotes
Item 1 of 115, South Tay Street, Dundee, ScotlandBusiness1920After 1964 

Employment and Training

Employees or Pupils

The following individuals were employed or trained by this (click on an item to view details):
 NameDate fromDate toPositionNotes
Item 1 of 32Andrew Oliver Chalmers Barron  Assistant(?) 
Item 2 of 32William Mollison19191924Apprentice 
Item 3 of 32William AllanBefore 1919Before 1919Apprentice 
Item 4 of 32John Turnbull Maclaren19201921Partner 
Item 5 of 32Andrew Graham Patrick19201921Draughtsman 
Item 6 of 32James Smith Leslie19201921Assistant 
Item 7 of 32James Stratton Paterson19201922Apprentice 
Item 8 of 32Charles Geddes Soutar19201946Partner 
Item 9 of 32William Salmond19201956Partner 
Item 10 of 32Andrew Graham Patrick19211946Partner 
Item 11 of 32George Fairweather28 July 1923August 1927Apprentice 
Item 12 of 32James Christopher Rogerson12 May 192412 July 1928Senior Assistant 
Item 13 of 32Alexander Robert Fordyce AndersonSeptember 1925March 1929Apprentice 
Item 14 of 32Robert Robertson Reid Young11 December 19271933Apprentice 
Item 15 of 32Frederick Alistair Morrison19281930Apprentice 
Item 16 of 32James Henderson19281930(?)Draughtsman 
Item 17 of 32Robert Saddler19291934Apprentice 
Item 18 of 32David Duncan19301933Apprentice 
Item 19 of 32James Symmers NeishSeptember 1930August 1932Assistant 
Item 20 of 32David Stewart Soutar19311932Assistant 
Item 21 of 32Stuart Oliver William BarronBefore 19311946AssistantLatterly Chief Assistant
Item 22 of 32Thomas Steuart Fothringham19321939ArchitectProspective partner
Item 23 of 32(Miss) Annie Margaret ('Moira') Bayne19331938Apprentice 
Item 24 of 32Ian Brown KinnearJuly 1936August 1936Assistant 
Item 25 of 32George Wilson FlemingJuly 1936September 1936Junior Assistant 
Item 26 of 32David Stewart Soutar19371945Assistant 
Item 27 of 32Margaret Robertson Mathers (Mrs Sutherland)September 1937After 1938Assistant 
Item 28 of 32David Stewart Soutar19451948Assistant 
Item 29 of 32Andrew Graham Patrick19461951Senior Partner 
Item 30 of 32Stuart Oliver William Barron19461972Partner 
Item 31 of 32James SibbaldEarly 1960s Assistant(?) 
Item 32 of 32Ian Howie Adam ImlachLate 1960s1972Partner 

Buildings and Designs

This was involved with the following buildings or structures from the date specified (click on an item to view details):
 Date startedBuilding nameTown, district or villageIslandCity or countyCountryNotes
Item 1 of 50c. 1906Free South ChurchMonifieth AngusScotlandAddition of transepts
Item 2 of 501920Fairmuir Special SchoolFairmuir DundeeScotlandAdditions
Item 3 of 50After 1920Lethnot Parish Church  AngusScotlandAdditions - date unknown
Item 4 of 501921House for Inglis on Strathern RoadWest Ferry DundeeScotland 
Item 5 of 501921Redmyre  DundeeScotlandAlterations?
Item 6 of 50c. 1921Royal Cinema  DundeeScotland 
Item 7 of 501922LongcroftBarnhill DundeeScotland 
Item 8 of 50c. 1922House for Mr Smith  DundeeScotland 
Item 9 of 501924Dundee Garden City Association Kingsway Site  DundeeScotlandSite layout and design of some houses
Item 10 of 501924Lamb's Temperance Hotel  DundeeScotlandConversion to offices as Meadow House
Item 11 of 501924Monifieth War MemorialMonifieth AngusScotland 
Item 12 of 501925Pitscandly  AngusScotlandAlterations
Item 13 of 501926BenholmForfar AngusScotlandAdditions
Item 14 of 501926Harris Academy, Perth Road  DundeeScotlandUnsuccessful competition designs
Item 15 of 501926House on Glamis RoadForfar AngusScotlandHouse by Patrick
Item 16 of 501926Keithick HouseCoupar Angus AngusScotlandAlterations in hall
Item 17 of 501927Fairmuir Special SchoolFairmuir DundeeScotlandAdditions
Item 18 of 501927Plaza CinemaHilltown DundeeScotland 
Item 19 of 501928Blairgowrie HouseBlairgowrie PerthshireScotlandAlterations
Item 20 of 501928Empress Hygienic Laundry  DundeeScotlandBoiler house added
Item 21 of 501928Logie Central School and janitor's house  DundeeScotlandWon competition and secured job
Item 22 of 501928William Kidd & Sons Printing Works, Couthies Wynd  DundeeScotlandAdditions
Item 23 of 50c. 1928RavelstonAyr AyrshireScotland 
Item 24 of 501929Farnell Parish ChurchFarnell AngusScotlandSession house added - probably executed by this practice after death that year of David Wishart Galloway.
Item 25 of 501929Francis Stevenson and Sons Limited Premises  DundeeScotlandAlterations
Item 26 of 50c. 1929Farington  DundeeScotlandSoutar responsible
Item 27 of 50c. 1929House for Dickie, Farington Hall  DundeeScotland 
Item 28 of 501930Regent Cinema  DundeeScotlandAlterations
Item 29 of 501930Royal Cinema  DundeeScotlandAlterations
Item 30 of 50c. 1930David Smith Memorial HospitalKirriemmuir AngusScotland 
Item 31 of 50c. 1930House at Fernhall EstateWest Ferry DundeeScotland 
Item 32 of 501931Brechin CathedralBrechin AngusScotlandOrgan cases
Item 33 of 501934Dundee Garden City Association Kingsway Site  DundeeScotlandScheme extended W of Clive Road
Item 34 of 501935Showrooms, workshops and office (for Messrs Young of the Motor House)Newport-on-Tay FifeScotland 
Item 35 of 501935Volunteer Drill HallBroughty Ferry DundeeScotlandReconstruction
Item 36 of 501936Dundee Custom House and Harbour Chambers  DundeeScotlandSingle storey extension
Item 37 of 501938Addistoun HouseRatho MidlothianScotland 
Item 38 of 501938Edzell Parish ChurchEdzell AngusScotlandAlterations to session house
Item 39 of 501938Fothringham Hill  AngusScotland 
Item 40 of 501938House at DalmahoyDalmahoy MidlothianScotland 
Item 41 of 50c. 1938Falkirk Royal Infirmary Nurses' HomeFalkirk StirlingshireScotlandCompetition design - not successful
Item 42 of 501939SHA CampMeigle PerthshireScotland 
Item 43 of 501940Stracathro HouseBrechin (near) AngusScotlandLayout of hutted wartime hospital in grounds
Item 44 of 50c. 1940Craigendarroch HouseBallater AberdeenshireScotlandAlterations and additions
Item 45 of 50c. 1940(?)Queen's Well MemorialGlen Mark AngusScotland 
Item 46 of 501942Harecraig HouseWest Ferry DundeeScotlandProposed remodelling: not carried out
Item 47 of 501942House in Dundee  DundeeScotland 
Item 48 of 5019 April 1957Church Hall at Douglas and Angus Housing Scheme  DundeeScotlandper Builder p752
Item 49 of 501960sDouglas and Angus Church  DundeeScotlandWith Harry Taylor
Item 50 of 501962House, Gas BraeErrol PerthshireScotlandAlterations

References

Bibliographic References

The following books contain references to this :
 Author(s)DateTitlePartPublisherNotes
Item 1 of 2Dundee Yearbook1893   James Maclaren obituary
Item 2 of 2Municipal Annual1964Scottish Municipal Annual1964-1965  

Periodical References

The following periodicals contain references to this :
 Periodical NameDateEditionPublisherNotes
Item 1 of 5Builder2 April 1948  John T Maclaren
Item 2 of 5Dundee AdvertiserJuly 1899  George Gordon Maclaren (cutting in NMRS)
Item 3 of 5Dundee Courier and Advertiser3 March 1956  Obituary of William Salmond
Item 4 of 5RIAS QuarterlyAugust 1948no 73Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland (RIAS)John T Maclaren
Item 5 of 5RIAS QuarterlyFebruary 1953no 91Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland (RIAS)Charles G Soutar

Archive References

The following archives hold material relating to this :
 SourceArchive NameSource Catalogue No.Notes
Item 1 of 1Professor David M Walker personal archiveProfessor David M Walker, notes and collection of archive material Personal information from William Salmond, William Patrick, James McIntosh Patrick, Ann Patrick, Stuart O Barron, Peter Young and Ian Gordon Lindsay