Basic Biographical Details Name: | Duncan Carmichael | Designation: | | Born: | 18 February 1861 | Died: | 16 November 1923 | Bio Notes: | Duncan Carmichael was born on 18 February 1861, the only son of the three children of Peter Carmichael and his wife Janet Donaldson. The Carmichaels owned and ran the Salutation Hotel in Perth; they must have invested in the construction of the Tay Bridge because they reputedly lost their money in the Tay Bridge disaster in 1879.
Duncan was educated at the Royal High School in Edinburgh and was said to have won the Dux Prize. Nothing is known of his professional training but by 1891 he was in practice in London when he exhibited a sketch of 'Three Houses in Haus Place' at the Royal Academy which was later reproduced in the Builder. In 1891 he was living in Cromwell Grove, West Kensington.
Duncan returned to Dundee in the mid 1890s to execute the designs by Charles Carmichael of 1889 for St Margaret's Barnhill. He was not related to Charles Carmichael (in the Transactions of the Scottish Eccesiological Society he is simply described as sharing a surname and no indication of a family connection is made). The family had a connection with Barnhill, Dundee as Duncan's elder married sister, Helen F Millar, lived there. Duncan appears to have worked for McAlpines in London in the 1890s and perhaps later.
He does not appear in the British Architectural Library/RIBA 'Directory of British Architects 1834-1914'. He travelled extensively and spent some time in Australia but did not marry until 1897. His wife who was 21 at the time of her marriage was Sarah Ann Spackman (known as Florence), daughter of a well-known builder in Newmarket. They had five children, four daughters and a son. They appear to have returned to live in Scotland in some point, their youngest daughter Joan being born in Carnoustie in 1910. Duncan left the family there in straightened circumstances and returned to London to work, returning to Scotland in 1923 probably through ill-health. At this time they were living in Ramsay House, 3 Castle Street, Montrose which was run as a hotel by Duncan's wife.
Duncan died on 16 November 1923 and was buried in Sleepy Hillock Cemetery on the Brechin Road in Montrose. He was survived by his wife who died in Southsea on 24 January 1953. | Private and Business AddressesThe following private or business addresses are associated with this : | | Address | Type | Date from | Date to | Notes | | Perth, Scotland | Private | | | Place of birth | | Scotland | Business | | | | | Ramsay House/3, Castle Street, Montrose, Angus, Scotland | Business | | 1921 | | | London, England | Business | c. 1890 | | | | 1, Cromwell Grove, West Kensington, London, England | Private | 1891 | | |
Buildings and Designs
ReferencesPeriodical ReferencesThe following periodicals contain references to this : | | Periodical Name | Date | Edition | Publisher | Notes | | Trans… of the Aberdeen Ecclesiological Society | * | | | | | Trans… of the Aberdeen Ecclesiological Society | between 1914 and 1915 | | | pp260-261 |
Archive ReferencesThe following archives hold material relating to this : | | Source | Archive Name | Source Catalogue No. | Notes | | Professor David M Walker personal archive | Professor David M Walker, notes and collection of archive material | | Information via the website from Carmichael's daughters Joan (who was 97 in 2007) and Elspeth and grandson Dr Ian Holme. |
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