Basic Biographical Details

Name: Thomas Craigie Marwick
Designation:  
Born: 10 February 1878
Died: 4 March 1965
Bio Notes: Thomas Craigie Marwick was born on 10 February 1878, the son of Edinburgh architect Thomas Purves Marwick and his wife Alexandrina Steven. He was articled to his father in 1898, attending the Edinburgh School of Applied Art and Heriot-Watt College, and remained with his father after completing his apprenticeship. He was admitted LRIBA in the mass intake of 20 July 1911, proposed by James Bow Dunn and the Edinburgh Architectural Association, of which Marwick had been a member since 1903. His travels prior to that time had included tours of England, France and Belgium, and later he would visit Italy and Greece. In about 1907 Marwick became an assistant in his father's practice and in about 1917 he was taken into partnership, the firm name becoming T P Marwick & Son. In 1919 he entered the Dail Mail Ideal Homes competition in assocation with an unidentified 'Gray' but no other record of this association is yet known. He continued the practice under the same name T P Marwick & Son as sole partner after his father's death on 26 June 1927.

Thomas Craigie Marwick died on 4 March 1965 at his home, 1 Church Hill, Edinburgh. He had been married twice, first to Elizabeth Gardiner and second to Freda Day Scott.

Thomas Craigie's son Thomas Waller Marwick was born in 1903 or 1904 and educated at George Watson's College. He was articled to the family firm and made a ten-week study tour of the USA and Canada in 1928 prior to taking the course at the Architectural Association in London from which he passed the qualifying exam in 1931. He rejoined his father as an assistant in that year and was taken into partnership in 1935. His London background no doubt had a great deal to do with the highly accomplished modernism of the firm's work in the 1930s, culminating in his being invited to undertake a major role in the design of the Glasgow Empire Exhibition of 1938. The sheer quality of the firm's work at that time has been attributed in part to the Rutland prize-winner Philip McManus, who had studied the work of Duiker and Dudok in Holland, and David ('Speedy') Harvey who was a brilliant draughtsman and perspectivist, but McManus left in 1937 to become a planner in Cape Town, South Africa. While Harvey must have borne the main responsibility of the Empire Exhibition, the individual roles of Marwick, McManus and Harvey have still to be satisfactorily sorted out. Whatever the role of the latter, the Marwicks must have been committed modernists for such adventurous designs to be accepted by their corporate clients. In the event their modernism cost them the business of the National Bank, which sought a more conservative design from Leslie Grahame-Thomson.

Private and Business Addresses

The following private or business addresses are associated with this :
 AddressTypeDate fromDate toNotes
Item 1 of 414, Thirlestane Road, Edinburgh, ScotlandPrivate1911 *  
Item 2 of 443, York Place, Edinburgh, ScotlandBusinessBefore 1911May 1929 
Item 3 of 4Westgate/1, Churchill, Edinburgh, ScotlandPrivatec. 1926  
Item 4 of 454, Northumberland Street, Edinburgh, ScotlandBusinessMay 19291939 or after 1940 

* 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):
 NameDate fromDate toPositionNotes
Item 1 of 4Thomas Purves Marwick18981902Apprentice 
Item 2 of 4Thomas Purves Marwick19021917Assistant 
Item 3 of 4T P Marwick & Sonc. 19171940(?)Partner 
Item 4 of 4Thomas Craigie Marwick & Gray1919 * Partner 

* earliest date known from documented sources.


RIBA

RIBA Proposers

The following individuals proposed this for RIBA membership (click on an item to view details):
 NameDate proposedNotes
Item 1 of 4James Bow Dunn20 July 1911for Licentiateship - as president of the Edinburgh Architectural Association
Item 2 of 4Thomas Forbes MaclennanMid 1932for Fellowship
Item 3 of 4James Inch MorrisonMid 1932for Fellowship
Item 4 of 4Robert Stirling ReidMid 1932for Fellowship

RIBA Proposals

This proposed the following individuals for RIBA membership (click on an item to view details):
 NameDate proposedNotes
Item 1 of 6John Malcolm McClure Anderson4 April 1938for Associateship
Item 2 of 6Thomas Armstrong24 June 1947For Associateship
Item 3 of 6Elizabeth Fergus Comrie (Miss)6 February 1939for Associateship
Item 4 of 6Reginald William Johnston24 October 1938for Associateship
Item 5 of 6Alasdair Cameron Sutherland3 December 1934for Associateship
Item 6 of 6John David Weir16 July 1940For Associateship

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 42 House, 1 Suffolk Road  EdinburghScotlandAddition of garage - date unknown
Item 2 of 421899National Bank of Scotland, Glenluce BranchGlenluce WigtownshireScotlandPossibly involved, as assistant to his father T P Marwick
Item 3 of 421899National Bank of Scotland, Gorgie BranchGorgie EdinburghScotlandPossibly involved, as apprentice to his father T P Marwick
Item 4 of 421901National Bank of Scotland, Trongate  GlasgowScotlandAs assistant to his father T P Marwick
Item 5 of 42c. 1901St Cuthbert's Co-operative Association Premises  EdinburghScotlandProbably involved, as apprentice/assistant to his father T P Marwick
Item 6 of 421904National Bank of Scotland, Portobello BranchPortobello EdinburghScotlandProbably involved, as assistant to his father T P Marwick
Item 7 of 421904National Bank of Scotland, Sauchiehall Street Branch  GlasgowScotlandAlterations - probably involved, as assistant to his father T P Marwick
Item 8 of 421908Gresham Life Assurance and Merchant Company offices  EdinburghScotlandAs assistant to his father T P Marwick
Item 9 of 421909St Cuthbert's Co-operative Association Slaughterhouses and Cattle DepotGorgie EdinburghScotlandAs assistant
Item 10 of 421911National Bank of Scotland, Fort William BranchFort William Inverness-shireScotlandProbably involved, as assistant to his father T P Marwick
Item 11 of 421912Whitefoord House  EdinburghScotlandAdditions and alterations
Item 12 of 42After 1912New premises at Piersfield  EdinburghScotland 
Item 13 of 42After 1912St Cuthbert's Co-operative Society Garage, Semple Street  EdinburghScotland 
Item 14 of 42After 1912St Cuthbert's Co-operative Society model bakeryFountainbridge EdinburghScotland 
Item 15 of 421913Callander House  EdinburghScotlandAlterations in conjunction with Scottish Naval and Military Veterans' Residence
Item 16 of 421914St Cuthbert's Co-operative Association Department Store and Dairy  EdinburghScotlandFurther extension and dairy
Item 17 of 421919Daily Mail ideal workers' houses, Northern industrial area   EnglandCompetition design
Item 18 of 42After 1920Star Hotel  EdinburghScotlandUnspecified work for Messrs Cranston & Elliot
Item 19 of 421922St Cuthbert's Wholesale Co-operative Association, dairy block  EdinburghScotland 
Item 20 of 421924(?)Logie HouseForres MorayshireScotlandReconstruction
Item 21 of 421925St Cuthbert's Co-operative Association Block of Shops and HosesCorstorphine EdinburghScotland 
Item 22 of 421926St Cuthbert's Wholesale Co-operative Association Headquarters  EdinburghScotlandNew main doorway and internal alterations
Item 23 of 42Early 1920sSeamill HydropathicSeamill AyrshireScotlandExtensive additions
Item 24 of 421930St Cuthbert's Wholesale Co-operative Society Funeral Department  EdinburghScotland 
Item 25 of 421930Whitefoord House  EdinburghScotlandFurther work
Item 26 of 42c. 1930Cinema in StockbridgeStockbridge EdinburghScotland 
Item 27 of 42c. 1930Merleton, Boswall Road  EdinburghScotlandProposed addition of smoking room
Item 28 of 421935St Cuthbert's Co-operative Association Store, New Building  EdinburghScotland 
Item 29 of 421935St Cuthbert's Co-operative Society Furniture Showroom  EdinburghScotland 
Item 30 of 421935Temporary National Bank of Scotland Headquarters  EdinburghScotlandLost commission for permanent headquarters as a more conservative design was required
Item 31 of 421935Whitefoord House  EdinburghScotlandRecontruction
Item 32 of 421936(?)Premises for Jays the Furnishers  EdinburghScotland 
Item 33 of 421936 or 1937Glasgow Empire Exhibition, Atlantic RestaurantBellahouston GlasgowScotlandIn collaboration with Thomas Smith Tait
Item 34 of 421936 or 1937Glasgow Empire Exhibition, Garden Club and Lucullus RestaurantBellahouston GlasgowScotlandIn collaboration with Thomas Smith Tait
Item 35 of 421936 or 1937Glasgow Empire Exhibition, Physical Fitness PavilionBellahouston GlasgowScotlandIn collaboration with Thomas Smith Tait
Item 36 of 421937Eagle Star Insurance Offices  EdinburghScotlandOriginal design modified by city planners; not constructed until 1955
Item 37 of 421937Glasgow Empire Exhibition, Cascade and Rotunda Shopping CentreBellahouston GlasgowScotlandIn collaboration with Thomas Smith Tait
Item 38 of 421937Shop front for Page & McGregor  EdinburghScotland 
Item 39 of 421937Shops, 16 and 18 Bridgeton CrossBridgeton GlasgowScotlandSurvey plans?
Item 40 of 421937St Cuthbert's Co-operative Association Department Store and Dairy  EdinburghScotlandModern extension for furniture store - see separate entry
Item 41 of 421938Co-op Shop  EdinburghScotland 
Item 42 of 421939Livingstone Institute and Medical Missionary Society's premises  EdinburghScotlandUnspecified work

References

Bibliographic References

The following books contain references to this :
 Author(s)DateTitlePartPublisherNotes
Item 1 of 3Daily Mail1919Daily Mail ideal (workers) homes: Northern industrial area London: Associated Newspapers 
Item 2 of 3Miles Glendinning, Diane Watters, David Whitham Docomomo Scotland Leaflet  p227 Image of St Cuthbert's Co-operative Society on Bread Street
Item 3 of 3RIBA1939The RIBA Kalendar 1939-1940 London: Royal Institute of British Architects 

Archive References

The following archives hold material relating to this :
 SourceArchive NameSource Catalogue No.Notes
Item 1 of 2H M Register HouseDeath Register  
Item 2 of 2RIBA Archive, Victoria & Albert MuseumRIBA Nomination Papers L v19 no1452; F no3042 (box 16)