Basic Biographical Details

Name:	Hugh Smith
Designation:
Born:	21 July 1899
Died:	24 December 1967
Bio Notes:	Hugh Smith was born on 21 July 1899. He served with the British Expeditionary Force in France during the First World War before commencing his apprenticeship on 4 May 1920, serving five years with Thomas Graham Abercrombie (from 1923 Abercrombie & Maitland) and attending Paisley Technical College and School of Art as well as taking private tuition in design. On completing his apprenticeship in June 1925 he joined the Air Ministry Works & Buildings Department, where he was engaged on the design of officers' quarters, barracks and technical buildings as well as Croydon Airport. In July the following year he transferred to H M Office of Works, Edinburgh, where he was principally concerned with the maintenance of public buildings including Register House, the Law Courts, and various post offices and labour and telephone exchanges. At the beginning of 1929 he moved to London to join the architectural staff of the Miners Welfare Committee, working as chief assistant to the chief architect of the north-eastern division, John Austin Dempster, on pithead baths and other buildings. He was admitted LRIBA in early 1932, apparently without proposers, and in November 1936 was appointed Dempster's deputy, with full responsibility for the Committee's work in Ayrshire, Cumberland, Lanarkshire and the Lothians. He was elected FRIBA on 1 May 1951, his proposers being Dempster, Robert Cawkwell, and John Henry Forshaw, who was in charge of the general direction of the Miners' Welfare Committee's building programme throughout the United Kingdom. At that time he was based in Doncaster working as deputy to John Austin Dempster, Divisional Architect, National Coal Board and living at 129 Bawtry Road Bessacarr. On Dempster's retirement he was appointed Divisional Architect, retiring in 1963. He died on 24th December 1967. His son, Hugh Philip Smith, was Borough Architect of Scunthorpe, North Lincolnshire.

Private and Business Addresses

The following private or business addresses are associated with this :
	Address	Type	Date from	Date to	Notes
	189, Peartree Lane, Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire, England	Private	1931 *
	129, Bawtry Road, Bessacarr, Doncaster, Yorkshire, England	Private	1951 *	After 1960

* 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
	Thomas Graham Abercrombie	4 May 1920	1923	Apprentice
	Abercrombie & Maitland	1923	4 June 1925	Apprentice
	Air Ministry Works & Buildings Department	7 June 1925	30 June 1927	Assistant
	H M Office of Works (later Ministry of Works, Department of the Environment and Property Services Agency)	1 July 1927	30 December 1928	Assistant	In Edinburgh office
	Miners' Welfare Committee (or Miners' Welfare Commission), Mines Department, (National Coal Board Divisional Welfare)	4 January 1929	November 1936	Chief Assistant
	Miners' Welfare Committee (or Miners' Welfare Commission), Mines Department, (National Coal Board Divisional Welfare)	November 1936	After 1951	Architect	Deputy Chief Architect of North-Eastern Division, in charge of works in Cumberland, Ayrshire, Lanarkshire and the Lothians

RIBA

RIBA Proposers

The following individuals proposed this for RIBA membership (click on an item to view details):
	Name	Date proposed	Notes
	Robert Cawkwell	1 May 1951	for Fellowship
	John Austin Dempster	1 May 1951	for Fellowship
	John Henry Forshaw	1 May 1951	for Fellowship

Buildings and Designs

This was involved with the following buildings or structures from the date specified (click on an item to view details):
	Date started	Building name	Town, district or village	Island	City or county	Country	Notes
	1927	Parliament House, Supreme Courts of Scotland			Edinburgh	Scotland	Unspecified maintenance work - as assistant in H M Office of Works
	1927 or 1928	Register House			Edinburgh	Scotland	Unspecified maintenance work - as assistant in H M Office of Works
	After 1929	Arniston Colliery, pithead baths			Midlothian	Scotland	As chief assistant or deputy chief architect for the Miners' Welfare Committee
	After 1929	Brora Colliery, pithead baths	Inverness		Inverness-shire	Scotland	As chief assistant or deputy chief architect for the Miners' Welfare Committee
	After 1929	Castle Park Bandstand	Whitehaven		Cumberland	England
	After 1929	Comrie Colliery, pithead baths			Fife	Scotland	As chief assistant or deputy chief architect for the Miners' Welfare Committee
	After 1929	Douglas Castle colliery, pithead baths			Lanarkshire	Scotland	As chief assistant or deputy chief architect for the Miners' Welfare Committee
	After 1929	Haigh Colliery, pithead baths	Whitehaven		Cumberland	England	As chief assistant or deputy chief architect for the Miners' Welfare Committee
	After 1929	Houldsworth Colliery, pithead baths	Patna		Ayrshire	Scotland	As chief assistant or deputy chief architect for the Miners' Welfare Committee
	After 1929	Kells Community Centre	Whitehaven		Cumberland	England
	After 1929	Mauchline Colliery, pithead baths			Ayrshire	Scotland	As chief assistant or deputy chief architect for the Miners' Welfare Committee
	After 1929	Overtown Colliery, pithead baths			Lanarkshire	Scotland	As chief assistant or deputy chief architect for the Miners' Welfare Committee
	After 1929	Pennyvenie Colliery, pithead baths			Ayrshire	Scotland	Further work (?) - As chief assistant or deputy chief architect for the Miners' Welfare Committee
	After 1929	Wester Auchengeich Colliery, pithead baths			Lanarkshire	Scotland	As chief assistant or deputy chief architect for the Miners' Welfare Committee
	After 1929	Whitehill Colliery, pithead baths			Midlothian	Scotland	As chief assistant or deputy chief architect for the Miners' Welfare Committee
	After 1929	Windygates Institute	Windygates		Fife	Scotland
	1932	Kames Colliery, Pithead Baths			Ayrshire	Scotland	As chief assistant or deputy chief architect under John Austin Dempster, on the staff of the Miners' Welfare Committee
	1933	Auchencruive/Auchincruive Colliery, Pithead Baths 4 and 5	Annbank		Ayrshire	Scotland	As chief assistant or deputy chief architect under John Austin Dempster, on the staff of the Miners' Welfare Committee
	1933	Cardowan Colliery, Pithead Baths	Cardowan		Lanarkshire	Scotland	As chief assistant to John Austin Dempster, on the staff of the Miners' Welfare Committee
	1934	Polkemmet Colliery, pithead baths			Lanarkshire	Scotland	As chief assistant and latterly deputy chief architect for the Miners' Welfare Committee
	1938	Fleets Colliery, pithead baths			East Lothian	Scotland	As chief assistant or deputy chief architect for the Miners' Welfare Committee

References

Archive References

The following archives hold material relating to this :
	Source	Archive Name	Source Catalogue No.	Notes
	Courtesy of Hugh Smith	Information sent via 'Contact Us' on website		Sent May 2011
	England and Wales	Births, marriages and deaths
	RIBA Archive, Victoria & Albert Museum	RIBA Nomination Papers		L no4105 (box 21); F no4623 (combined box 25)