Basic Biographical Details

Name:	John Douglas
Designation:
Born:	c. 1709
Died:	20 June 1778(?)
Bio Notes:	John Douglas practised as an architect in Edinburgh in the mid-18th century. In the ‘Depositions in the Cause William Adam v. Lord Braco’ it is stated that ‘since the year 1730 he has built several houses…for private Gentlemen’ and that ‘he has made Draughts of several houses, which he has afterwards been employed to build’. In 1746 he was described as ‘one John Douglas at Edinburgh next in character to Mr Adams [who] has built several houses’. He seems to have been the builder/architect in much the way William Adam was. However his practice was relatively small by comparison. He never built a major country house or public building. Douglas’s style can be gleaned from the collection of his drawings held in RCAHMS which includes plans and elevations copied from James Gibbs’ ‘Book of Architecture’. Douglas’s copy of this book is held in the collection. Though he borrowed a number of motifs from Gibbs, Douglas’s work is recognisably Scottish, for example in the large proportion of wall to window, the use of turnpike stairs. He also liked using polygonal shapes in the octagonal church at Killin, the octagonal steeples at Leuchars and Lochmaben and the canted bow at Archerfield. He favoured large faceted urns as a decorative feature. Douglas seems to have elicited criticism from various people. This may have been partly due to his personality and perhaps simply due to professional rivalry. While building a house at Haddo, John Baxter had been annoyed when John Douglas made adverse comments about his workmanship. Baxter told Sir John Clerk of Penicuik that Douglas was ‘apt to break his toas on stons that lyes not in his road’. He was ‘sorry to see such a cub who could nevor work a piece of good work all his days sett up for a judge’. However Sir John Clerk’s daughter noted in 1751 that Finlaystone House was ‘not so bad…as some people represent’. The fact that Douglas enjoyed the patronage of a number of distinguished clients, such as the Duke of Atholl, Lord Sinclair (to whom Douglas supplied timber) and the Earl of Dalhousie indicates that his work generally found favour although a number of his plans were never executed. He must have been prospering in the year 1758 as he took a tack of part of the island of Inchkeith that year. Colvin suggests that John Douglas was the same as John Douglas architect in Leith who became a burgess of Edinburgh in 1745 and was still living in Leith in 1773-1774 and that he was probably the John Douglas of Pinkerton whose will (dated 26 March 1773 in Leith), was proved in June 1778. However it is clear that he had Edinburgh property as well. The ‘Caledonian Mercury’ of 18 February 1858 carried an advertisement for a sale of pictures at the ‘House of John Douglas architect’ at the top of the scale stair, head of Flesh Market Close to take place on Monday 19 February. The sale was to continue until ‘all are sold off’. This suggests that John Douglas was living in Edinburgh rather than Leith at this point and that he had a collection of pictures. It is possible he had property in both places. The 'Edinburgh Recorder' confirms that he owned property in High Street, north of Fleshmarket Close (Thomson's Close) as well as at Old Provost's Close, East Head. Douglas would seem to have died on 20 June 1778. In his will he bequeathed his lands and estate of Pinkerton, Crail by deed of entail on his brother William Douglas and any of William's heirs, suggesting he had no off-spring himself. At his death he had a number of debts owing to him including that by David Orme, writer in Edinburgh, John Leslie of Lumquhat, Robert Hamilton, Provost of Kinghorn and William Brown of Gladmyres, granted to Mrs Jean Forbes relict of John Farquharson of Invercauld.

Private and Business Addresses

The following private or business addresses are associated with this :
	Address	Type	Date from	Date to	Notes
	Leith, Edinburgh, Scotland	Private/business(?)	1740s
	Flesh Market Close, High Street, Edinburgh, Scotland	Private/business	1750s
	Leith, Edinburgh, Scotland	Private/business(?)	1770s

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
		Holy Trinity Parish Church	St Andrews		Fife	Scotland	Plans for rebuilding church. Not executed.
	1733	Freeland House			Perthshire	Scotland	Contract for alterations drawn up between Lord Ruthven and John Douglas architect.
	1735	Murthly Castle	Murthly		Perthshire	Scotland	Entrance Block built and probably designed by John Douglas.
	1735	Quarrell House			Stirlingshire	Scotland	Was involved with the enlargement of this house. Design ultimately was that of James Gibbs.
	1736	Achnacarry, walled garden			Inverness-shire	Scotland	Payments made to Douglas during this period
	1736	Blair Castle	Blair Atholl		Perthshire	Scotland	Designs for remodelling Blair Castle. Not executed
	1737	Abercairney			Perthshire	Scotland	Extensive repairs
	1737	Lochnell Castle	Benderloch (near)		Argyll	Scotland	May have been responsible for the design of new house 1737-39.
	1740	Galloway House			Wigtownshire	Scotland	Drew up designs which were implemented by John Baxter. Holly Kinnear gives 'late 1730s'.
	1741	Arbroath Harbour	Arbroath		Angus	Scotland	Advised on how to alleviate silting up of harbour.
	1743	Amulree Church	Amulree		Perthshire	Scotland	Although Colvin lists this under the work of John Douglas of Edinburgh, he notes that the design is vernacular in character and unlike other churches by Douglas. It is therefore possible that the design is by John Douglas of Perthshire who designed the parish school at Dull.
	1743	Killin Church	Killin		Perthshire	Scotland	His design is mentioned in a letter of 1743 from Lord Breadalbane's chamberlain. He therefore presumably designed the church built in 1744.
	1744	Kilmahew Castle	Cardross		Dunbartonshire	Scotland	May have been responsible for the remodelling in the gothic taste.
	1744	Parish Church of St Athernase	Leuchars		Fife	Scotland	Octagonal tower
	c. 1744	Traquair House	Peebles		Peeblesshire	Scotland	Proposed re-fronting of the house
	1745	Archerfield			East Lothian	Scotland	Work on house
	1745	Fullarton House, piers terminating forecourt walls and stables			Ayrshire	Scotland	May have been responsible for the house - attribution
	1745	Lochmaben Town Hall	Lochmaben		Dumfriesshire	Scotland
	1746	Blair Castle	Blair Atholl		Perthshire	Scotland	Plans for addition of entrance lobby drawn up - not executed.
	1746	Finlaystone House	Langbank		Renfrewshire	Scotland	Douglas contracted to build new house of three storeys onto the west end of the north front.
	1746	Taymouth Castle	Taymouth		Perthshire	Scotland	Alterations. 'Plans of the dining room, entry to the house, & other things' mentioned in accounts of Lord Glenorchy who was supervising the estate of behalf of his octogenarian father.
	1747	Archerfield			East Lothian	Scotland	Date of contract for addition, probably on the north side and two pavilions (£2360).
	1747	Tolbooth	Wigtown		Wigtownshire	Scotland
	1748	Dysart House	Dysart		Fife	Scotland	Plan for alteration or rebuilding. Not executed.
	1751	Fothringham House	Inverarity		Angus	Scotland	Drew up plans - received 5 guineas
	1754	Palace of Holyroodhouse			Edinburgh	Scotland	Repairs. With mason-developer James McPherson.
	1754	University of St Andrews, St Salvator's College	St Andrews		Fife	Scotland	Arcaded building on north side - later demolished by Nixon.
	1757	Wardhouse			Aberdeenshire	Scotland	Attribution
	1758	Campbeltown Town House	Campbeltown		Argyll	Scotland
	Mid 1750s	Holyrood Abbey			Edinburgh	Scotland	Estimate for repairing the roof of the Abbey Church. Replacement of roof truss with diaphram walls. Collapsed 2 December 1768.
	1760s	Dalhousie Castle			Midlothian	Scotland	Alterations - including new roof. Sir Walter Scott states that the castle was 'mangled by a fellow called I believe Douglas, who destroyed as far as in him lay its military and baronial character and roof'd it after the fashion of a Poor's house'. A pyramidal Georgian roof is visible in views of the castle prior to Burn's restoration of 1826-7.
	Before 177	Glasserton House			Wigtownshire	Scotland	Gave John Baxter a 'hint' for rebuilding of this house (which preceded the Adam house?) which was recently destroyed by fire.

References

Archive References

The following archives hold material relating to this :
	Source	Archive Name	Source Catalogue No.	Notes
	National Archives of Scotland (formerly SRO)	Gifts and deposits	GD164/693
	National Archives of Scotland (formerly SRO)	Gifts and deposits	GD 224/168/5	1758 Papers relating to tack of island of Inchkeith, proposed to be taken by John Douglas, architect, and James Rutherford, clerk of Kinghorn, formerly set to brother of John Orrock, land surveyor at Alva.
	New Register House	Wills and Testaments	CC 8/8/124(2)