Basic Site Details Name: | R W Forsyth Ltd Department Store | City or county: | Edinburgh | Country: | Scotland | Parish: | | Status: | A listed | Grid ref: | | Notes: | EDINBURGH - A new building has just been finished at the corner of Princes Street and St Andrew Street. from designs by Mr John James Burnet, ARSA, architect, Glasgow, as business premises for Messrs R W Forsyth. The whole of the constructive details are of steel upright and transverse beams embedded in concrete. The demolition of the Douglas Hotel, the chief house on the site, was begun in June of last year, the actual building operations were not commenced until September, and now the premises, which have cost between £30,000 and £40,000, are completed and open for business. The elevation to both thoroughfares shows a building six stories in height, and there is a basement carried 15 feet, below the street level. The design divides itself into four parts - a high base rising through three stories to a height of 43 feet: above, embracing two stories, the main order, with Renaissance Ionic columns, supporting a stone cornice and open balustrade: and a small upper story for workrooms, with recessed windows and balcony. The angle tower which knits the two portions of the building together rises to a height of 120 feet. [Building News 24 May 1907 p 717]
Additional information from John Watson (junior) who worked on the drawings and designed the bridge.
Sculpture by William Reid Dick 1925 on addition to Princes Street and new building on St Andrew Square.
Structural engineer William Basil Scott (1876-1933). | Building Type ClassificationThe building is classified under the following categories: | | Classification | Original classification? | Notes | | Department store | | |
Street AddressesThe following street addresses are associated with this building: | | Address | Main entrance? | Notes | | 30, Princes Street | Yes | | | South St Andrew Street | Yes | | | 3, St Andrew Square | Yes | |
EventsThe following date-based events are associated with this building: | | From | To | Event type | Notes | | 1906 | | | Beginning of project | | 1907 | | Opened | | | 1910 | 1911 | | Work carried out | | 1923 | 1925 | | West extension over site of George Washington Browne's Redfern building (see separate entry) and new building at 3 St Andrew Square with bridge over mews lane | | 1929 | 1930 | | Sports and hairdressing departments within earlier building | | After 1951 | Before 1955 | Alterations and additions(?) | |
PeopleDesign and ConstructionThe following individuals or organisations have carried out design/construction work. Where architects or practices worked together, matching letters appear beside their names in the Partnership Group column. | | Name | Role | Partnership Group | From | To | Notes | | (Sir) John James Burnet | | A | 1906 | | Project begun | | John Burnet & Son | | A | 1906 | | Project begun | | William John Blain | | | 1910 | 1911 | As Chief Assistant to Sir John James Burnet | | (Sir) John Burnet & Partners | | B | 1923 | 1925 | West extension over site of George Washington Browne's Redfern building (see separate entry) and new building at 3 St Andrew Square with bridge over mews lane | | (Sir) John James Burnet | | B | 1923 | 1925 | West extension over site of George Washington Browne's Redfern building (see separate entry) and new building at 3 St Andrew Square with bridge over mews lane | | John Watson (junior) | | B | 1923 | 1925 | As assistant to John James Burnet - west extension over site of George Washington Browne's Redfern building (see separate entry) and new building at 3 St Andrew Square with bridge over mews lane | | Norman Aitken Dick | | B | 1923 | 1925 | West extension over site of George Washington Browne's Redfern building (see separate entry) and new building at 3 St Andrew Square with bridge over mews lane | | (Sir) John Burnet & Partners | | C | 1929 | 1930 | Sports and hairdressing departments within earlier building | | (Sir) John James Burnet | | C | 1929 | 1930 | Sports and hairdressing departments within earlier building | | Thomas Smith Tait | | C | 1929 | 1930 | Sports and hairdressing departments within earlier building | | Carr & Matthew | | G | After 1951 | Before 1955 | Alterations | | David Carr | | G | After 1951 | Before 1955 | Alterations | | Iain Dewar Haig | | G | After 1951 | Before 1955 | Alterations - as assistant | | James Robertson Laidlaw | | G | After 1951 | Before 1955 | Alterations - as apprentice with Carr & Matthew | | Stuart Russell Matthew | | G | After 1951 | Before 1955 | Alterations |
ClientsThe following individuals or organisations have commissioned work on this building/design: | | Name | Notes | | Forsyth, R W, Ltd | |
ReferencesBibliographic ReferencesThe following books contain references to this building: | | Author(s) | Date | Title | Part | Publisher | Notes | | Academy Architecture | 1907 | | part 1 | | p54 (first design - not as built) | | Clarke, Jonathan | 2014 | Early Structural Steel in London Buildings: a discreet revolution | | English Heritage | pp78-79. Photo of the steel frame only partly clad in 1907. | | Edwards, A Trystan | 1930 | The architectural work of Sir John Burnet and Partners (Masters of Architecture Series) | | Geneva | pp107, 113 | | Royal Academy | 1926 | Catalogue | | | no 1302 | | Wardleworth, Dennis | 2013 | William Reid Dick, Sculptor | | Farnham: Ashgate | p81 |
Periodical ReferencesThe following periodicals contain references to this building: | | Periodical Name | Date | Edition | Publisher | Notes | | Architect | 16 October 1925 | | | | | Builder | 15 June 1923 | CXXIV | | p968 (illustration and plan) | | Builder | 22 October 1926 | | | p641 | | Builders Journal | 25 December 1907 | | | | | Building News | 24 May 1907 | | | p 717
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Archive ReferencesThe following archives hold material relating to this building: | | Source | Archive name | Source catalogue no. | Notes | | Courtesy of James Robertson Laidlaw | Information sent to Dictionary | | Sent April 2010 | | Historic Environment Scotland | Listed Buildings Register | 29696 | | | Historic Environment Scotland | Listed Buildings Register | 29503 | | | RIBA Archive, Victoria & Albert Museum | RIBA Nomination Papers | | Norman Aitken Dick: F no2686 (box 10); William John Blain: L v16 no1128 | | Strathclyde Regional Archives | Glasgow Dean of Guild | | |
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