Basic Biographical Details Name: | John McKissack & Son | Designation: | | Born: | 1900 | Died: | | Bio Notes: | John McKissack was born c.1844, the son of James McKissack, mechanical engineer and Janet McGhie from Girvan. He was educated at St Enoch's School but no further details are known of his training.
In 1872 McKissack formed a partnership with William Gardner Rowan who was two years his junior and had trained as both architect and civil engineer with George Penrose Kennedy and James Fairie Blair. Two years later, on 9 July 1874 at 158 Hospital Street, Gorbals, McKissack married Helen Ronald, daughter of Alexander Ronald, master baker and Marion Black. Rowan was a witness at the wedding. They had five children: two sons James (born 1875) and Alex (born c.1877) were born in Glasgow, and a further son John (born c.1880) and two daughters Helen (born c.1883) and Mary (born c.1886) were born in Govan.
After the formation of the partnership, Rowan did most of the design work. In 1889 McKissack took his son James, who had been educated at Allan Glen's School, into the McKissack & Rowan practice as an apprentice.
Rowan had little taste for the 'shoddy' tenement side of McKissack's practice and early in 1890 the partnership was amicably dissolved. McKissack continued practice, with James completed his apprenticeship with his father and attending Glasgow School of Art (from 1890 to 1894) and the Glasgow & West of Scotland Technical College under Professor Charles Gourlay. He remained with his father as assistant and was taken into partnership in 1900, the practice title becoming John McKissack & Son. About this time he made a study tour in Italy and France.
The elder McKissack never sought admission to the RIBA. About 1912 he had a major operation and withdrew from the practice. He died on 27 August 1915 at 9 St Andrews Drive, Pollokshields leaving moveable estate of £813 15s. He was survived by his second wife Jessie Ferguson Tyre, daughter of the landscape painter John Tyre, whom he had married on 22 June 1894 at 4 Florence Place, and all five of his children. James continued the practice under the same name thereafter, and from about that date specialised almost exclusively in cinema work, mainly for George Singleton. In August 1986 Professor McKean recorded his recollections of the younger McKissack: 'McKissack was a distinguished camera man who exhibited in New York. Because of his knowledge of photography, McKissack was used as a film booker for Cranston's Picture House. He was gentlemanly, and rather remote. He travelled a lot to Germany and Northern Europe, from which the inspiration of the Cosmo clearly derived. He did some other work notably an electricity substation at the bottom of Hope Street. He was a man of taste and refinement. The faience of the frontages of cinemas before the Cosmo was largely due to the influence of George Singleton, since it was good for wear and tear. Frontages always had to be clean and attractive. McKissack's office was in West Regent Street, an absolute dump, but with a large empty room at the front with a gigantic chest in the middle of the floor, into which he threw all the drawings without any order, and from which he had to retrieve them when necessary.' Bruce Peter has established that he visited Hilversum to see the work of Dudok, from which the design of the Cosmo was derived.
In his last years McKissack worked in partnership with William James Anderson II, 'a quiet unassuming man who was not in the least commercial' and was an extremely accomplished designer. The practice title remained unchanged as John McKissack & Son.
McKissack married Isabella Somerville, daughter of the lithographic artist Thomas Somerville, at Burlington House, Glasgow on 30 October 1928; she died before 1938. McKissack died of heart failure on 24 June 1940 at 9 St Andrew's Drive; William James Anderson II on 18 January 1950. | Private and Business AddressesThe following private or business addresses are associated with this : | | Address | Type | Date from | Date to | Notes | | 68|69, West Regent Street, Glasgow, Scotland | Business | 1900 | After 1940 | | | 56, West Regent Street, Glasgow, Scotland | | January 1948 | | Builder 2 January 1948 p24 |
Employment and TrainingEmployees or Pupils
Buildings and DesignsThis 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 | | 1900 | City Improvement Trust warehouse | | | Glasgow | Scotland | Won competition (£100 premium) and secured job | | 1900(?) | Dunoon Sheriff Court and County Buildings | Dunoon | | Argyll | Scotland | Competition won and job secured prior to partnership | | 1900 | Muslin Factory | | | Glasgow | Scotland | | | 1900 | Restaurant and tea rooms | Largs | | Ayrshire | Scotland | | | 1900 | Wireworks for W Riddell & Co | | | Glasgow | Scotland | Begun by John McKissack alone prior to partnership | | After 1900 | Clydebank West UF Church | Clydebank | | Dunbartonshire | Scotland | | | After 1900 | Shop, Kilmarnock Road | | | Glasgow | Scotland | | | After 1900 | Warehouse and offices | Bridgeton | | Glasgow | Scotland | | | c. 1900 | London Road UF Church hall | | | Glasgow | Scotland | | | 1902 | City Improvement Trust warehouse | | | Glasgow | Scotland | | | 1903 | Langavat | Kilmacolm/Kilmalcolm | | Renfrewshire | Scotland | | | 1903 | Strathclyde Public School | | | Glasgow | Scotland | | | 1904 | 4th VBSR Headquarters | | | Glasgow | Scotland | | | 1905(?) | Eastern Co-operative Drapery Building | Parkhead | | Glasgow | Scotland | | | 1906 | Boden Street Factory | | | Glasgow | Scotland | Addition | | 1907 | Boden Street Factory | | | Glasgow | Scotland | Block on the corner of Nuneaton Street | | 1908 | Dunoon District Cottage Hospital | Dunoon | | Argyll | Scotland | New hospital | | 1908 | Sawmill for A Bowie & Co | | | Glasgow | Scotland | | | 1909 | Parkhead Congregtional Church Halls | Tollcross | | Glasgow | Scotland | | | 1911 | Eastbank Public School | Shettleston | | Glasgow | Scotland | | | 1911 | Eastbank Public School | Shettleston | | Glasgow | Scotland | | | 1912 | Business premises for J T Whitelaw's Trust | | | Glasgow | Scotland | With Duff. Conversion to cinema | | c. 1912 | Electricity Substation | | | Glasgow | Scotland | | | Before 1914 | SCWS buildings | Shettleston | | Glasgow | Scotland | | | Before 1914 | SCWS buildings | Barrhead | | Renfrewshire | Scotland | | | Before 1914 | Wellshot Road School | | | Glasgow | Scotland | Additional block on Altyre Street | | 1916 | Eglinton Electreum | Laurieston | | Glasgow | Scotland | | | 1919 | Picture House | Cowdenbeath | | Fife | Scotland | | | 1925 | Vogue Cinema | Rutherglen | | Lanarkshire | Scotland | | | 1928 | Caley Picture House | | | Edinburgh | Scotland | | | 1929 | Broadway Cinema | Shettleston | | Glasgow | Scotland | | | 1929 | Kingsway Cinema | | | Glasgow | Scotland | | | 1930 | Cinema for Renfrew Pictures Ltd | Renfrew | | Renfrewshire | Scotland | Rebuilding | | 1930 | Cinema for Riddrie Cinema Ltd | Riddrie | | Glasgow | Scotland | | | 1930 | Ross Dairy Ltd premises | | | Glasgow | Scotland | | | 1931 | Cinema, 19 Lawn Street | Paisley | | Renfrewshire | Scotland | Reconstruction and addtions | | 1931 | Hillhead Picture House | | | Glasgow | Scotland | Reconstruction | | 1931 | Picture House | Stranraer | | Wigtownshire | Scotland | | | 1932 | Boulevard Cinema | Knightswood | | Glasgow | Scotland | on 'Gushet corner' - this probably relates to a different site | | 1932 | Commodore Cinema | Scotstoun | | Glasgow | Scotland | | | 1932 | La Scala Cinema | Greenock | | Renfrewshire | Scotland | Reconstruction | | 1932 | Regal cinema | Paisley | | Renfrewshire | Scotland | Perhaps submitted scheme which was not executed? | | 1932 | Vogue Cinema | | | Dundee | Scotland | | | 1933 | Cinematograph House | Gorgie | | Edinburgh | Scotland | Rebuilding incorporating parts of old Cinematograph House | | 1933 | Empire Cinema | | | Dundee | Scotland | Reconstruction | | 1933 | Mecca Cinema | Possil | | Glasgow | Scotland | | | 1935 | Carlton Cinema | Dickson's Park, Piershill | | Edinburgh | Scotland | | | 1935 | Cinema near Granton Road | Granton | | Edinburgh | Scotland | | | 1935 | Cranston's Picture House and Tea Rooms, Renfield Street | | | Glasgow | Scotland | Reconstruction, including alterations to rake of floor | | 1935 | Embassy Cinema | | | Glasgow | Scotland | | | 1935 | Embassy Cinema | Troon | | Ayrshire | Scotland | | | 1935 | St Roch's RC School | | | Glasgow | Scotland | Extension | | 1936 | Cinema | Inveresk | | Midlothian | Scotland | | | 1936 | Cinema | Springburn | | Glasgow | Scotland | Although 'Mackintosh' is given in 'Builder' it seesm much more likely that it is McKissack given that their address was 68 West Regent Street. | | 1936 | Cinema, Hawthorn Street | | | Glasgow | Scotland | Proposed | | 1936 | Kyle Cinema | Irvine | | Renfrewshire | Scotland | | | 1936 | Picture House | Springburn | | Glasgow | Scotland | | | 1936 | Regal Cinema | Musselburgh | | Midlothian | Scotland | | | 1936 | Vogue Cinema | Govan | | Glasgow | Scotland | | | 1937 | Aldwych Cinema | Cardonald | | Glasgow | Scotland | | | 1937 | Tudor Cinema | Stockbridge | | Edinburgh | Scotland | | | 1938 | Baths, Leslie Street | Pollokshields | | Glasgow | Scotland | Proposal to convert baths into cinema | | 1938 | Boulevard Cinema | Knightswood | | Glasgow | Scotland | Reconstruction as Vogue Cinema | | 1938 | Cinema | Renfrew | | Renfrewshire | Scotland | | | 1938 | Cinema, Links Street | Kirkcaldy | | Fife | Scotland | | | 1938 | Cosmo cinema | | | Glasgow | Scotland | | | 1938 | Riddrie Picture House | | | Glasgow | Scotland | | | 1945 | William Rowan and Sons Limited Premises | | | Glasgow | Scotland | Alterations and Additions | | 1948 | Hamilton Premises, Cathcart Road | | | Glasgow | Scotland | |
ReferencesBibliographic ReferencesThe following books contain references to this : | | Author(s) | Date | Title | Part | Publisher | Notes | | Scottish Biographies | 1938 | | | E J Thurston (pub.) | | | Walker, Frank Arneil | 1986 | South Clyde Estuary: An Illustrated Architectural Guide to Inverclyde and Renfrew | | | p17 |
Periodical ReferencesThe following periodicals contain references to this : | | Periodical Name | Date | Edition | Publisher | Notes | | Builder | 3 September 1915 | | | Obituary of John p174 | | Glasgow Herald | 30 August 1915 | | | Obituary of John |
Archive ReferencesThe following archives hold material relating to this : | | Source | Archive Name | Source Catalogue No. | Notes | | RIBA Archive, Victoria & Albert Museum | RIBA Nomination Papers | | L v19 no 1435 (James McKissack) |
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