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Basic Biographical Details
| Name: | Margaret Findlay Makins |
| Designation: | Architect |
| Born: | 16 June 1913 |
| Died: | 18 August 1980 |
| Bio Notes: | Margaret Findlay Makins was born on 16 June 1913 and attended the diploma course at Glasgow School of Architecture from 1933. During her summer vacations she worked in the office of James Munro & Son in 1934 and in that of Burnet Son & Dick in 1935, 1936 and 1937, and spent June to September of the latter year assisting James Miller & Son on the restoration of the Holy Rude Church, Stirling. She gained her diploma in June 1938, and the following month was engaged by the Scottish Building Centre on alterations of their new showrooms in Glasgow. That October she obtained an appointment in HM Office of Works (Chief Architect's Division), passing the Professional Practice exam a month later. She was still in HMOW - at Rhyl, Denbighshire, Wales, where she may have been from the beginning of her appointment with them - when she was admitted ARIBA on 20 May 1941, her proposers being T Harold Hughes, A Bulloch and Maurice Lyon. She also at some point (the date is not yet known) obtained a qualification in town planning. After working in Rhyl, Wales, she took a post with the Colonial Office and moved to Dar es Salaam, Tanganyika Territory (now Tanzania) in 1948. She was responsible for town planning for the territory in an age when women were not common in professional jobs, even less so in the male-dominated Colonial Office. In 1960 she moved to Mauritius and became the Chief Architect for the island, staying there until 1966. In 1966 she returned to England and bought Step Cottage, Witley, a 16th Century cottage in the old part of the village. She restored this completely. From 1966 to her death in 1980 she worked for Alexander Gibb and Partners, first in their London office and then in Reading when the firm moved there. She was primarily involved in the design of hospitals in the Gulf, as well as working on the town planning of Selebe Pikwe, a new mining town in Botswana. She died on 18 August 1980 in Witley, Goldaming, Surrey. |
Private and Business Addresses
| The following private or business addresses are associated with this architect: | |||||
| Address | Type | Date from | Date to | Notes | |
 | 11a, Garford Road, Rhyl, Denbighshire, Wales | Private | 1941 * | ||
| Step Cottage, Witley, Godalming, Surrey, England | Private | 1980 * | Address at time of death. | |
* earliest date known from documented sources.
Employment and Training
Employers
| The following individuals or organisations employed or trained this architect (click on an item to view details): | |||||
| Name | Date from | Date to | Position | Notes | |
| J M Monro & Son | Mid 1934 | Mid 1934 | Apprentice(?) | during summer vacation, while studying |
| Burnet, Son & Dick | Mid 1935 | Mid 1935 | Apprentice(?) | during summer vacation, while studying |
| Burnet, Son & Dick | Mid 1936 | Mid 1936 | Apprentice(?) | during summer vacation, while studying |
| James Miller & Son | June 1937 | September 1937 | Assistant | |
| Burnet, Son & Dick | Mid 1937 | Mid 1937 | Apprentice(?) | during summer vacation, while studying |
| H M Office of Works (later Ministry of Works, Department of the Environment and Property Services Agency) | October 1938 | After 1941 | in Rhyl, Denbighshire office - Chief Architect's Division | |
| (Sir) Alexander Gibb & Partners | 1966 | 1980 | Architect | |
RIBA
RIBA Proposers
| The following individuals proposed this architect for RIBA membership (click on an item to view details): | |||
| Name | Date proposed | Notes | |
| Archibald Bulloch | 20 May 1941 | for Associateship |
| Thomas Harold Hughes | 20 May 1941 | for Associateship |
Buildings and Designs
| This architect 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 | |
| June 1937 | Church of the Holy Rude | Stirling | Stirlingshire | Scotland | Assistant to James Miller for restoration. | |
| July 1938 | Scottish Building Centre | Glasgow | Scotland | As assistant for new showrooms | ||
References
Archive References
| The following archives hold material relating to this architect: | ||||
| Source | Archive Name | Source Catalogue No. | Notes | |
| Courtesy of Jonathan Makins, nephew of Margaret Findlay Makins. | Information sent via 'Contact Us' on website | Sent January 2014 | |
| RIBA Archive, Victoria & Albert Museum | RIBA Nomination Papers | A no 787* (combined box 199) | |
Images
© All rights reserved. Margaret Makins with the Department of Public Works Staff in Tanganyika. Image courtesy of Jonathan Makins.
© All rights reserved. Image courtesy of Jonathan Makins.
© All rights reserved. Image courtesy of Jonathan Makins.