Basic Biographical Details | Name: | George Gavin Lawson | | Designation: | | | Born: | 27 May 1882 | | Died: | 9 June 1953 | | Bio Notes: | George Gavin Lawson was born in Leith, Edinburgh in Scotland on 27 May 1882, the third son of the six children of William Lucas Lawson, corn merchant and Jessie Muller Wilson. He was educated at George Watson’s College, Edinburgh and then articled to Hamilton-Paterson & Rhind. After travelling to London, Paris and elsewhere on the Continent, he emigrated to South Africa in 1905 where he worked as an architect in Johannesburg. This was followed by time practising at the Public Works Department, Pretoria and then in Salisbury, Rhodesia (now Harare, Zimbabwe).
In about 1915 he left for Australia and served in the Australian Light Horse during the First World War. By 1924 he was practising in Adelaide, Australia, appointed assistant chief draughtsman in the office of the Architect-in-Chief in Adelaide. He registered with the Institute of South African Architects in 1927, however, which seems unusual in the circumstances and he retained an absentee membership of the Institute of South African Architects for a number of years. He was responsible for bringing the South African Dutch Colonial style to South Australia in the 1920s and for establishing a partnership with Jack Cheesman that went on to become a thriving architecture practice in South Australia. For more information on his later career see the South Australian architects' database.
Lawson married Edith McDowell Davies, a bookbinder in Melbourne on 10 November 1920 (at St Silas, Albert Park).
He died on 9 June 1953.
| Private and Business Addresses| The following private or business addresses are associated with this : | | | Address | Type | Date from | Date to | Notes |  | Bonnington Terrace, Edinburgh, Scotland | Private | 1891 * | | | | 23, Royal Crescent, Edinburgh, Scotland | Private | 1901 * | | |
* earliest date known from documented sources.
Employment and TrainingEmployers| The following individuals or organisations employed or trained this (click on an item to view details): | | | Name | Date from | Date to | Position | Notes | | Hamilton-Paterson & Rhind | c. 1900(?) | c. 1905(?) | | |
ReferencesBibliographic References| The following books contain references to this : | | | Author(s) | Date | Title | Part | Publisher | Notes | | http://www.architectsdatabase.unisa.edu.au | | http://www.architectsdatabase.unisa.edu.au | | | | | www.artefacts.co.za | | www.artefacts.co.za | | Website of artefacts, for the recording of South African buildings | |
Archive References| The following archives hold material relating to this : | | | Source | Archive Name | Source Catalogue No. | Notes | | Census records online | Censuses | | |
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