Basic Biographical Details | Name: | Bruce Campbell Donaldson | | Designation: | | | Born: | 1896 | | Died: | 1977 | | Bio Notes: | Bruce Campbell Donaldson was born in 1896 at Waterford, Ireland where his father was manager of the gasworks. The family was Scottish but on his father’s early death, his mother moved the family to London. Nothing is known of his education and apprenticeship but he had probably completed the latter prior to World War I as he was commissioned as a 2nd lieutenant in the Royal Northumberland Fusiliers.
About 1920 F W Woolworth’s chief architect William Priddle put him in charge of the firm’s northern construction office in Liverpool, where he supervised the building of Priddle’s large new store in 1922-27. By 1926 he was entrusted with design as well as construction of Woolworths’ large new stores in Manchester and Leeds, the former being a particularly accomplished classical design.
These made Donaldson the obvious choice as Woolworths’ chief architect when Priddle died suddenly in January 1932. Between that year and 1939 he oversaw a vast programme of new construction and rebuilding, the larger stores having bold American-inspired Art Deco facades in Shaw’s faience. Responsibility for the smaller stores was in general delegated to the regional construction offices in London, Liverpool and Birmingham.
In August 1939 Donaldson suffered the embarrassment of being declared bankrupt. The reason are not known: Donaldson was then on a salary of £3000 p.a. which was large for that date. In view of his exceptional services to the company the matter appears to have been handled sympathetically and he was allowed to retain office, but further financial difficulties during the war years resulted in him gradually being sidelined and replaced by Harold Winbourne, supervisor in the Birmingham office whose formal succession took place in February 1944. Donaldson’s services were retained on a ‘repairs and maintenance’ still a significant responsibility given the ware damage the firm had suffered. After the retirement of William Lawrence Stephenson, head of Woolworths’ UK operations from 1923, management may have been less sympathetic, Donaldson resigning office completely on 31 August 1951 at the age of fifty-five. He died in 1977.
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Employment and TrainingEmployers
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 |  | 1933 | North of Scotland Bank | Wick | | Caithness | Scotland | Conversion of bank to Woolworths - as chief architect in Woolworths Liverpool office - perhaps involved | | 1933 | Woolworth | Arbroath | | Angus | Scotland | As chief architect in Woolworths - perhaps involved | | 1935 | Woolworth's store | | | Glasgow | Scotland | Reconstruction with faience facade as Chief Architect to Woolworths | | 1936 | 97-99 Montague Street | Rothesay | Bute | Bute | Scotland | As Chief Architect of Woolworths | | 1936 | Woolworth's | Airdrie | | Lanarkshire | Scotland | As Chief Architect | | 1936 | Woolworth's | St Andrews | | Fife | Scotland | As Chief Architect of Woolworths | | 1936 | Woolworth's | Bathgate | | West Lothian | Scotland | As Chief Architect | | 1937 | Woolworth's | Dunfermline | | Fife | Scotland | As Chief Architect | | 1939 | F W Woolworth store | | | Dundee | Scotland | Reconstruction - as Chief Architect to Woolworths | | 1939 | Woolworths, 97-99 High Street | Dumbarton | | Dunbartonshire | Scotland | As Chief Architect in Woolworths |
ReferencesBibliographic References| The following books contain references to this : | | | Author(s) | Date | Title | Part | Publisher | Notes | | Morrison, Kathryn A | | Woolworths: 100 years on the High Street | | London: English Heritage (or Historic England) | |
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