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Practices

Basic Biographic Details

Cullen, Lochhead & Brown
Architectural practice
Year Only
1911
After (Year)
2005
After Alexander Cullen died on 21 January 1911, the practice of Alex Cullen, Lochhead & Brown became Cullen, Lochhead & Brown, dropping Cullen's forename. The practice's main office was at Brandon Chambers, Hamilton, which had been designed for the purpose by Cullen in 1898-99. Of the remaining partners, James Lochhead had been born in 1870 in Johnstone, the son of J Lochhead, a furniture dealer in Hope Street, Ayr, and had been educated at Ayr Grammar School and subsequently Ayr Academy. He had served his articles with Allan Stevenson of Ayr from 1884, remaining as an assistant until 1891. He had then moved to become chief draughtsman in the practice of Henry Higgins of Glasgow, attending classes at the Glasgow and West of Scotland Technical College where he had received the Bronze Medal in Building Construction in 1892 and had been a Queen's Prizeman in Architecture and Architectural Design in 1893. In the latter year he had entered the Office of Public Works in Glasgow whilst continuing his studies, and in 1894-98 he had acted as assistant lecturer to Professor Gourlay in the Architectural Classes at the College. He had passed the qualifying exam to become ARIBA on 11 June 1894, his proposers being John Honeyman, Campbell Douglas and Thomas Lennox Watson. He had joined Cullen's practice as chief draughtsman and prospective partner in 1898. The other partner, William Brown, had been born in 1873 and had been articled to Cullen in 1888, attending technical and art classes at Hamilton Academy from 1889 to 1894, and had remained as assistant after completing his apprenticeship. Lochhead and Brown had been taken into partnership on 24 June 1902, Brown being put in charge of the Motherwell office at 4 Clyde Street.

After Lochhead's arrival the work of the practice had become extremely accomplished Edwardian Baroque and classical. Initially the practice name had remained as Alex Cullen; it had won the major competition for Hamilton Municipal Buildings in 1903, and a Glasgow office had been established at Atlantic Chambers in Hope Street to supervise the Western District Hospital, a by-product of the competition for the Eastern District Hospital in which Cullen and Lochhead had been placed first but had not received the commission. It was not until 1908 that the practice had become Alex Cullen, Lochhead & Brown.

At the time of Cullen's death, his youngest son, Alexander Cullen Junior (born 1892), was only in the first year of his apprenticeship with the practice. Brown remained in charge of the Motherwell office and Lochhead took over the management of both the Hamilton and the Glasgow offices.

Lochhead was active in public life. In 1896 he became the first President of the Royal Technical College (Glasgow) Craftsman's Society; he also served as President of Hamilton Arts & Crafts Society for two years, and was President of the Glasgow Architectural Association from 1906 to 1907. He wrote many articles and delivered numerous papers to these societies as well as to the Edinburgh Architectural Association, Glasgow Philosophical Society, Glasgow Scientific Society and Ayr Sketch Club.

Brown was admitted LRIBA on 20 March 1911, his proposers being George Gunn, Lochhead and James Davidson. Two months later Lochhead was admitted FRIBA, his proposers being James Archibald Morris of Ayr, John Bennie Wilson and James Milne Monro of Glasgow. Brown was admitted FRIBA in early 1921, proposed by Lochhead, Davidson and William Brown Whitie. By that date Alexander Cullen Junior had returned to the practice as an assistant after war service, but in 1922 Lochhead & Brown appear to have indicated to him that he would not be offered a partnership as he left to commence practice in Hamilton in competition with them on 1 January 1923. Lochhead and Brown's choice fell instead on the younger Lockhart Whiteford Hutson, who had been articled to Cullen, Lochhead & Brown in 1912, and the firm's older chief assistant, Thomas Spiers Fraser, who had been with the practice in that capacity since 1911. They were taken into partnership in 1925, but Fraser left only five years later to practise in Hamilton on his own account from 1930. Brown retired in 1931. Hutson was still with the firm in 1940 when he was admitted FRIBA, proposed by the RIBA Council. By that time the Hamilton office had moved to 119 Cadzow Street. Lochhead remained senior partner until his death in 1942. Hutson then became sole partner and remained so until Stuart C Clink was taken into partnership in 1946.

Further partners joined the practice in the 1960s and 70s - George H E Hall in 1956, James G Anderson in 1973 and John McM Walker in 1988.

In the RIBA Directory of Practices of 1981 the firm are noted as Consultants to DAER and the Loch Lomond Water Schemes. They also drew up reports on fire precautions and prepared the Fore Spread Programmes in various schools for Strathclyde Regional Council. They had undertaken various house modernisation projects for Hamilton and Motherwell District Councils.

Addresses

The following private or business addresses are associated with this architectural practice:

Business Addresses

Business Addresses2

AddressTypeDate FromDate ToNotes
4 Clyde Street Motherwell Lanarkshire ScotlandBusinessIn year 1911After 1920
Glasgow ScotlandBusiness1911/01
Brandon Chambers Hamilton Lanarkshire ScotlandBusinessBefore 1911c. 1927Main office
119 Cadzow Street Hamilton Lanarkshire ScotlandBusinessc. 1927After 1953
115 Cadzow Street Hamilton Lanarkshire ScotlandBusinessc. 1928
10 Auchingramont Road Hamilton Lanarkshire BusinessIn year 1960After 1975
29 Park Circus Glasgow ScotlandBusinessIn year 1970After 1975

Partners, Employees and Pupils

The following individuals were employed or trained by this architectural practice (click on an item to view details):

Employees or Pupils2

NamePositionDate FromDate ToNotes
James LochheadPartner1911/01In year 1942
William Mair BishopSenior Assistant1911/01After 1912
Hugh Dykes SimpsonAssistant1911/01After 1911
Alexander MairAssistant1911/01In year 1912
Alexander Cullen (junior)Apprentice1911/011915/03
James McLellan BrownAssistant1911/01In year 1914
Thomas Spiers FraserChief Assistant1911/01In year 1925
William BrownPartner1911/01In year 1931
Joseph WilsonDraughtsmanIn year 19121912 or 1913
William FraserApprenticeIn year 1912
Walter AlisonDraughtsman1912/071915/04
Lockhart Whiteford HutsonApprenticeIn year 1913In year 1916
James Donald FergusonApprentice1913/061915/10
(Captain) Arthur James Scott HuttonAssistantMid 1913sMid 1913sin Hamilton office, during summer vacation
Robert FraterChief AssistantIn year 1915In year 1915

Buildings and Designs

This architectural practice was involved with the following buildings or structures from the date specified (click on an item to view details):

Buildings and Designs

BuildingPartnership GPRoleDate FromDate ToTown DistrictIslandCity CountyCountryNotes
Fire Brigade HeadquartersAArchitectural practiceIn year 1955HamiltonLanarkshireScotland
St Margaret's ChurchAArchitectural practiceIn year 1966MotherwellLanarkshireScotland
Hamilton Municipal Buildings and Public LibraryAIn year 1911In year 1914HamiltonLanarkshireScotlandContinued job after competition win in 1903, before practice title changed (municipal offices only built before First World War)
Rorison Memorial ChurchArchitectural practiceIn year 1911In year 1912AshgillLanarkshireScotlandExtension
Blackpool Central Library and Art GalleryA1911/01In year 1912BlackpoolLancashireEnglandWon in open competition
Shotts Fever HospitalA?After 1911Before 1914ShottsLanarkshireScotlandExtension. Further extensions later - 16 beds with addition to administration block (date uncertain: Alex Cullen, Lochhead & Brown if before 1911, but Cullen, Lochhead & Brown if between 1911 and 1914)
GordonbankAAfter 1911Before 1920LarkhallLanarkshireScotlandPartnership may not have been involved - depends on date
Co-operative Society premisesA?After 1911Before 1914HamiltonLanarkshireScotlandExtensions (date uncertain: Alex Cullen, Lochhead & Brown if before 1911, but Cullen, Lochhead & Brown if between 1911 and 1914)
County of Lanark SanatoriumA?After 1911Before 1914StonehouseLanarkshireScotlandExtensions? - probably including 20 additional beds and additions to administration block (date uncertain: Alex Cullen, Lochhead & Brown if before 1911, but Cullen, Lochhead & Brown if between 1911 and 1914)
Tenements, StenhousemuirAIn year 1912StenhousemuirStirlingshireScotland
Bishopbriggs Police StationAIn year 1914In year 1915BishopbriggsLanarkshireScotland
RaheenAIn year 1914BearsdenGlasgowScotland
Workmen's housingABefore 1914MotherwellLanarkshireScotland
Workmen's housingABefore 1914ClelandLanarkshireScotland
Workmen's housing, CraigneukABefore 1914CraigneukLanarkshireScotland

References

Bibliographic References

The following books contain references to this architectural practice:

Bib ref

AuthorTitleDatePublisherPartNotes
Walker, Frank ArneilSouth Clyde Estuary: An Illustrated Architectural Guide to Inverclyde and Renfrew1986p125
Bailey, Rebecca MScottish architects' papers: a source book1996Edinburgh: The Rutland Press

Periodical References

The following periodicals contain references to this architectural practice:

Period ref

Periodical NamePublisherDate CircEditionNotes
Builder1953/03/27p509
Builder1951/6/22p905
Builder1951/1/5p27
Builder1949/5/20p637
Builder1950/2/3p182
Builder1951/5/11p675
Builder1953/07/10p80
Builder1953/02/13p292
Builder1951/9/21p397
Builder1951/6/1p803
Builder1953/10/16p600
Builder1953/12/04p903

Archive References

The following archives hold material relating to this architectural practice:

Arc ref

Archive NameSourceSource Cat NoBuildingItem NameNotes
Cullen Lochhead and Brown ArchiveCullen Lochhead & Brown Architects