Patrick Hill Thoms and William Fleming Wilkie

Description Patrick Hill Thoms and William Fleming Wilkie

Collection Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland

Catalogue Number 551 223/4

Category All Other

Scope and Content The collection comprises 64 design drawings for domestic properties by Patrick Hill Thoms and William Fleming Wilkie, and one drawing by architects John Bruce and Son whose office later became associated with the Thoms and Wilkie practice. A number of these fragile watercolour designs are also held as photographed copies. In addition, the collection includes copies of handwritten correspondence from Patrick Thoms to a client, Mr D. Reid, regarding additions and alterations to his property in High Street, Edzell, as well as copies of the specifications and schedules of works for this project. The drawings in the collection mostly date from 1904 to 1914, early in the period during which Thoms and Wilkie were based at 46 Reform Street. However, some material relating to buildings Thoms designed in the late nineteenth century prior to joining forces with Wilkie is held in the collection, as well as plans for a later project, a garage added in 1924 to a property they had earlier altered, Grange Cottage (1911), which by 1924 had come to be known as Milton House. The collection reflects the variety of styles in which Thoms and Wilkie worked. It contains evidence of their work in the Arts and Crafts style, as it includes drawings from 1907 of Grayburn house at Benvie, designed for Thoms’ father, T. S. Thoms, and described as ‘Possibly the purest Arts and Crafts cottage in Scotland’(McKean and Walker 1993, 172). A number of their other designs for cottages located in and around Dundee are represented, including cottages at Longforgan (Ashlea and Maywood, 1912), at Ninewells (‘The Hirsel’, now Ardshiel, 1904, and ‘Morar’, 1905), and one at Lawside Road (1909) labelled as being for their own use. The collection also holds designs for alterations to existing properties which were given a seventeenth century Scots appearance. These are Grange Cottage in Monifieth, which became Milton House, and Kinpurnie Castle at Newtyle of which the archive holds 20 drawings. Thoms and Wilkie’s Cumbrian-style buildings are not represented in the collection. A notable group of drawings is Thoms and Wilkie’s designs for a house at Farington Hall, Dundee (1914). Their design, Hill Rise, was to replace the earlier Farington Hall which was destroyed in an arson attack attributed to local suffragettes in 1913. Although contemporary newspaper reports were optimistic that Farington Hall might be salvaged after the fire, the structure was demolished in 1913, and Thoms and Wilkie’s sub-Lutyens design with a notably large roof and tall chimney stacks was realised.

Archive History The Thoms and Wilkie collection was deposited with RCAHMS under terms of the RIAS/RCAHMS agreement which states that the Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland (RIAS) Drawings Collection should be maintained and housed by RCAHMS. The RIAS Drawings Collection includes both the Historic Drawings Collection and the RIAS Practice Collections. The Historic Drawings Collection is a small group of drawings accumulated since 1840 which is added to from time to time through gifts and donations. The Practice Collections contain material rescued from Scotland’s architectural practices and is not expected to increase. Professor David Walker gave the Thoms and Wilkie office photograph album to RIAS after he was given it by Thoms’ son Thomas Thoms in 1971.

Access Conditions Access to drawings and manuscripts is unrestricted.

Administrative History Patrick Hill Thoms was born in Kilmacolm in Renfrewshire although his family were from Angus. His education at Harris academy was followed by time at the Dundee Technical Institute and University College. During this time he was apprenticed to Charles and Leslie Ower and afterwards employed by Thomas Martin Cappon. In 1898 Thoms left to set up his own business in offices at 18 Commercial Street, Dundee. Around 1901/02 he went into partnership with Wilkie. Patrick Thoms died in 1946. William Fleming Wilkie was born in 1876 into a privileged life and did not need to work for a living. He was apprenticed to Thomas Martin Cappon and worked for him between 1892 and 1897 and studied at Dundee Technical Institute during this time. Wilkie left to move to London initially working for James Glen Sivewright Gibson and from 1900 for the London County Council Architects Department and used his time in London to study at the Royal Academy Schools and the Architectural Association. He returned to Dundee in 1901/2 to set up in partnership with Thoms. William died in 1961. The company was originally known as Thomas and Wilkie Architects and Surveyors and at first continued to work from Thoms office at 18 Commercial Street. However in 1904 they moved to more substantial premises at 46 Reform Street and were there until 1921 when they moved to 21 South Tay Street. They also opened an office in St Andrews and from 1923 Wilkie worked from that office until 1925 when he retired from the company but remained as a partner in name only till 1930. 1937 saw the partnership include Thoms’ nephew, Thomas Hill Thoms, and further changes were forthcoming in 1947 when James Douglas Nairn joined the partnership. He in turn was followed by his sons Douglas and James Fraser Anderson in 1964. In 1975 the company was amalgamated with Somerville and Thoms (this Thoms being Thomas Hill Thoms’ son Andrew), which signalled the beginning of a number of name changes, first to the Thoms Wilkie Partnership, then from 1982 the Nairn connection came more to the fore, when it became Thoms and Nairn. In 1985 another change occurred after the partnership was joined by Trevor Black and since 1987 the company has been known as Trevor Black Architects. Included in the collection is one drawing that is by the John Bruce and Sons practice. From 1878 John Bruce operated from 31 Bank Street and in 1887 was joined by his son James Prain Bruce. In 1888 the business moved to 47 Commercial Street, one of the premises in the drawing. The company changed name in 1920 to Bruce Son and Morton. John’s grandson Douglas Prain Bruce left the company during the Second World War and Morton moved to administer business within the family. The company ceased in 1949 and the company archives are held by Trevor Black which could explain why this one drawing has been included in the Thoms and Wilkie collection.

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