Thomas, Jack

Person

Thomas, Jack

Thomas Jack was born on 25 January 1895, the son of Robert Jack, master builder, and his wife, Marion Sharp. In 1910 he was apprenticed to the architect Hugh Campbell at his office in St Vincent Street, Glasgow. Whilst working, he commenced his studies at The Glasgow School of Art in 1913 taking evening and Saturday classes in architecture before his studies were interrupted by WW1. He served with the Royal Engineers from 1915 to 1919 but he returned to architectural practice thereafter. He also returned to his studies at The Glasgow School of Art in 1919 funded for one year by the Ministry of Labour and then subsequently took evening classes in life drawing in 1919-20 and in drawing and painting in 1921-22. By this time he was living in Rothesay and in 1920-22 he carried out extensions and alterations to Castle Toward, presumably in association with Francis William Deas. In 1922 he joined the Glasgow Office of Public Works where he worked on halls, libraries, baths, markets, hospitals and other building types until 1929. From 1930 to 1933 he carried on a private practice involving churches, schools, colleges and commercial buildings, and he spent the following two years supervising housing developments, factories, warehouses and reconditioning projects for Fryers & Penman of Largs, Bryden & Robertson of Glasgow, Magnus Duncan of Glasgow, and the Glasgow & West of Scotland Agricultural College. In 1935 he was appointed Architectural and Civil Engineering Assistant (Grade II) with the War Department, and whilst there he passed the Civil Commission Examination in 1938. He remained there until at least 1944, many of his drawings being destroyed in enemy action in 1941. He was admitted LRIBA on 13 January 1945, his proposers being William James Smith, Andrew Graham Henderson and Joseph Weekes. By 1950 Jack had moved to Blackford in Perthshire but it is not clear if he was working in independent practice or in a firm at this time. Jack died at the Burghmuir Hospital, Perth on 10 July 1979. His wife, Doris Girling Eagle, had predeceased him. Thomas Jack is commemorated on The Glasgow School of Art's First World War Roll of Honour.

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Sources:The Dictionary of Scottish Architects: http://www.scottisharchitects.org.uk; Jack Thomas was a student at the Glasgow School of Art c1914. He is listed in the School's World War One Roll of Honour.

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