William Murray Jack

William Murray Jack MBE, FRIAS, FRIBA (1921-1999) was an architect and historic buildings advisor. He was born in Cellardyke, educated at Waid Academy, Anstruther and Dundee College of Art from 1939. After qualification as an architect he joined a firm in Edinburgh but later returned to Dundee as a member of the teaching staff. He was asked by Ian Lindsay to undertake a survey of Fife buildings of architectural and historical interest. He spent some years working for the West African Colonial Service in Nigeria, but on his return to Fife he was asked by Lindsay to work full time on the Historic Buildings Survey of Scotland. He completed Fife, most of Kincardine and nearly all of Angus. He was taken into partnership by JC Cunningham as part of Cunningham, Jack, Fisher and Purdom in 1961. He was based in St Andrews and was an active member of the St Andrews Preservation Trust. He worked in conservation and restoration both locally (Great Eastern and South Court on South Street, 141 South Street, 11 College Street and 24 South Street, St Andrews, Fife Folk Museum in 1964, Scottish Fisheries Museum in Anstruther in 1969) and more widely throughout Scotland in Hew Lorimer's 'Little Houses Scheme'. He was invited to complete Ian Lindsay's restoration work on Pluscarden Abbey in Elgin after Lindsay's death in 1966. This led to more restorations in the north east of Scotland and his work for the National Trust for Scotland on the House of Dun in Angus. He was awarded an MBE in 1992 for his work on restoring historic buildings throughout Scotland.

Source: CM Wolfe, 'Dr Ronald Gordon Cant, Mr William Murray Jack MBE, Companions in Conservation' in the Annual Report and Newsletter of the St Andrews Preservation Trust, 1999, pp. 14-18.

From the guide to the William Murray Jack Architectural Slide Collection, ca. 1950-ca. 1990, (University of St Andrews)