Alexander Black (c. 1790 – 19 February 1858) was a Scottish architect, born in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

around 1790 who is mainly known for his association with

George Heriot’s School George Heriot's School is a Scottish independent primary and secondary day school on Lauriston Place in the Old Town of Edinburgh, Scotland. In the early 21st century, it has more than 1600 pupils, 155 teaching staff, and 80 non-teaching staf ...

, where he acted as Superintendent of Works for most of his active life.

Life

In 1832 he is shown as a surveyor living at 17 Calton Place in

. He operated as an architect for George Heriot's School from 1833, taking over from

Thomas Bonnar Thomas Bonnar ( d.1847) was a Scottish interior designer and architect of note, working in the Edinburgh area. He is particularly remembered for his outstanding ceilings. Thomas was father to William Bonnar RSA (1800-1853), artist, and Thomas ...

on his retiral. He is particularly noteworthy for his Heriot Trust Schools, built by the school to serve the poorer children of Edinburgh. His work is identifiable in its reuse of detailing from the main school particularly on the corner “quoins”. Two of the schools (Broughton Street and Cowgate/Pleasance) were notable for including their playground under the buildings behind an arcaded front, their being sited on tight urban plots with no space for conventional playgrounds. This device was later copied by

Edward Robert Robson Edward Robert Robson FRIBA FSA FSI (2 March 1836 – 19 January 1917) was an English architect famous for the progressive spirit of his London state-funded school buildings of the 1870s and early 1880s. Born in Durham, he was the elder son of Ro ...

for some of his London School Board buildings, where land was equally tight. He also feued many large areas of the city under Heriot Trust ownership notably the Henderson Row area, West Coates and

Leith Walk Leith Walk is one of the longest streets in Edinburgh, Scotland, and is the main road connecting the centre of the city to Leith. Forming most of the A900 road, it slopes downwards from Picardy Place at the south-western end of the street to the ...

. He was succeeded in his role by John Chesser. In later life he lived at 19 Lauriston Street in the Tollcross area of Edinburgh. He died on 19 February 1858 and is buried under a huge but simple stone sarcophagus on the edge of the south path in

Dean Cemetery The Dean Cemetery is a historically important Victorian cemetery north of the Dean Village, west of Edinburgh city centre, in Scotland. It lies between Queensferry Road and the Water of Leith, bounded on its east side by Dean Path and on ...

List of works

The rear of the Salvation Army hostel on Cowgate Edinburgh

Glasite Meeting House Barony St Edinburgh

*Refacing of

in ashlar stonework (1833) *Layout of roads between Stockbridge and Henderson Row (Saxe-Coburg Place, Clarence St etc.) (1834) *

Glasite The Glasites or Glassites were a small Christian church founded in about 1730 in Scotland by John Glas.John Glas preached supremacy of God's word (Bible) over allegiance to Church and state to his congregation in Tealing near Dundee in July 172 ...

Meeting House, Barony Street (1835) (from 1991 to 2012 the base of the

Architectural Heritage Society of Scotland The Architectural Heritage Society of Scotland (AHSS) is a society dedicated to the protection and study of the built heritage of Scotland. It has around 1000 members and five regional groups responsible for commenting on planning applications in ...

) *George Heriot's Primary School (now the Science Block) (1838) *Trust School at Old Assembly Close (1839) *Trust School at Rose Street (1840) *Trust School at Brown’s Square (1840) *Trust School at Borthwick's Close (1840) *Trust School at Cowgate/Pleasance (1840) (now a

Salvation Army Salvation (from Latin: ''salvatio'', from ''salva'', 'safe, saved') is the state of being saved or protected from harm or a dire situation. In religion and theology, ''salvation'' generally refers to the deliverance of the soul from sin and its c ...

hostel) *Masterplan for the area between

and Easter Road (1848) * Feuing of Wester Coates (1850) *Trust School at Broughton Street (1853) *Remodelling of

Bonnington House Bonnington House is a 19th-century country house near Wilkieston, around west of the city centre of Edinburgh, Scotland. It is a category A listed building. The house was built in 1622, and was the home of the Foulis Baronets of Colinton. Si ...

near Ratho (1858) *Tenements on Barony Street (works completed by

William Notman William Notman (8 March 1826 – 25 November 1891) was a Scottish-Canadian photographer and businessman. The Notman House in Montreal was his home from 1876 until his death in 1891, and it has since been named after him. Biography Notman ...

in 1859)

References

*Buildings of Scotland: Edinburgh by McWilliam, Gifford and Walker *Dictionary of Scottish Architects: Alexander Black (1790-185

{{DEFAULTSORT:Black, Alexander 1790 births 1858 deaths 19th-century Scottish architects Architects from Edinburgh