Ross and Macdonald
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ross and Macdonald was one of Canada's most notable architecture firms in the early 20th century. Based in Montreal, Quebec, the firm originally operated as a partnership between George Allen Ross and David MacFarlane ("Ross and MacFarlane") from 1907 to 1912. MacFarlane retired in 1913, and Robert Henry Macdonald became a partner. The Ross and Macdonald name was used until 1944.
Contents |
[edit] George Allen Ross
Ross (1879-1946) was born in Montreal, and later studied at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris.
Ross was apprenticed to Brown, MacVicar & Heriot in Montreal, and later become a draftsman for the Grand Trunk Railway. He also did work with Parker & Thomas in Boston and Carrere & Hastings in New York before partnering with MacFarlane in Montreal.
He was a Fellow of the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada. He was also a member of the Royal Institute of British Architects, becoming an Associate in 1904 and a Fellow in 1913.
[edit] Robert Henry Macdonald
Macdonald (1875-1942) was born in Melbourne, Australia. He articled to Richard B. Whitaker, M.S.A. of Melbourne, and became a junior draftsman to Robert Findlay in Montreal in 1895. After positions as a draftsman for George B. Post starting in 1903, a senior draftsman with Crighton & McKay in Wellington, New Zealand in 1905, and head draftsman with W.W. Bosworth in New York in 1906, Macdonald joined Ross and MacFarlane in Montreal as a junior partner and draftsman in 1907. He ultimately became a partner of the firm in 1912.
He was a Fellow of the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada and of the Royal Institute of British Architects. He served as president of the Quebec Association of Architects in 1939, and was a recipient of the association's Award of Merit
[edit] Important works of the firm
Commercial Buildings:
- Complexe Les Ailes, Montreal, 1925-27 (Former Eaton's department store)
- Holt Renfrew Store, Montreal, 1937
- College Park, Toronto, 1928-30 (Former Eaton's department store)(with Sproatt and Rolph)
- Saskatoon Board of Education offices, Saskatoon, 1928-29 (Former Eaton's department store)
- Calgary Eaton's Store, Calgary, 1928-29 (demolished 1988, façade incorporated into Calgary Eaton Centre)
- Bank of Toronto branch (Guy St. and St. Catherine St. W.), Montreal, 1908
Hotels:
- Château Laurier Hotel, Ottawa, 1909-12 (with Bradford Lee Gilbert)
- Lord Elgin Hotel, Ottawa, 1940-41
- Royal York Hotel, Toronto, 1927-29 (with Sproatt and Rolph)
- Fort Garry Hotel, Winnipeg, 1910-14
- Hotel Saskatchewan, Regina, 1926-27
- Hotel Macdonald, Edmonton, 1912-14
- Les Cours Mont Royal, Montreal, 1920-24 (Former Mount Royal Hotel, now a shopping mall)
Public Buildings:
- Government Conference Centre, Ottawa, (Former Ottawa Union Station)
- Union Station, Toronto (with Hugh G. Jones, John Lyle)
Office Buildings:
- Architects' Building, Montreal, 1929-34 (demolished)
- Confederation Building (McGill College Ave. and St. Catherine St. W.), Montreal, 1927-28
- Castle Building (Stanley Street and St. Catherine St. W.), Montreal, 1924-27
- Dominion Square (Peel Street and St. Catherine St. W.), Montreal, 1928-40
- Montreal Star Building (St. Jacques St.), Montreal, 1926-31
- Royal Bank Building (Yonge Street and King Street East), Toronto, 1913-15
Other:
- The Hydrostone, Halifax, 1918
- Maple Leaf Gardens, Toronto, 1931-32
