The architect, Ian McKerron Begg lived at No. 7 from 1954[1] to the end of the century. He has been described as ‘a passionate advocate for Scottish architecture and one of the leading practitioners in the conservation movement.’[2]
Ian McKerron Begg was born in Kirkcaldy on 23 June 1925.[3] He was educated at Kirkcaldy High School and the Edinburgh College of Art. War service in the Fleet Air Arm interrupted his studie. After the war, he served an apprenticeship with Williamson and Hubbard, architects in Kirkcaldy, before joining the firm of Neil and Hurd in Edinburgh in 1951. Two years later he became a partner and then, in 1963, sole partner. The firm merged with LA Rolland and partners in 1965. In 1984 he established Ian Begg Architect (later Né Begg). The same year he was elected Fellow of the Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland (FRIAS).[4] After a career entailing castle and urban restorations, hydro-electric schemes and new builds, he moved to Raven’s Craig Tower, Plockton in 2000, where he died on 26 November 2017.[5]
He married Agnes Campbell Howie, a physician, at Kilmarnock on 14 October 1953.[6] She was born in New Jersey, USA in 1929, daughter of Robert Thorburn Howie and Martha Cuthbert Young.[7] Her family returned to Scotland in 1934.[8] She graduated M.B., Ch.B. from the University of Edinburgh in 1952 and was registered to practice on 18 July 1952.[9] She was still at No. 7 in the 2003 Electoral Register,[10] and died that year aged 74 years.[11]
[1] Electoral Registers. Scotland. Edinburgh. 1954. Begg, Ian M. Ancestry collection ‘Edinburgh, Scotland, Electoral Registers, 1832-1966.’ https://ancestry.co.uk: accessed 05 September 2023.
[2] Green, Simon. (2018) Appreciation: Ian McKerron Begg (1925-2017). AHSS The Magazine of the Architectural Heritage Society of Scotland. Spring 2018. No. 4, p. 47.
[3] Births (SR) Scotland. Kirkcaldy, Fife. 23 June 1925. BEGG, Ian McKerron. Ancestry collection ‘Scotland and Northern Ireland, Death Index, 1989-2022.’ https://ancestry.co.uk: accessed 05 September 2023.
[4] Macaulay, James. (2018) Obituary: Ian Begg FRIAS. RIAS Quarterly. Spring 2018, Issue 33.
[5] Death announcements. The Herald. 29 November 2017. BEGG, Ian McKerron. https://www.heraldscotland.com/memorials/death-notices/death/15689664.ian-mc-kerron-begg/: accessed 05 September 2023.
[6] Marriage announcements. Fife Free Press, & Kirkcaldy Guardian. 17 October 1953. BEGG-HOWIE. p. 9, col. 7. https://britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk: accessed 08 September 2023.
[7] Census records. USA. Passaic, New Jersey. 26 April 1930. HOWIE, Robert (Head). 16-86/28B. MyHeritage collection ‘1930 United States Federal Census.’ https://myheritage.com: accessed 09 September 2023.
[8] Passenger lists. Arrivals. Glasgow. 16 October 1934. ‘SS Caledonia.’ HOWIE, Agnes (age 4). Bt26/1034/9. Board of Trade: Commercial and Statistical Department and Successors. Ancestry collection ‘UK and Ireland, Incoming Passenger Lists, 1878-1960.’ https://ancestry.co.uk: accessed 09 September 2023.
[9] Medical Register 1955. HOWIE, Agnes Campbell. p. 931. Ancestry collection ‘UK Medical Registers, 1859-1959.’ https://ancestry.co.uk: accessed 08 September 2023.
[10] Electoral Register 2003.
[11] Deaths index (SR) Scotland. Edinburgh. 2003. BEGG, Agnes Campbell. 731/ 684. https://scotlandspeople.gov.uk: accessed 07 September 2023.