John Henderson (1 March 1804 – 27 June 1862) was a Scottish architect operational in the mid-19th century. He is chiefly remembered as a church architect, with his early work being in the

Gothic revival Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic or neo-Gothic) is an Architectural style, architectural movement that after a gradual build-up beginning in the second half of the 17th century became a widespread movement in the first half ...

and

tractarian The Oxford Movement was a theological movement of high-church members of the Church of England which began in the 1830s and eventually developed into Anglo-Catholicism. The movement, whose original devotees were mostly associated with the Uni ...

style, before developing his own distinct style.

Life

He was born at the Den Nursery in

Brechin Brechin (; ) is a town and former royal burgh in Angus, Scotland. Traditionally Brechin was described as a city because of its cathedral and its status as the seat of a pre-Scottish Reformation, Reformation Roman Catholic diocese (which contin ...

to John Henderson and Agnes Thomson. Henderson's father was a gardener for

William Maule, 1st Baron Panmure William Ramsay Maule, 1st Baron Panmure of Brechin and Navar (27 October 1771 – 13 April 1852) was a Scottish landowner and politician. Life He was born William Ramsay, the younger son of George Ramsay, 8th Earl of Dalhousie and his wife Eli ...

, at

Brechin Castle Brechin Castle is a castle in Brechin, Angus, Scotland. The castle was constructed in stone during the 13th century. Most of the current building dates to the early 18th century, when extensive reconstruction was carried out by architect Alex ...

. He was initially apprenticed as a carpenter but after completing this he pursued studies in drawing and building construction. His first design was for the addition of a steeple at the parish church in

Arbroath Arbroath () or Aberbrothock ( ) is a former royal burgh and the largest town in the Subdivisions of Scotland, council area of Angus, Scotland, Angus, Scotland, with a population of 23,902. It lies on the North Sea coast, some east-northeast of ...

in 1831. After completing this project, he became an assistant to architect Thomas Hamilton; a post he remained in until establishing his own architecture firm in 1833. This was set up at 1 Blenheim Place (next to R & R Dickson's office) before moving to 6 Union Street. In 1836, he relocated into more prestigious accommodation at 16 London Street, then was variously at 8 Duke Street (now called Dublin Street), 73 Queen Street (at his peak) and finally at 7 Hill Street. He designed and oversaw the building of numerous churches in Scotland up until his death in 1862 at the age of 58. He also designed the original buildings for

Glenalmond College Glenalmond College is a co-educational independent boarding school in Perth and Kinross, Scotland, for children aged between 12 and 18 years. It is situated on the River Almond near the village of Methven, about west of the city of Perth. T ...

. Several notable architects were trained by him, including Alexander Davidson, William Hay,

John Milne John Milne (30 December 1850 – 31 July 1913) was a British geologist and mining engineer who worked on a horizontal seismograph. Biography Milne was born in Liverpool, England, the only child of John Milne of Milnrow, and at first raised ...

, James Milne Monro, and his son George Henderson. On his father's death, Henderson's 16-year-old son completed his apprenticeship with David Cousin. Henderson died at home, 7 Greenhill Park (a villa of his own design) in south-west

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

on 27 June 1862, aged 58. He was buried in

Grange Cemetery The Grange (originally St Giles' Grange) is an affluent suburb of Edinburgh, just south of the city centre, with Morningside and Greenhill to the west, Newington to the east, The Meadows park and Marchmont to the north, and Blackford Hi ...

in south Edinburgh. The grave lies in the north-west section.

Family

He was married to Hannah Matilda Exley (1821–1897). They had at least three children.

Works

see *Renewing steeple,

Parish Church (1831) * Kilmabreck Parish Church (1831) *Samuel Douglas Free School,

Newton Stewart Newton Stewart (Scottish Gaelic language, Gd: ''Baile Ùr nan Stiùbhartach'') is a former burgh town in the historical county of Wigtownshire in Dumfries and Galloway, southwest Scotland. The town is on the River Cree with most of the town to ...

(1834) *Tenement 1-3

George IV Bridge George IV Bridge is an Viaduct, elevated street in Edinburgh, Scotland, and is home to a number of the city's important public buildings. History A bridge connecting the High Street to the south was first suggested in 1817, but was origina ...

(1836) *Christ Church Episcopal Church, Mile End,

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

(1836) * Morningside Parish Church,

(1836) *

Bannockburn Bannockburn () is an area immediately south of the centre of Stirling in Scotland. It is part of the City of Stirling. It is named after the Bannock Burn, a stream running through the town before flowing into the River Forth. History Land in ...

Chapel of Ease (1837) *Holy Trinity Scottish Episcopal Church,

Dean Bridge The Dean Bridge spans the Water of Leith in the city of Edinburgh on the A90 road to South Queensferry, Queensferry on the Firth of Forth. It carries the roadway, long and broad, on four arches rising above the river.H Coghill, ''Discover ...

(1837) *Natural History Museum, Montrose (1837) *St Marys Church,

Dumfries Dumfries ( ; ; from ) is a market town and former royal burgh in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, near the mouth of the River Nith on the Solway Firth, from the Anglo-Scottish border. Dumfries is the county town of the Counties of Scotland, ...

(1837) *

Carnock Carnock () is a village and parish of Fife, Scotland, west of Dunfermline. It is east of Oakley, Fife. The name of the village derives from Scottish Gaelic, from ''ceàrn'' ("corner"), with a suffix denoting a toponym, thus giving " hecorne ...

Parish Church (1838) *Tower and spire, Fettercairn Parish Church (1838) * Lady Glenorchy's Church, Low Calton, Edinburgh (1838) *Mechanic's Institute,

(1838) *

Newhaven Newhaven is a port town in the Lewes district of East Sussex, England, lying at the mouth of the River Ouse. The town developed during the Middle Ages as the nearby port of Seaford began drying up, forcing a new port to be established. A ...

Parish Church (1838) *Tenements, Granton Square, Edinburgh (1838) * Granton Hotel (1838) *Mariners Church, Commercial Street,

Leith Leith (; ) is a port area in the north of Edinburgh, Scotland, founded at the mouth of the Water of Leith and is home to the Port of Leith. The earliest surviving historical references are in the royal charter authorising the construction of ...

(1839) (now flatted) *

Panmure Testimonial The Panmure Testimonial, otherwise known as the Live and Let Live Memorial, is a monument in Angus, Scotland Angus (; ) is one of the 32 Local government in Scotland, local government council areas of Scotland, and a Lieutenancy areas of S ...

(a monument to William Maule), Camustane Hill, Panmure (1839) *Lodge and gates to Niddrie Marischal House, Edinburgh (1839) *Monument to Bishop Alexander Jolly, Turiff Episcopal Church (1840) * Maryburgh Church (1840) *St Thomas Church, School, Manse and Female Asylum,

(1840) the church is now a Sikh Temple *

Fraserburgh Fraserburgh (; ), locally known as the Broch, is a town in Aberdeenshire (unitary), Aberdeenshire, Scotland, with a population recorded in the United Kingdom Census 2011, 2011 Census as 13,100. It lies in Buchan in the northeastern corner of th ...

Episcopal Church *

Burntisland Burntisland ( , ) is a former Royal burgh and parish in Fife, Scotland, on the northern shore of the Firth of Forth. It was previously known as Wester Kinghorn or Little Kinghorn. The town has a population of 6,269 (2011). Burntisland is known ...

Harbour: pier, workshops, houses and hotel (1841-3) *North Church,

Stirling Stirling (; ; ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city in Central Belt, central Scotland, northeast of Glasgow and north-west of Edinburgh. The market town#Scotland, market town, surrounded by rich farmland, grew up connecting the roya ...

(1841) *Church Hill House,

(1842) *Feuing of Church Hill housing,

(1842) *Trinity College and hall, now called

(1843) *Varrich House, Church Hill, Edinburgh (1843) * Cuminestown Episcopal Church (1844) *St Devenick's Manse,

Banchory Banchory (, , ) is a burgh or town in Aberdeenshire, historically in Kincardineshire, Scotland. It is about west of Aberdeen, near where the Feugh River meets the River Dee. Prehistory and archaeology In 2009, a farmer discovered a short ...

(1844) *St Marys Episcopal Church, Montrose (1844) *St Marys Episcopal Church,

Dunblane Dunblane (, ) is a town in the council area of Stirling in central Scotland, and inside the historic boundaries of the county of Perthshire. It is a commuter town, with many residents making use of good transport links to much of the Central Be ...

(1844) *

Episcopal Church (1845) *St Marys Episcopal Church, Hamilton, Lanarkshire (1845) *St Columbas Episcopal Church, Johnston Terrace,

(1846) *Feuing plan, Hope Park,

St Andrews St Andrews (; ; , pronounced ʰʲɪʎˈrˠiː.ɪɲ is a town on the east coast of Fife in Scotland, southeast of Dundee and northeast of Edinburgh. St Andrews had a recorded population of 16,800 , making it Fife's fourth-largest settleme ...

(1847) *St Andrews Episcopal Chapel, Fasque (1847) *Holyrood Free Church, Edinburgh (1848) * Meggernie Castle, Glenlyon (1848) *St Johns Episcopal Church, Cranstonhill,

(1848) *St Philips Episcopal Church, School, Hall and Rectory, Catterline,

Kincardineshire Kincardineshire or the County of Kincardine, also known as the Mearns (from the Scottish Gaelic meaning "the stewartry"), is a Shires of Scotland, historic county, registration county and lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area on the ...

(1848) *Cairnies Farmhouse and Steading, Glenalmond (1848) *All Saints Episcopal Church,

Woodhead, Aberdeenshire Woodhead of Fyvie, often simply called "Woodhead", is an inland hamlet in Formartine, Aberdeenshire, Scotland, that lies to the east of Fyvie near the upper River Ythan. It is believed to have been an ancient royal burgh, as evidenced by the 17 ...

(1849) * Holy Trinity Episcopal Church and rectory, Kilbride Hill,

Dunoon Dunoon (; ) is the main town on the Cowal peninsula in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It is located on the western shore of the upper Firth of Clyde, to the south of the Holy Loch and to the north of Innellan. As well as forming part of the cou ...

(1850) *Remodelling of New Pitsligo Episcopal Church (1850) *St Marys Episcopal Church, Rectory and School,

Ratho Ratho () is a village in the rural west part of the City of Edinburgh council area, Scotland. Its population at the 2011 census was 1,634 based on the 2010 definition of the locality. It was formerly in the old county of Midlothian (historic), ...

(1850) *Christ Church Episcopal Church, Rectory and School,

Lochgilphead Lochgilphead (; ) is a town and former burgh in Argyll and Bute, Scotland, with a population of around 2,300 people. It is the administrative centre of Argyll and Bute Council. The village lies at the end of Loch Gilp (a branch of Loch Fyne) an ...

(1851) *

West Linton West Linton () is a village and civil parish in southern Scotland, on the A702. It is in the county of Peeblesshire (also known as Tweeddale) and the Scottish Borders council area. Many of its residents are commuters, owing to the village's pr ...

Combined Episcopal Church and School (1851) *Borthwick Hall, Heriot, Midlothian (1852) *St Lukes Free Church, Edinburgh (1852) demolished *St Margarets Episcopal Church,

Meigle Meigle (, ) is a village in Strathmore, Angus, Strathmore, Scotland. It lies in the council area of Perth and Kinross in the Coupar Angus and Meigle ward. It lies on the A94 road, A94 road between Perth and Forfar.The A94 used to be the main ro ...

Perthshire Perthshire (Scottish English, locally: ; ), officially the County of Perth, is a Shires of Scotland, historic county and registration county in central Scotland. Geographically it extends from Strathmore, Angus and Perth & Kinross, Strathmore ...

(1852) *Lady Elizabeth Ross Memorial, Kincardine Churchyard, Ardgay (1853) *St Andrews Episcopal School and Library,

(1853) *St Peters Episcopal Church,

Galashiels Galashiels (; , ) is a town in the Scottish Borders with a population of around 12,600. Its name is often colloquially shortened to "Gala". The town is a major commercial centre for the Borders region with extensive history in the textile in ...

(1853) *Villas, Greenhill Park, Edinburgh (1853) including 7 Greenhill Park as his own house *St Michaels and All Saints Chapel,

Inverkip Inverkip (; ) is a village and parish in the Inverclyde council area and historic county of Renfrewshire in the west central Lowlands of Scotland, southwest of Greenock and north of Largs on the A78 trunk road. The village takes its name from ...

(1854) *Alterations to

(1854) *Alterations to Carse Gray House,

Forfar Forfar (; , ) is the county town of Angus, Scotland, and the administrative centre for Angus Council, with a new multi-million-pound office complex located on the outskirts of the town. As of 2021, the town had a population of 16,280. The town ...

(1854) *St Marys Episcopal Church and Rectory,

(1854) *Bridge over River Den to access

Cemetery (1856) *Holy Trinity Episcopal Church, Lamington, South Lanarkshire (1857) *St Mary Episcopal Church, Rectory and School,

Port Glasgow Port Glasgow (, ) is the second-largest town in the Inverclyde council area of Scotland. The population according to the 1991 census for Port Glasgow was 19,426 persons and in the 2001 census was 16,617 persons. The most recent census in 2011 s ...

(1857) *St Mungos Episcopal Church and Rectory,

East Linton East Linton is a village and former police burgh in East Lothian, Scotland, situated on the River Tyne, Scotland, River Tyne and A199 road (former A1 road (Great Britain), A1 road) five miles east of Haddington, East Lothian, Haddington, with ...

(1857) *Tenements School,

(1857) *Christ Episcopal Church,

Lanark Lanark ( ; ; ) is a town in South Lanarkshire, Scotland, located 20 kilometres to the south-east of Hamilton, South Lanarkshire, Hamilton. The town lies on the River Clyde, at its confluence with Mouse Water. In 2016, the town had a populatio ...

(1858) *Feuing of Greenhill estate,

(1858) *St Peters Episcopal Church and Rectory, Montrose (1858) *Burgh Episcopal School,

(1859) *India Buildings, Victoria Street, Edinburgh (1859) (works completed by David Cousin after Henderson's death) *St Margarets College, Crieff (1859)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Henderson, John 1804 births 1862 deaths 19th-century Scottish architects Gothic Revival architects