George Washington Browne

Sir George Washington Browne FRIBA PPRSA (21 September 1853 – 15 June 1939) was a Scottish architect. He was born in Glasgow, and trained there and in London. He spent most of his career in Edinburgh, although his work can be found throughout Scotland and beyond. He was involved in nearly 300 projects, including many public and commercial buildings. One of his most notable buildings is Edinburgh's Central Library, and he became recognised as an authority on library planning and design. He came to national attention after winning a competition to design a bridge over the River Thames in London, although this was never realised. He was the first architect to be elected as President of the Royal Scottish Academy. He also served as President of the Edinburgh Architectural Association, and was instrumental in setting up the Royal Fine Art Commission for Scotland.

George Washington Browne was born in Glasgow on 21 September 1853, the eldest child of Samuel Brown, a cabinet maker, and his wife Sarah Agnew. He attended the Glasgow Academy. At the age of 16, he became articled to the Glasgow architects, Salmon Son & Ritchie, where he worked alongside two friends, James MacLaren and William Flockhart, both of whom went on to have successful careers in architecture. In 1872, the three friends unsuccessfully entered a competition in Building News to design a detached suburban villa.

On completion of his articles in 1873, Browne joined the firm of Campbell Douglas & Sellars. While there, he won the John James Stevenson prize for measured drawing. This led to a move to London, where he obtained a place in Stevenson's firm (then Stevenson & Robson).

After two years with Stevenson, Browne moved to the office of the church architect, Arthur Blomfield. In 1878, while still with Blomfield, he won the prestigious Pugin Studentship of the Royal Institute of British Architects, the first Scotsman to do so. The prize enabled him to study and travel in France and Belgium. As part of his preparation for the prize, he published a large collection of drawings of domestic and ecclesiastical buildings in Scotland and England.

In 1879, after a brief period working for William Eden Nesfield, he returned to Scotland, where he became principal assistant to Robert Rowand Anderson, who was at the time working on designs for the University of Edinburgh Medical School and Glasgow Central Station. In 1881, Browne became Anderson's partner. Two years later, the firm merged with Hew M Wardrop to become Wardrop, Anderson & Browne.

In 1885, Browne established an independent practice in Edinburgh, with an office at 5 Queen Street. Two years later, he won the competition to design Edinburgh's Central Library from a field of 30 entrants, this being the first public library in Edinburgh. It led to commissions to design many more public libraries in Scotland and beyond. He went on to become a recognised authority on library design, and later published a paper on the subject and acted as adviser and assessor to library committees.

His other notable works during this period include premises for Redfern Ltd, a "ladies tailors" in Princes Street; the Royal Hospital for Sick Children in Sciennes; several operating theatres for the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh; the extension of the Advocates Library; and an office for the British Linen Bank in George Street. These successes enabled him to move to a larger office at 8 Albyn Place.

In 1895 or 1896, he went into partnership with John More Dick Peddie. The partnership was initially successful, thanks mainly to commissions for banks, particularly for the British Linen Bank. But by 1907 this work had sharply declined and the partnership was formally dissolved, although Peddie and Browne continued to share the Albyn Place office.