William Weir

Who was William Weir?

William Weir was a Scottish architect who specialised in the repair of ancient structures.

Weir left school at sixteen to become a pupil of Edinburgh architect Archibald MacPherson, while also attending the Edinburgh School of Art. He moved to London at nineteen to work in the studios of first Leonard Stokes and then Arts and Crafts pioneer Philip Webb.

Weir set up independent practice in 1900 and was admitted as a Licentiate member of the Royal Institute of British Architects in 1911.

William Weir is best known for overseeing repairs to historic buildings including Dartington Hall, Tattershall Castle and Bodiam Castle. His work spanned more than forty British counties and more than 300 buildings, including scores of small town and country churches. He collaborated with many of the leading figures of the Arts and Crafts Movement such as William Morris, Ernest Gimson, Norman Jewson and Detmar Blow.

Weir's work at Dartington Hall, near Totnes, Devon consisted of the restoration of seriously depressed manor house buildings of about 1388.