A church
Bellie Kirk (1798) in Fochabers was designed by John Baxter

John Baxter (c. 1737 – 14 July 1798)[1] was a Scottish architect who was active in the second half of the eighteenth century.[2] His father, also called John Baxter (d. 1770),[3] was a master mason from Edinburgh, and sent Baxter and his brother Alexander to Italy in 1761 to study architecture. Baxter became known amongst the expatriate artistic community in Rome, and entered a number of architectural competitions during his time there; in March 1766 he was inducted into the Academy of St Luke as an honorary member.[4] Baxter and his father were both protégés of Sir John Clerk, and while in Rome he became acquainted with Alexander Runciman, another friend of Clerk's; a painting of 1767, currently in the Vatican's collection, depicts the two Baxter brothers with Runciman, alongside another artist (thought to be Henry Fuseli).[4]

Upon returning to Scotland, Baxter took over his father's business, working both as an architect and a building contractor. He worked for the Duke of Gordon in his creation of the planned town of Fochabers, including the design for Bellie Kirk,[5] made improvements to Cullen House for the Earl of Findlater,[6] and also speculated in housebuilding in Edinburgh, where he died in 1798.[4]

References

  1. ↑ A Dictionary of British and Irish Travellers in Italy, 1701-1800, Brinsley Ford (1997), p. 61 ISBN 9780300071658
  2. ↑ Howard, Colvin (1995). A Biographical Dictionary of British Architects, 1600-1840 (3 ed.). New Haven and London: Yale University Press. pp. 112–113. ISBN 9780300072075.
  3. ↑ The Oxford Companion to Scottish History ISBN 9780199234820
  4. 1 2 3 "John Baxter". Dictionary of Scottish Architects. Retrieved 13 April 2020.
  5. ↑ Hume, John R. (2005). Scotland's Best Churches. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press. p. 72. ISBN 0748621792.
  6. ↑ Walker, David W.; Woodworth, Matthew (2015). The Buildings of Scotland - Aberdeenshire: North and Moray. New Haven: Yale University Press. pp. 523–527. ISBN 978-0-300-20428-5.
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