Bridgeford MacDougall Pirie (1876–1941) - a Scottish architect in Malta, 1905–41

Abstract

The name ‘Bridgeford M. Pirie’ does not feature in historical accounts of British colonial architecture in Malta. It was only through a providential ‘discovery’ of his tombstone at the multi-faith Ta’ Braxia cemetery, followed by a decade of research that the full extent of this Scottish architect’s career in Malta was revealed. His magnum opus – the King George V Merchant Seamen’s Memorial Hospital has long since bitten the dust, a casualty of war, but other buildings including his first residence at Gwardamangia Hill, the Connaught House in Floriana, and St Oswald’s church at Mtarfa still stand and are testimony to his steadfast determination to embark upon a successful career in a place far away from home.