An architect who worked in Cape Town from about 1903, Grant became a principal in the Cape Town firm of MacGILLIVRAY & GRANT. Grant was born in Dundee, Forfarshire and educated at Dundee High School. He remained in Dundee spending two years at the Dundee school of Art, where he studied architecture and art, and won a National Bronze Medal in 1896. He came to South Africa in 1901 and practised on his own account in Cape Town. In 1903 he and D MacGILLIVRAY entered for the competition for the Southern Life Assurance Building in Durban. Winning the competition they formed a partnership (cf MacGILLIVRAY & GRANT) with an office in Cape Town. According to Hillebrand (1975:173) Grant opened and ran an office in Durban for the partners from 1904 until 1908. In 1908 he returned to Cape Town and continued to practice as Macgillivray & Grant. When MacGillivray left for Rhodesia (Zimbabwe) in 1923 (?) he continued the practice on his own account in Cape Town where he was responsible for a number of buildings, among them the OK Bazaars Building in Darling St (1932). Much of his work of the late 1920s and the 1930s has since been described as Art Deco; a contemporary comment on the Commercial Union Insurance Company Building, Cape Town, noted his contemporary use of decorated building that 'some bird forms on St George's St front are very pleasing and also reminiscent of Aztec decorative motives with much charm and discretion' (AB&E Sep 1932:3). Grant had a productive career. Many of his buildings still survive. Later he admitted partners and became WH Grant & Partners. Among buildings for which they were responsible was African Guarantee House, now Ovenstone House (St George's/Riebeeck Sts) in Cape Town (1951). It was illustrated in the December 1954 edition of Architect & Builder.
All truncated references not fully cited in 'References' are those of Joanna Walker's original text and cited in full in the 'Bibliography' entry of the Lexicon.
Argus Co Building, add: 1933. Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
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Argus Printing and Publishing Co Ltd, offices: 1920. Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
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Argus Printing and publishing works: 1934. Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
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Barclays Bank: 1938. Woodstock, Western Cape - Architect
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Barclays Bank - The Royal Albert: 1933. Salt River, Western Cape - Architect 
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Benjamin and Lawton Building, remodelled: c1925. Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
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Bijou Theatre: 1941. Observatory, Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect 
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Boston House: 1930. Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
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Building for 'the Schlesinger Sunday Newspaper': 1938. Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
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Building for LP Vadas: 1931. Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
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Cinema: 1937. Claremont, Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
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Cinema (Atkinson's cinema): 1937. Rosebank, Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
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Cogill's Hotel, rebuilt: 1938. Wynberg, Western Cape - Architect
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Commercial Union Building - Market House: 1930. Central, Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
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Commonwealth Building and Colosseum Theatre: 1936-1938. Central, Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
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Flats for BJ Kinsella: 1928. Muizenberg, Western Cape - Architect
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Flats for M Kurman: 1928. Sea Point, Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
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Flats/Theatre: 1937. Rosebank, Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
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Garlick's Bldg: 1928. Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
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General Assr Co Bldg: 1923. Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
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Hotel Majestic, extensive alt: 1926. Kalk Bay, Western Cape - Architect
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House AR Phillips: 1931. Newlands, Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
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House Arderne: The Hill: c1916. Claremont, Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
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House DG Garlick: 1930. Wynberg, Western Cape - Architect
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House E Power: 1931. Plumstead, Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
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House Garlick: n.d.. Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
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House H Ansaldi - Stonehenge, alt: 1931. St James, Western Cape - Architect
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House Hingle: 1931. Sea Point, Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
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House K Jesse: 1931. Claremont, Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
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House P Wolmarans: 1931. Plumstead, Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
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House PM Liddle: 1931. Plumstead, Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
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Jackson's Ltd: 1930. Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
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King's Hotel: 1931. Kalk Bay, Western Cape - Architect
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Market House: 1930. Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
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Mitchell Cott's Bldg, add three storeys, Exchange Place: 1926. Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
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Mr Barling's Bakery, add: 1939. Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
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Muizenberg Bathing Pavilion - Second: 1928. Muizenberg, Western Cape - Architect
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Norwich Union Bldg: c1924. Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
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OK Bazaars: 1932. Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
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OK Bazaars: 1938. Wynberg, Western Cape - Architect
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OK Bazaars Ltd: 1937. Salt River, Western Cape - Architect
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Parry, Leon & Hayhoe, warehouse: 1928. Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
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Poole's Hotel: 1927. Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
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Printing Works for African Theatre Ltd: 1937. Central, Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
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Proposed Theatre: 1939. Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
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Proposed Theatre/Cinema: 1939. Kalk Bay, Western Cape - Architect
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Proposed Theatre/Cinema: 1939. Muizenberg, Western Cape - Architect
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Proposed Theatre/Cinema: 1939. Paarl, Western Cape - Architect
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Proposed Theatre/Cinema: 1939. Salt River, Western Cape - Architect
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Protea Cinema: 1939. Paarl, Western Cape - Architect
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Queen's Hotel: 1887 : 1923 : 1936. Sea Point, Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
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Radio Broadcasting Studios: 1937. Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
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Radio Transmitting Station: 1933. Milnerton, Western Cape - Architect
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SA Milling Co mill and silo: c1923 : 1939. Salt River, Western Cape - Architect 1939
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Salt River Cement Works factory: 1937. Salt River, Western Cape - Architect
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Scott's Building: 1933. Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
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Secondary School: 1936. Maitland, Western Cape - Architect
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Shell House: 1929 : 1941. Central, Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
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St Clair Court flats: 1930. Sea Point, Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
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Tivoli Bldg: 1932. Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
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Tobacco Factory for Kramer's Trust Investment Co: 1930. Woodstock, Western Cape - Architect
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Unie-Volkspers Beperk: 1937 : n.d.. Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
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Waygood Otis, alt: 1930. Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
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White House Hotel: 1893 : 1927. Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect 1927
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Bakker, Karel A, Clarke, Nicholas J. 2014. Eclectic ZA Wilhelmiens : A shared Dutch built heritage in South Africa. Pretoria: Visual Books. pp 55
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Cumming-George, L. 1933. Architecture in South Africa - Volume One. Cape Town: The Speciality Press of S.A. Ltd.. pp 97, 101
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Fransen, Hans. 2004. The old buildings of the Cape. A survey of extant architecture from before c1910 in the area of Cape Town - Calvinia - Colesberg - Uitenhage. Johannesburg & Cape Town: Jonathan Ball Publishers. pp 156
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Hillebrand, Melanie. 1975. Aspects of architecture in Natal, 1880 1914. Pietermaritzburg: Unpublished MA. Dept Fine Art and History of Art, University of Natal. pp 173
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ISAA. 1927. Register of Members the Institute of South African Architects. Johannesburg: ISAA (Unpublished Record). pp G11
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Martin, Desmond. 2007. Walking Long Street. Cape Town: Struik. pp 107
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Picton-Seymour, Désirée. 1977. Victorian Buildings in South Africa. Cape Town: AA Balkema. pp ???
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SAWW & Donaldson, K. 1935. South African Who's Who (Social and Business) 1935. Cape Town: Ken Donaldson. pp 81
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SAWW & Donaldson, K. 1938. South African Who's Who (Social and Business) 1938. Cape Town: Ken Donaldson. pp 100
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Walker, Michael. 2010. A Statement In Stone. Cape Town: Privately published by Michael Walker. pp 69-72, 96-97
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Walker, Michael. 2012. Early architects of Cape Town and their buildings (1820 - 1926) with postcard illustrations, The. St James: Michael Walker. pp 125-126
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Walker, Michael. 2015. Old hotels of Cape Town (1890-1911), The : A history long forgotten, seldom told. St James: Published Privately. pp 34, 76
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