On This Day – 27th April
Archibald Leitch, one of the finest stadium architects ever seen, was born on this day in 1865.
He created and designed over twenty stadiums between 1899 and 1939. Most of his works have sadly been demolished due to improvements made necessary because of the Taylor Report. Luckily some still remain and can be seen at Fulham’s Craven Cottage, Everton’s Goodison Park and Glasgow Rangers’ Ibrox home.
Leitch’s stands were typically made up of two-tiers, with seats in the upper tier and terracing in the lower tier.
The roof would sometimes have a pediment in the centre, and clubs would have their name or badge painted onto this.
Leitch also preferred the design of criss-cross steel girders along the front of the top-tier. This featured at many grounds including Goodison Park and Ibrox.
Leitch’s masterpiece is considered to have been the Trinity Road Stand at Villa Park. The stand was sadly demolished in 2000 and replaced by a new state-of-the-art stand. Many Villa fans and stadium enthusiasts still wish that the Leitch original was never knocked down.
Archibald Leitch died two days before his 74th birthday in 1939, leaving behind a lasting legacy that still exists to this day.
About Author
