Arthur Conan Doyle: Amateur Architect

On Arthur Conan Doyle’s birthday, we celebrate the author’s fascination with design.

Arthur Conan Doyle is one of Britain’s most famous authors. As the creator of Sherlock Holmes, his name is synonymous with mystery and suspense. However, when he wasn’t sitting at his desk, imagining new adventures for Dr. Watson, he used his visionary mind for other projects. 

The writer considered himself somewhat of an amateur architect and took great pride in the buildings that he designed. It was Doyle’s artistic outlet and he used the hobby as a way of relieving stress while his wife was ill. Although the majority of Arthur Conan Doyle’s constructions have now been taken down, these were some of his greatest works. 

The Lyndhurst Park Hotel

Located in Hampshire, the Lyndhurst Park Hotel’s east wing was actually designed by Arthur Conan Doyle. After a stay at the hotel in the early 1910s, Doyle provided a sketch to the owners, which would become the foundation for the final piece. 

The building survived for years but was eventually taken down in 2023, alongside Doyle’s extension, which was said to include unique, expressionist design elements unseen anywhere else. While the battle to preserve the site might have come to an end, its remains are a real reminder of the author’s vast talents. 

Undershaw

Once found in Hindhead in Surrey, Undershaw represents a tumultuous time during Doyle’s life. As his wife continued to fight an incurable illness, the visionary decided to build a home where she might be comfortable. Undershaw quite literally meant under the trees, an old Anglo-Saxon term. 

Undershaw might not have survived in its original form, but the house, which the family moved into towards the late 1890s, would prove to be monumental for Doyle’s literature. It is here that the author continued to create Sherlock’s stories, including the great Hound of the Baskervilles. 

Jasper National Park

Arthur Conan Doyle also visited Canada and was inspired by Jasper National Park. Not only did he lend his eye to a golf course, but he also influenced the design of a few outbuildings, too. 

Again, these structures have not survived, but nonetheless, Doyle got a chance to craft something on behalf of a local hotel that he felt complemented the Canadian Rockies backdrop. 

Arthur Conan Doyle’s contributions to fiction are undeniable, but who knows what might have been had he turned his full attention to construction and architecture instead?