Rowland Rees was an Australian architect

Architect

An architect is a person trained in the planning, design and oversight of the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to offer or render services in connection with the design and construction of a building, or group of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the...

, civil engineer

Civil engineer

A civil engineer is a person who practices civil engineering; the application of planning, designing, constructing, maintaining, and operating infrastructures while protecting the public and environmental health, as well as improving existing infrastructures that have been neglected.Originally, a...

 and politician. Born in Gibraltar

Gibraltar

Gibraltar is a British overseas territory located on the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula at the entrance of the Mediterranean. A peninsula with an area of , it has a northern border with Andalusia, Spain. The Rock of Gibraltar is the major landmark of the region...

 and educated in Hong Kong

Hong Kong

Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...

 and Sheffield

Sheffield

Sheffield is a city and metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire, England. Its name derives from the River Sheaf, which runs through the city. Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, and with some of its southern suburbs annexed from Derbyshire, the city has grown from its largely...

, he moved to Adelaide

Adelaide

Adelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...

 in 1869. In November 1870 he married Ada Caroline, daughter of an Adelaide solicitor.

He began his architectural practice immediately upon arriving in the colony, initially in partnership with Thomas English. His work was usually characterised by bold decorative elements such as capitals, pilasters and pediments.

He was elected to the South Australian House of Assembly

South Australian House of Assembly

The House of Assembly, or lower house, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of South Australia. The other is the Legislative Council. It sits in Parliament House in the state capital, Adelaide.- Overview :...

 as member for Burra (1873-81) and Onkaparinga (1882-90). He advanced liberal ideas, such as free education, the regulation (rather than banning) of gambling, and equal divorce rights for women. Rees was a member of the South Australian Institute from 1878, and helped to select works for the South Australian State Collection

South Australian Museum

The South Australian Museum is a museum in Adelaide, South Australia, founded in 1856. It occupies a complex of buildings on North Terrace in the cultural precinct of the Adelaide Parklands.-History:...

.

Selected works

• Moonta Methodist Church (1873)
• Essenside, Glenelg
  Glenelg, South Australia
  Glenelg is a popular beach-side suburb of the South Australian capital of Adelaide. Located on the shore of Holdfast Bay in Gulf St Vincent, it has become a popular tourist destination due to its beach and many attractions, home to several hotels and dozens of restaurants.Established in 1836, it is...
  
   (1873)
• Downer House, North Adelaide
  North Adelaide
  North Adelaide is a predominantly residential precinct of the City of Adelaide in South Australia, situated north of the River Torrens and within the Adelaide Park Lands.-History:...
  
   (1877)
• Kither's Buildings, Rundle Street
  Rundle Street, Adelaide
  Rundle Street is a street in the East End of Adelaide, South Australia. It runs from Pulteney Street in the west to East Terrace, where it becomes Rundle Road. Its former western extent, which ran to King William Street, was closed in 1972 to form the pedestrian street of Rundle Mall...
  
   (1879)
• Adelaide to Glenelg Railway
  Glenelg Tram
  The Glenelg Tram is a route from the centre of Adelaide, South Australia to the beach-side suburb of Glenelg. It is Adelaide's only remaining tramway, running at approximately 15-minute intervals, and is part of the integrated Adelaide Metro public transport network...
  
   (1879-80)
• Huntsman (now Archer) Hotel, North Adelaide
  North Adelaide
  North Adelaide is a predominantly residential precinct of the City of Adelaide in South Australia, situated north of the River Torrens and within the Adelaide Park Lands.-History:...
  
  , (1882)
• Lobethal
  Lobethal, South Australia
  Lobethal is a town in the Adelaide Hills area of South Australia. It is located in the Adelaide Hills Council local government area, and is nestled on the banks of a creek between the hills and up the sides of the valley. It was once the centre of the Adelaide Hills wool processing industry, which...
  
   Woollen Mills (1883)
• British Hotel, North Adelaide
  North Adelaide
  North Adelaide is a predominantly residential precinct of the City of Adelaide in South Australia, situated north of the River Torrens and within the Adelaide Park Lands.-History:...
  
   (1883)
• Oxford Hotel, North Adelaide
  North Adelaide
  North Adelaide is a predominantly residential precinct of the City of Adelaide in South Australia, situated north of the River Torrens and within the Adelaide Park Lands.-History:...
  
   (1884)
• Cumberland Arms Hotel, Waymouth Street (1884)
• Newmarket Hotel, North Terrace
  North Terrace, Adelaide
  North Terrace is one of the four terraces that bound the central business and residential district of the city of Adelaide, the capital city of South Australia. It runs east-west, along the northern edge of the CBD.-North Side of North Terrace:...
  
   (1884)
• St Peters
  St. Peters, South Australia
  St Peters is a suburb of Adelaide in the City of Norwood Payneham St Peters.The suburb was first settled in 1838, with allotments sold to investors in the South Australia Company. It was originally a separate town and was named after the Church of England's school of St Peter...
  
   Town Hall (1885)
• Fulton's Foundry, Kilkenny
  Kilkenny, South Australia
  Kilkenny is a suburb of Adelaide, South Australia. It is located in the City of Charles Sturt.-History:The area incorporating the current suburb of Kilkenny was subdivided in 1849 as the Township of Kilkenny..-Demographics:...
  
  (1885-86)

External links

• Rowland Rees, architectsdatabase.unisa.edu.au