Thomas Worthington (architect)
Encyclopedia
Thomas Worthington was a 19th-century English architect
, particularly associated with public buildings in and around Manchester
.
, on 11 April 1826. He was the fourth of six sons of a Salford Unitarian
cotton merchant, also called Thomas, and his second wife Susanna (1792–1869). He left school, aged 14, and was articled to Henry Bowman
, architect (Bowman & Crowther). Before he was twenty he had won two medals: one for a church design (Royal Society of Arts) and one for an essay on "Brick" (Royal Institute of British Architects). After completing his articles in 1847, he assisted William Tite
who was building Carlisle railway station
but on the suspension of this work he went, in 1848, on an eight-month study tour to France, Italy and Switzerland accompanied by a friend, Henry A. Darbishire. Their journey took them through Tuscany, Latium and Campania; Worthington's notes and sketches from the trip provided him with a first-hand knowledge of Italian Gothic and Renaissance architecture, which provided him with inspiration for his own later work.
After returning to Manchester in October 1848, Worthington spent a short time gaining experience of quantity surveying
, before opening his own architectural practice in King Street
the following year.
, the Portico Library
and the Royal Manchester Institution
.
Partly as a result of his social concerns, Worthington was often commissioned to design public buildings, ranging from public baths and hospital
s to workhouse
s and Unitarian churches. These were often designed in a Gothic
style, not dissimilar to that of his contemporary and rival Alfred Waterhouse
.
(1886–1963) trained with Sir Edwin Lutyens
and was professor of architecture at the Royal College of Art
before becoming Slade lecturer in architecture at Oxford University. Percy Worthington
(1864–1939), also worked in the family firm.
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...
, particularly associated with public buildings in and around Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
.
Early life
Worthington was born in Crescent Parade, SalfordCity of Salford
The City of Salford is a city and metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It is named after its largest settlement, Salford, but covers a far larger area which includes the towns of Eccles, Swinton-Pendlebury, Walkden and Irlam which apart from Irlam each have a population of over...
, on 11 April 1826. He was the fourth of six sons of a Salford Unitarian
Unitarianism
Unitarianism is a Christian theological movement, named for its understanding of God as one person, in direct contrast to Trinitarianism which defines God as three persons coexisting consubstantially as one in being....
cotton merchant, also called Thomas, and his second wife Susanna (1792–1869). He left school, aged 14, and was articled to Henry Bowman
Henry Bowman (architect)
-Life:The second son of John Eddowes Bowman the Elder, he worked as an architect in Manchester. He died at Brockham Green, near Reigate, on 14 May 1883.-Works:...
, architect (Bowman & Crowther). Before he was twenty he had won two medals: one for a church design (Royal Society of Arts) and one for an essay on "Brick" (Royal Institute of British Architects). After completing his articles in 1847, he assisted William Tite
William Tite
Sir William Tite, CB was an English architect who served as President of the Royal Institute of British Architects. He was particularly associated with various London buildings, with railway stations and cemetery projects....
who was building Carlisle railway station
Carlisle railway station
Carlisle railway station, also known as Carlisle Citadel station, is a railway station whichserves the Cumbrian City of Carlisle, England, and is a major station on the West Coast Main Line, lying south of Glasgow Central, and north of London Euston...
but on the suspension of this work he went, in 1848, on an eight-month study tour to France, Italy and Switzerland accompanied by a friend, Henry A. Darbishire. Their journey took them through Tuscany, Latium and Campania; Worthington's notes and sketches from the trip provided him with a first-hand knowledge of Italian Gothic and Renaissance architecture, which provided him with inspiration for his own later work.
After returning to Manchester in October 1848, Worthington spent a short time gaining experience of quantity surveying
Quantity surveyor
A quantity surveyor is a professional working within the construction industry concerned with building costs.The profession is one that provides a qualification gained following formal education, specific training and experience that provides a general set of skills that are then applied to a...
, before opening his own architectural practice in King Street
King Street, Manchester
King Street is one of the most important thoroughfares of the city of Manchester, England. Once the centre of the north-west banking industry it is now predominantly an affluent shopping area.-History:...
the following year.
Social concerns
Worthington was strongly influenced by his Unitarian upbringing, becoming committed to social reform and improvement and joining numerous learned societies, including the Manchester Literary and Philosophical SocietyManchester Literary and Philosophical Society
The Manchester Literary and Philosophical Society, popularly known as the Lit & Phil, is a learned society in Manchester, England.Established in 1781 as the Literary and Philosophical Society of Manchester, by Thomas Percival, Thomas Barnes and Thomas Henry, other prominent members have included...
, the Portico Library
Portico Library
The Portico Library on Mosley Street, Manchester is a subscription library built in the Greek Revival style between 1802-1806. It is a Grade II* listed building as at 25 February 1952....
and the Royal Manchester Institution
Royal Manchester Institution
The Royal Manchester Institution was an English learned society founded on 1 October 1823 at a public meeting held in the Exchange Room by Manchester merchants, local artists and others keen to dispel the image of Manchester as a city lacking in culture and taste.The Institution was housed in a...
.
Partly as a result of his social concerns, Worthington was often commissioned to design public buildings, ranging from public baths and hospital
Hospital
A hospital is a health care institution providing patient treatment by specialized staff and equipment. Hospitals often, but not always, provide for inpatient care or longer-term patient stays....
s to workhouse
Workhouse
In England and Wales a workhouse, colloquially known as a spike, was a place where those unable to support themselves were offered accommodation and employment...
s and Unitarian churches. These were often designed in a Gothic
Gothic architecture
Gothic architecture is a style of architecture that flourished during the high and late medieval period. It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture....
style, not dissimilar to that of his contemporary and rival Alfred Waterhouse
Alfred Waterhouse
Alfred Waterhouse was a British architect, particularly associated with the Victorian Gothic Revival architecture. He is perhaps best known for his design for the Natural History Museum in London, and Manchester Town Hall, although he also built a wide variety of other buildings throughout the...
.
Projects in Manchester and district
- Estate ExchangeEstate ExchangeThe Estate Exchange at 46 Fountain Street, Manchester, England, is a Victorian office block by Thomas Worthington. It was built as Overseers' and Churchwardens' Offices in 1852, with the top two floors being added in 1858. It is a Grade II* listed building as of 3 October 1974.The building is in...
, Overseers and ChurchwardenChurchwardenA churchwarden is a lay official in a parish church or congregation of the Anglican Communion, usually working as a part-time volunteer. Holders of these positions are ex officio members of the parish board, usually called a vestry, parish council, parochial church council, or in the case of a...
s Office, 46 Fountain Street (1852–1859); listed Grade II* - Greengate Baths, Collier Street (1856)
- The Albert Memorial (1862–1867)
- The Memorial HallMemorial Hall, ManchesterMemorial Hall in Albert Square, Manchester, England, was constructed in 1863–1866 by Thomas Worthington. It was built to commemorate the bicentennial anniversary of the 1662 Act of Uniformity, when the secession of some 2,000 ministers led to the birth of Nonconformism...
, Albert SquareAlbert Square, ManchesterAlbert Square is a public square in the centre of Manchester, England.It is dominated by its largest building, Manchester Town Hall , a Victorian Gothic building by Alfred Waterhouse...
(1863–1866) - City Police Courts, ManchesterCity Police Courts, ManchesterThe City Police Courts, now commonly called Minshull Street Crown Court, is a complex of court buildings on Minshull Street in Manchester, designed in 1867–73 by the architect Thomas Worthington. The court is a Grade II* listed building as of 3 October 1974...
(1867–1873). - Chorlton Union Workhouse, afterwards Withington HospitalWithington Community HospitalWithington Community Hospital is a hospital in south Manchester, England...
(1865) - PrestwichPrestwichPrestwich is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Bury, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies close to the River Irwell, north of Manchester city centre, north of Salford and south of Bury....
Union Infirmary, afterwards CrumpsallCrumpsallCrumpsall is a suburban area and electoral ward of the city of Manchester, in Greater Manchester, England. It is about north of Manchester city centre...
Hospital (1866–1870) - The TowersThe Towers (Manchester)The Towers is a research establishment for new technologies in cotton production. The Shirley Institute was established in 1920 at a cost of £10,000 to accommodate the newly formed British Cotton Industry Research Association...
, DidsburyDidsburyDidsbury is a suburban area of the City of Manchester, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies on the north bank of the River Mersey, south of Manchester city centre, in the southern half of the Greater Manchester Urban Area...
(1868–1872), home to Manchester industrialist Daniel AdamsonDaniel AdamsonDaniel Adamson was a notable English engineer who became a successful manufacturer of boilers and was the driving force behind the inception of the Manchester Ship Canal project during the 1880s.-Early life:...
from 1874, this building was later (from 1920) used by the British Cotton Industry Research Association, later called the Shirley InstituteShirley InstituteThe Shirley Institute was established in 1920 as the British Cotton Industry Research Association at The Towers in Didsbury, Manchester as a research centre dedicated to cotton production technologies... - Brookfield Unitarian ChurchBrookfield Unitarian ChurchBrookfield Unitarian Church, Gorton, Manchester, is a Victorian Gothic church built between 1869–71. It was commissioned by Richard Peacock , engineer and Liberal MP for Manchester and designed by the prolific Manchester architect Thomas Worthington. The church cost Peacock £12,000. It was...
, GortonGortonGorton is an area of the city of Manchester, in North West England. It is located to the southeast of Manchester city centre. Neighbouring areas include Longsight and Levenshulme....
(1870) - Monton Green Unitarian Church, Monton, Eccles (1875)
- Flowery Field Church, Newton Street, HydeHyde, Greater ManchesterHyde is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Tameside, Greater Manchester, England. As of the 2001 census, the town had a population of 31,253. Historically part of Cheshire, it is northeast of Stockport, west of Glossop and east of Manchester....
(1876–1878) - Ellen Wilkinson High SchoolEllen Wilkinson High SchoolEllen Wilkinson High School was housed, until it closed in 2000, in a Grade II* listed building in the Ardwick district of Manchester, designed in 1879–80 by the prolific Manchester architect Thomas Worthington. Formerly known as Nicholls Hospital, the building was funded by Benjamin Nicholls as a...
, ArdwickArdwickArdwick is a district of the City of Manchester, in North West England, about one mile east of Manchester City Centre.By the mid-19th century Ardwick had grown from being a village into a pleasant and wealthy suburb of Manchester, but by the end of that century it had become heavily industrialised...
, formerly Nicholl's Hospital (1879–1880) - Dovecote, SaleSale, Greater ManchesterSale is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Trafford, in Greater Manchester, England. Historically part of Cheshire, the town lies on flat ground on the south bank of the River Mersey, south of Stretford, northeast of Altrincham, and southwest of the city of Manchester...
Old Hall (1880) - Peacock MausoleumPeacock MausoleumThe Peacock Mausoleum is a Victorian Gothic memorial to Richard Peacock , engineer and Liberal MP for Manchester, and to his son, Joseph Peacock; it is situated in the cemetery of Brookfield Unitarian Church, Gorton, Manchester. The mausoleum was designed by the prolific Manchester architect...
, Gorton (1890) - Diamond Jubilee Memorial Fountain, Albert Square (1896–1897)
- Dunham Road Unitarian Chapel, AltrinchamAltrinchamAltrincham is a market town within the Metropolitan Borough of Trafford, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies on flat ground south of the River Mersey about southwest of Manchester city centre, south-southwest of Sale and east of Warrington...
Other projects
- Unitarian Chapel, LiverpoolUnitarian Chapel, LiverpoolThe Unitarian Chapel, Liverpool is in Ullet Road, Sefton Park, Liverpool, Merseyside, England . It is a Grade I listed building and is an active Unitarian church...
- Garlands Hospital, Carlisle (originally the Cumberland and WestmorlandWestmorlandWestmorland is an area of North West England and one of the 39 historic counties of England. It formed an administrative county from 1889 to 1974, after which the entirety of the county was absorbed into the new county of Cumbria.-Early history:...
Lunatic Asylum, 1862) - WiganWiganWigan is a town in Greater Manchester, England. It stands on the River Douglas, south-west of Bolton, north of Warrington and west-northwest of Manchester. Wigan is the largest settlement in the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan and is its administrative centre. The town of Wigan had a total...
Infirmary (1870) - Sutton Oaks (a country house), London Road, MacclesfieldMacclesfieldMacclesfield is a market town within the unitary authority of Cheshire East, the county palatine of Chester, also known as the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. The population of the Macclesfield urban sub-area at the time of the 2001 census was 50,688...
, CheshireCheshireCheshire is a ceremonial county in North West England. Cheshire's county town is the city of Chester, although its largest town is Warrington. Other major towns include Widnes, Congleton, Crewe, Ellesmere Port, Runcorn, Macclesfield, Winsford, Northwich, and Wilmslow...
(1875) - Manchester CollegeHarris Manchester College, OxfordHarris Manchester College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. Formerly known as Manchester College, it is listed in the University Statutes as Manchester Academy and Harris College, and at University ceremonies it is called Collegium de Harris et...
, OxfordOxfordThe city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
(1889–1893) - Royal Bath Hospital, HarrogateHarrogateHarrogate is a spa town in North Yorkshire, England. The town is a tourist destination and its visitor attractions include its spa waters, RHS Harlow Carr gardens, and Betty's Tea Rooms. From the town one can explore the nearby Yorkshire Dales national park. Harrogate originated in the 17th...
- Royal Infirmary, HalifaxHalifax, West YorkshireHalifax is a minster town, within the Metropolitan Borough of Calderdale in West Yorkshire, England. It has an urban area population of 82,056 in the 2001 Census. It is well-known as a centre of England's woollen manufacture from the 15th century onward, originally dealing through the Halifax Piece...
Legacy
His sons followed in his footsteps, training as architects and working in the family firm, Thomas Worthington & Sons. Hubert, later Sir Hubert WorthingtonHubert Worthington
-Early life:Worthington was born at Chorley, Alderley Edge, the youngest son of the architect Thomas Worthington. He was educated at Sedbergh School from 1900–1905 and then at the Manchester University school of architecture, before being articled to his half-brother Percy...
(1886–1963) trained with Sir Edwin Lutyens
Edwin Lutyens
Sir Edwin Landseer Lutyens, OM, KCIE, PRA, FRIBA was a British architect who is known for imaginatively adapting traditional architectural styles to the requirements of his era...
and was professor of architecture at the Royal College of Art
Royal College of Art
The Royal College of Art is an art school located in London, United Kingdom. It is the world’s only wholly postgraduate university of art and design, offering the degrees of Master of Arts , Master of Philosophy and Doctor of Philosophy...
before becoming Slade lecturer in architecture at Oxford University. Percy Worthington
Percy Worthington
Sir Percy Scott Worthington was an English architect.He was born in Crumpsall, Manchester, the eldest son of the architect Thomas Worthington. He was educated at Clifton College, Bristol and Corpus Christi College, Oxford, where he graduated in 1887, and he qualified as an architect in 1890. He...
(1864–1939), also worked in the family firm.