Charles Ower (1813–1876) and son (1849–1921) were father and son architects, operating in eastern Scotland.

Charles Ower the elder

He was born in or near

Perth Perth () is the list of Australian capital cities, capital city of Western Australia. It is the list of cities in Australia by population, fourth-most-populous city in Australia, with a population of over 2.3 million within Greater Perth . The ...

on 31 July 1813, the son of Thomas Ower or Owler and his wife, Jean Gregor. He trained as a civil engineer and industrial architect. He worked as assistant to James Leslie overseeing the renewal of Dundee Harbour from 1832 to 1846. In 1850 he designed the East Station in Dundee (originally called the

Arbroath Arbroath () or Aberbrothock ( ) is a former royal burgh and the largest town in the Subdivisions of Scotland, council area of Angus, Scotland, Angus, Scotland, with a population of 23,902. It lies on the North Sea coast, some east-northeast of ...

station) for the

Dundee and Arbroath Railway The Dundee and Arbroath Railway was an early railway in Scotland. It opened in 1838, and used the unusual track gauge of 5 ft 6 in (1,676 mm). In 1848 it changed to standard gauge and connected to the emerging Scottish railway networ ...

. He later designed the Dock Street tunnel linking the Arbroath line to the Perth line. In 1857 he was responsible for the Camperdown Dock in Dundee. Other works were the floating dock gate in

Alloa Alloa (Received Pronunciation ; Scottish pronunciation /ˈaloʊa/; , possibly meaning "rock plain") is a town in Clackmannanshire in the Central Lowlands of Scotland. It is on the north bank of the Forth at the spot where some say it ceases to ...

(1862), Victoria Dock in Dundee (1869), premises for Boase & Co (1875). From 1846 he lived at 11 Craigie Terrace in Dundee. He died at home, 150 Ferry Road in Dundee, on 20 September 1876.

Charles Ower the younger

He was born on 23 June 1849 the son of Charles Ower, a harbour engineer and architect, and his wife, Mary Fleet. The family lived at 103 Roodyards in

Dundee Dundee (; ; or , ) is the List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, fourth-largest city in Scotland. The mid-year population estimate for the locality was . It lies within the eastern central Lowlands on the north bank of the Firt ...

. He was educated at the

High School of Dundee The High School of Dundee is a private, co-educational, day school in Dundee, Scotland, which provides nursery, primary and secondary education to just over one thousand pupils. Its foundation has been dated to 1239, and it is the only private sc ...

then articled to his father as a civil engineer in 1863. In 1869 he went to the

South Kensington South Kensington is a district at the West End of Central London in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Historically it settled on part of the scattered Middlesex village of Brompton. Its name was supplanted with the advent of the ra ...

School of Architecture in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. In later life he lived at "Benora", a villa in

Broughty Ferry Broughty Ferry (; ; ) is a suburb of Dundee, in Scotland. It is situated four miles east of the City Centre, Dundee, city centre on the north bank of the Firth of Tay. The area was a separate burgh from 1864 until 1913, when it was incorporated ...

near Dundee.Dundee Post Office Directory 1911 He retired around 1911 and died on

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, 25 December 1921 and was buried in the Western Cemetery, Dundee. The grave lies against the western wall of the main cemetery area. The monument is small and simple. He was married to Margaret Jane Fairweather (d.1919), daughter of James Thomson Fairweather, a Dundee tobacco merchant. They did not have any children. His younger brother Leslie Ower (1851-1916) was also an architect and together from 1874 they created C & L Ower architects. The third brother, Stephen Ower, was a stockbroker.

Main works

Prior to 1874 father and son mainly worked on harbour engineering projects and railway work. After 1874 Charles and Leslie Ower were a more "conventional" architectural practice, ranging from villas and tenements to jute warehouses. Their more public buildings include: *

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Office in

Stirling Stirling (; ; ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city in Central Belt, central Scotland, northeast of Glasgow and north-west of Edinburgh. The market town#Scotland, market town, surrounded by rich farmland, grew up connecting the roya ...

(DNK) *

Dundee Courier ''The Courier'' (known as ''The Courier & Advertiser'' between 1926 and 2012) is a newspaper published by DC Thomson in Dundee, Scotland. As of 2013, it is printed in six regional editions: Dundee, Angus & The Mearns, Fife, West Fife, Perths ...

offices - remodelling and extension (1872 to 1882) for William Thomson *Ferry Station,

Newport-on-Tay Newport-on-Tay is a town in the north-east of Fife in Scotland. The Fife Coastal Path passes through Newport-on-Tay. The area itself has views of the two bridges that cross the River Tay and distant views of the Scottish Highlands. History T ...

(1878) *Scottish Banking Company offices, Dundee (1880) *

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building,

Carnoustie Carnoustie (; ) is a town and former police burgh in the subdivisions of Scotland, council area of Angus, Scotland. It is at the mouth of the Barry Burn on the North Sea coast. In the UK census 2011, 2011 census, Carnoustie had a population of ...

(1881 + 1889 extension) *

, Dundee (1881 + 1887 extension) *Trinity United Presbyterian Church,

(1881) *Free Church of Scotland Mission Hall and School, Hilltown of Dundee (1882) *Ladywell Calender Works, Dundee (1882) *Major remodelling,

Balmerino Balmerino is a small village and former monastic centre in Fife, Scotland. It is the home of Balmerino Abbey and the former Abbot of Balmerino, abbots of Balmerino who were great regional landlords. It became a secular lordship in 1605 when th ...

Parish Church (1883) *Dundee Harbour office (1883) *Panmure Street Mission, Dundee (1883) *West Church,

Pitlochry Pitlochry (; or ) is a town in the Perth and Kinross council area of Scotland, lying on the River Tummel. It is historically in the county of Perthshire, and has a population of 2,776, according to the 2011 census.Scotland's 2011 census. (n.p. ...

(1883) *

Kirriemuir Town Hall Kirriemuir Town Hall is a municipal structure in Reform Street in Kirriemuir, Angus, Scotland. The structure, which is used as a community events venue, is a Category C listed building. History The first municipal building in the town was the ...

and Library (1885) *

parish church hall (1887) *Downfield Free Church, Dundee (1889) *Ardvorlich House,

Comrie Comrie may refer to: Places *Comrie (crater), a lunar crater *Comrie, Fife, a village in Fife, Scotland *Comrie, Perth and Kinross, a village and parish in Strathearn, Scotland People with the surname

*Aaron Comrie (born 1997), Scottish footba ...

(1890) *Free St Paul's Mission, Overgate, Dundee (1890) *

Inglis Memorial Hall The Inglis Memorial Hall is a municipal structure in the High Street in Edzell, Angus, Scotland, which for much of the 20th century served as Edzell Parish Hall. The structure, which is currently used as a community events venue and accommodates ...

and Library,

Edzell Edzell (; ; ) is a village in Angus, Scotland. It is 5 miles (8 km) north of Brechin, by the River North Esk. Edzell is a Georgian-era planned town, with a broad main street and a grid system of side streets. Originally called Slateford, ...

(1896) *Lochee Road UP Church, Dundee (1896) *Benora, villa in

for himself (1898) *Virginia Buildings, Dundee (1903/4) for his in-laws? *Mid Craigie Garden City, Dundee (1905)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ower, Charles People from Dundee People educated at the High School of Dundee 19th-century Scottish architects 1813 births 1876 deaths