Claude William Chambers (1861–1947) was a prominent architect in

Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

and

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

, New South Wales in Australia. Many of his works are listed on the

Queensland Heritage Register The Queensland Heritage Register is a heritage register, a statutory list of places in Queensland, Australia that are protected by Queensland legislation, the Queensland Heritage Act 1992. It is maintained by the Queensland Heritage Council. As ...

Early life

Claude William Chambers was born in

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

in 1861, the son of William Laws Chambers and his wife Emma. On 12 January 1887, he married Evelina (Lena) Cowan (the adopted step-daughter of Robert Dalrymple) at the Presbyterian Church in

Glebe A glebe (, also known as church furlong, rectory manor or parson's close(s)) is an area of land within an ecclesiastical parish used to support a parish priest. The land may be owned by the church, or its profits may be reserved to the church. ...

in Sydney.

Architectural career

From 1877 to 1881, Williams trained in Melbourne under civil engineer Albert Purchas while studying at the Prahran Technical College. From 1884 to 1885, he worked in

for architects Blackman and Parks. In 1885, he moved to Brisbane and worked for

Francis Drummond Greville Stanley Francis Drummond Greville Stanley (1839–1897) was an architect in Queensland, Australia. He was the Queensland Colonial Architect. Many of his designs are now heritage-listed buildings. Early life Stanley was born in Edinburgh, Scotland, on 1 ...

until 1889. He was one of the founding members and first secretary of the

Queensland Institute of Architects The Queensland Institute of Architects was a professional society for architects in Queensland, Australia. It operated from 1888 until 1930, when it became a chapter of the Australian Institute of Architects. History The Queensland Institute of ...

. His several partnerships between 1889 and 1935 produced designs for both Brisbane and Sydney including commercial buildings, warehouses and wharf buildings. From 1889 to 1892, he was the junior partner in McCredie Brothers and Chambers. From 1892 to 1910, he operated a solo practice as an architect and consulting engineer. Lange Leopold Powell joined Chambers in a partnership Chambers and Powell from 1911 to 1920. From 1920, Chambers partnered with Eric Marshall Ford (the office manager from Chamber and Powell) in the architectural firm, Chambers and Ford. The partnership lasted until 1951, although Chambers was largely not involved after 1935. In 1929, he was appointed a Fellow of the

Royal Institute of British Architects The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) is a professional body for architects primarily in the United Kingdom, but also internationally, founded for the advancement of architecture under its royal charter granted in 1837, three suppl ...

. From 1931 to 1934, Chambers was part of a Sydney-based partnership with B. W. Hutton known as Chambers and Hutton.

Later life

Chambers retired in 1935 and moved to Sydney. He died on 13 July 1947 in Sydney. He was buried on 14 July 1947 in the Northern Suburbs Cemetery (now Macquarie Park Cemetery) in

North Ryde North Ryde is a suburb located in the Northern Sydney region of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. North Ryde is located 15 kilometres north-west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of the City of Ryde. One of ...

Significant works

* 1889 : Whepstead house * 1895:

Smellie's Building Smellie's Building is a heritage-listed warehouse at 32 Edward Street, Brisbane City, City of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It was designed by Claude William Chambers and built from 1895 to 1896. It was added to the Queensland Heritage R ...

* 1906: Green House in

Wickham Terrace Wickham Terrace is one of the historic streets of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It is known as the street of private medical specialists. Geography Wickham Terrace commences at the western corner of the intersection of Ann Street, Brisbane, ...

, now part of the United Service Club Premises * 1906: Headquarters and clubrooms for the Commercial Travellers Association, later

Telecommunications House Telecommunications House is a heritage-listed former clubhouse and now office building at 283 Elizabeth Street, Brisbane City, City of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It is also known as Corbett Chambers. It was designed by Claude William C ...

, now Corbett Chambers: * 1910: Montpelier house in

, now part of the United Service Club Premises * 1907: RS Exton and Co Building * 1911: Perry House, now the Royal Albert Hotel

References

Attribution

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chambers, Claude William Architects from Brisbane 1861 births 1947 deaths Architects from Melbourne Articles incorporating text from the Queensland Heritage Register