Edward Robert Robson FRIBA FSA FSI (2 March 1836 – 19 January 1917) was an English architect famous for the progressive spirit of his London state-funded school buildings of the 1870s and early 1880s.

Life

Born in Durham, he was the elder son of Robert Robson, a Durham Justice of the Peace.''

Who Was Who ''Who's Who'' is a reference work. It has been published annually in the form of a hardback book since 1849, and has been published online since 1999. It has also been published on CD-ROM. It lists, and gives information on, people from around ...

'', online edition
ROBSON, Edward Robert
(subscription required), accessed 13 December 2008 He apprenticed in

Newcastle upon Tyne Newcastle upon Tyne, or simply Newcastle ( , Received Pronunciation, RP: ), is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is England's northernmost metropolitan borough, located o ...

with John Dobson, who worked in a classicising,

Italianate The Italianate style was a distinct 19th-century phase in the history of Classical architecture. Like Palladianism and Neoclassicism, the Italianate style combined its inspiration from the models and architectural vocabulary of 16th-century It ...

manner; he then worked under

Sir George Gilbert Scott Sir George Gilbert Scott (13 July 1811 – 27 March 1878), largely known as Sir Gilbert Scott, was a prolific English Gothic Revival architect, chiefly associated with the design, building and renovation of churches and cathedrals, although he ...

(1854–59) during the restoration of

Durham Cathedral Durham Cathedral, formally the , is a Church of England cathedral in the city of Durham, England. The cathedral is the seat of the bishop of Durham and is the Mother Church#Cathedral, mother church of the diocese of Durham. It also contains the ...

's tower, taking a break in 1858 for "extensive Continental travel", and went on to serve as architect in charge of the Cathedral for six years. He was also in partnership for a time prior to 20 August 1862 with John Wilson Walton (c. 1822–1910). His first church, St. Cuthbert's, North Road, Durham (1863), was inspired in part by the plain 13th-century church at Formigny, Normandy. During (1865-71) he served as architect and surveyor to the city of

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

, which served to give him sufficient experience when he was the surprising choice as chief architect for the newly erected School Board of London, in 1871. He became 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 ...

. Under the terms of the reforming

Elementary Education Act 1870 The Elementary Education Act 1870 ( 33 & 34 Vict. c. 75), commonly known as Forster's Education Act, set the framework for schooling of all children between the ages of 5 and 12 in England and Wales. It established local education authorities wit ...

, a great number of new state-funded schools had to be built as quickly as possible, especially in the East End. Orange Street school building published 1874

Orange Street school building published 1874

Robson's experience, for which he travelled in the Continent for the most up-to-date school-planning ideas, was encapsulated in his ''School Architecture'' (1874). For the workload, he formed a partnership with J. J. Stevenson from 1871 until 1876. The schools themselves were of brick and

architectural terracotta Architectural terracotta refers to a fired mixture of clay and water that can be used in a non-structural, semi-structural, or structural capacity on the exterior or interior of a building. Terracotta is an ancient building material that transla ...

in the many-gabled free Anglo-Flemish Renaissance style known at the time as " Queen Anne style", which Robson chose as more suitably enlightened and secular than

Gothic Revival Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic or neo-Gothic) is an Architectural style, architectural movement that after a gradual build-up beginning in the second half of the 17th century became a widespread movement in the first half ...

and in which Stevenson had already shown himself proficient. During his years with the School Board, Robson designed several hundred schools in London, and after leaving the Board in 1884 he remained as consulting architect to the Education Department. His early connections with the

Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood The Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood (PRB), later known as the Pre-Raphaelites, was a group of English painters, poets, and art critics, founded in 1848 by William Holman Hunt, John Everett Millais, Dante Gabriel Rossetti, William Michael Rossett ...

He commissioned a design for a watch case from

Dante Gabriel Rossetti Gabriel Charles Dante Rossetti (12 May 1828 – 9 April 1882), generally known as Dante Gabriel Rossetti ( ; ), was an English poet, illustrator, painter, translator, and member of the Rossetti family. He founded the Pre-Raphaelite Brother ...

as early as 1862; it passed to his son, P.A. Robson and has been lost sight of, according to Judy Rudoe, "Artists' Jewellery. London, Wartski", ''The Burlington Magazine'' 131 No. 1032 (March 1989:235). may have made him an obvious choice in 1888 for remodelling some market buildings with great dispatch for the New Gallery, Regent Street, a venue for art of the Brotherhood and other progressive arts. Robson also built the People's Palace, Mile End in 1886/7''The People's Palace Library'', The Library vol. 2 (1890), pp. 341–51
archive.org
as well as working on new school structures, notably Primrose Hill Infants' School and the

Cheltenham Ladies' College Cheltenham Ladies' College (CLC) is a private schools in the United Kingdom, private boarding and day school for girls aged 11 or older in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, England. The school was established in 1853 to provide "a sound academic edu ...

(1896) and the Jews' Free School in

Spitalfields Spitalfields () is an area in London, England and is located in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is in East London and situated in the East End of London, East End. Spitalfields is formed around Commercial Street, London, Commercial Stre ...

(1904). He is also credited with design of some residential houses. For example, Glenwood (99 Mycenae Road in Westcombe Park, London SE3) is described as "an impressive late-Victorian red brick mansion with half-timbered gable ends, and fine joinery detailing."
Westcombe Park Conservation Area: Character Appraisal, March 2010
', Greenwich Council, p.41. Accessed: 20 July 2015 He married Marian, daughter of Henry Longden, of

Sheffield Sheffield is a city in South Yorkshire, England, situated south of Leeds and east of Manchester. The city is the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire and some of its so ...

, and ''

Who's Who A Who's Who (or Who Is Who) is a reference work consisting of biographical entries of notable people in a particular field. The oldest and best-known is the annual publication ''Who's Who (UK), Who's Who'', a reference work on contemporary promin ...

'' notes his recreations as "golf, bicycling, billiards". At the time of his death, he was a

Fellow A fellow is a title and form of address for distinguished, learned, or skilled individuals in academia, medicine, research, and industry. The exact meaning of the term differs in each field. In learned society, learned or professional society, p ...

of the

, the

Society of Antiquaries of London The Society of Antiquaries of London (SAL) is a learned society of historians and archaeologists in the United Kingdom. It was founded in 1707, received its royal charter in 1751 and is a Charitable organization, registered charity. It is based ...

, and the Chartered Surveyors' Institution. In his later years he worked with his son, Philip Appleby Robson. He was twice offered a knighthood, which he refused. He died 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 ...

Life

Notes

Further reading