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Hedley Allen Dunn (27 October 1865 – 5 June 1942) was a
South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a States and territories of Australia, state in the southern central part of Australia. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories by area, which in ...
n architect, a member of the prominent Dunn family of Mount Barker. His work included the flour mill at
Port Adelaide Port Adelaide is a port-side region of Adelaide, approximately northwest of the Adelaide city centre, Adelaide CBD. It is also the namesake of the City of Port Adelaide Enfield council, a suburb, a federal and state electoral division and is t ...
for his father and grandfather in 1886, and the Stock Exchange Building (now the Science Exchange) on McHenry Street, off
Grenfell Street Grenfell Street () is a major street in the north-east quarter of the Adelaide city centre, South Australia. The street runs west-east from King William Street to East Terrace. Its intersection with Pulteney Street is formed by Hindmarsh Squa ...
,
Adelaide Adelaide ( , ; ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital and most populous city of South Australia, as well as the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. The name "Adelaide" may refer to ei ...
, in 1900.


Early life and education

Hedley Allen Dunn was born in
North Adelaide North Adelaide is a predominantly residential precinct (Australia), precinct and suburb of the City of Adelaide in South Australia, situated north of the River Torrens and within the Adelaide Park Lands. Laid out in a grid plan in three section ...
on 27 October 1865. He was a son of John Dunn, Jr., grandson of miller John Dunn who founded Mount Barker, and nephew of William Dunn, all South Australian parliamentarians. He was schooled at
Prince Alfred College Prince Alfred College is a private, independent, day school, day and boarding school for boys, located on Dequetteville Terrace, Kent Town, South Australia, Kent Town, near the Adelaide city centre, centre of Adelaide, South Australia. One of th ...
for several years before attending
The Leys School The Leys School is a co-educational private school in Cambridge, England. It is a boarding and day school for about 565 pupils between the ages of eleven and eighteen. The head is a member of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference. ...
, a Methodist boys' school in
Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...
, England with his brother Frederick. He returned to Australia in 1881 and studied architecture with fellow students Frank Counsell and Alfred M. Bonython; examiners included E. Davies and E. J. Woods.


Career

Dunn first found employment with Ellerker and Kilburn of
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 ...
, then Oakden, Addison and Kemp for whom he travelled to
Auckland, New Zealand Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...
to design a health retreat at the hot springs in
Waiwera Waiwera is a small town in the north of the Auckland Region in New Zealand. Waiwera is 6 km north of Orewa, 6 km south-east of Puhoi, 23 km south-east of Warkworth and approximately 35 km from the Auckland City centre. The ...
. He worked for a time 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 ...
, then returned to Adelaide, where in 1886 he opened his own practice in Freeman Street. His major project in this period was a large flour mill at
Port Adelaide Port Adelaide is a port-side region of Adelaide, approximately northwest of the Adelaide city centre, Adelaide CBD. It is also the namesake of the City of Port Adelaide Enfield council, a suburb, a federal and state electoral division and is t ...
for his father's family business; brother Alfred Calvert Dunn was engineer. This superseded an earlier mill designed and executed by Wright, Woods & Hamilton. In September 1887 he was taken on as partner by Edward Davies in Flinders Street, Adelaide, dissolved 1888. They produced a prize-winning design for the new
Commercial Bank A commercial bank is a financial institution that accepts deposits from the public and gives loans for the purposes of consumption and investment to make a profit. It can also refer to a bank or a division of a larger bank that deals with whol ...
at 25 King William Street. Dunn designed the elaborate
blackwood Blackwood may refer to: Botany * African blackwood (''Dalbergia melanoxylon''), a timber tree of Africa * African blackwood ('' Erythrophleum africanum''), (''Peltophorum africanum'') also Rhodesian blackwood, trees from Africa * Australian blac ...
case for the new organ at the Kent Town Methodist Church in 1898. His design for a building for the
Royal Bank of Queensland The Royal Bank of Queensland was a bank in Queensland, Australia. History The Royal Bank of Queensland commenced operation in Brisbane in February 1886. In 1917, it merged with the Bank of North Queensland creating the Bank of Queensland (19 ...
was rejected, but they nevertheless opened a practice in
Queen Street, Brisbane Queen Street is the main street of Brisbane, the capital of Queensland, Australia. It is named after Queen Victoria. The western part of the street is covered by a new plaza at the base of Brisbane Square and underneath part of the western hal ...
in 1890. After marriage in Queensland in 1893, Dunn returned to Adelaide and opened his own offices in King William Street, working mainly on residences but was also brought in to design extensions to the Dunn Memorial Church in Mount Barker in 1899. In 1899 Dunn collaborated with Gilbert Place architect Henry Ernest Fuller on a design for the new YWCA building (not adopted) and the
Adelaide Stock Exchange The Royal Institution of Australia (RiAus) is a national scientific not-for-profit organisation based in Adelaide, South Australia, whose mission is science communication. It opened in October 2009 and is housed in the historic Stock Exchange bu ...
on McHenry Street, for which they won both first and second prizes, and which was built in 1901. He was responsible for the new grandstand at
Prince Alfred College Prince Alfred College is a private, independent, day school, day and boarding school for boys, located on Dequetteville Terrace, Kent Town, South Australia, Kent Town, near the Adelaide city centre, centre of Adelaide, South Australia. One of th ...
in 1904. Hedley at some stage joined
John Alexander Dowie John Alexander Dowie (25 May 18479 March 1907) was a Scottish-Australian minister known as a Christian evangelist and faith healer. He began his career as a Christian minister in South Australia. He formed what became known as the " Pentec ...
's
Christian Catholic Apostolic Church Christ Community Church in Zion, Illinois, formerly the Christian Catholic Church or Christian Catholic Apostolic Church, is an evangelical non-denominational church founded in 1896 by John Alexander Dowie. The city of Zion was founded by Dowie as ...
, and in 1903 traveled to
Zion, Illinois Zion is a city in Lake County, Illinois, United States. Per the 2020 United States census, the population was 24,655. History The city was founded in 1900 by John Alexander Dowie, a Scots-Australian evangelical minister and faith healer who had ...
, headquarters of the sect. If he had hoped for a professional appointment he was disappointed, but impressed with what he saw. From 1919 Dunn practised from his home at 55 East Terrace,
Kensington Gardens Kensington Gardens, once the private gardens of Kensington Palace, are among the Royal Parks of London. The gardens are shared by the City of Westminster and the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea and sit immediately to the west of Hyde Pa ...
, and retired around 1934. He was elected a fellow of the
South Australian Institute of Architects The South Australian Institute of Architects (SAIA) was a professional association for architects in South Australia, founded in 1886. It was preceded by the South Australian Association of Architects, Engineers, and Surveyors and the South Aust ...
around 1897. He was a council member for the institute 1902–1903 and 1911–1912, and auditor 1904–1905.


Other interests

Hedley was a keen and accomplished painter, and an Associate of the Queensland Art Society in 1894. He was an active member of the PAC Old Collegians. He sang with the
Society of Arts The Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce, commonly known as the Royal Society of Arts (RSA), is a learned society that champions innovation and progress across a multitude of sectors by fostering creativity, s ...
and the Lyric Club. He was a member of the Council of Arts. He was in 1897 elected a Fellow of the
South Australian Society of Arts The South Australian Society of Arts was a society for artists in South Australia, later with a royal warrant renamed The Royal South Australian Society of Arts in 1935. History A meeting of persons interested in the formation of a society for th ...
, and for many years served as the society's auditor. He gave several lectures to the society on the subject of domestic architecture. His involvement with the Christian Catholic Apostolic Church extended to giving public lectures in the Federation Hall,
Grote Street Grote Street is a major street running east to west in the western half of Adelaide city centre, South Australia. It is on the northern border of Chinatown and the Adelaide Central Market, and is a lively centre for shopping and restaurants. Th ...
in the early 20th century.


Personal life

Hedley married Annie Elizabeth Powis Jordan (1863 – 7 April 1936) in Queensland on 3 April 1893. Annie was the second daughter of Henry Jordan MLA, and a poet and author, and a sister of author Harry Hall Jordan (1866–1930). They had at least one son: *Cedric Leighton Dunn (2 February 1896 – 1962) was born in
Albion, Queensland Albion is an inner north-eastern Suburbs and localities (Australia), suburb in the City of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. In the , Albion had a population of 3,446 people. Geography Albion is bounded by Wooloowin, Queensland, Wooloowin i ...
; worked for the Queensland Public Works Department from 1914. Remarkably for an architect, his home, though on a reasonably large block in a highly desirable location, was extraordinarily modest, little more than a "shack" or "weekender", in contrast to the grandiosity of "The Laurels" of his grandfather.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dunn, Hedley South Australian architects 1865 births 1942 deaths