John Wilson (1781, Dalston, Cumbria – 1866, Shirley, Hampshire) was a Clerk of Works for the

Board of Ordnance The Board of Ordnance was a British government body. Established in the Tudor period, it had its headquarters in the Tower of London. Its primary responsibilities were 'to act as custodian of the lands, depots and forts required for the defence ...

who became one of the most celebrated architects in the island of

Guernsey Guernsey ( ; Guernésiais: ''Guernési''; ) is the second-largest island in the Channel Islands, located west of the Cotentin Peninsula, Normandy. It is the largest island in the Bailiwick of Guernsey, which includes five other inhabited isl ...

for the buildings he designed there between 1813 and 1831. He worked mostly in

stucco Stucco or render is a construction material made of aggregates, a binder, and water. Stucco is applied wet and hardens to a very dense solid. It is used as a decorative coating for walls and ceilings, exterior walls, and as a sculptural and ...

(which he called ' Roman cement') in the neoclassical,

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 ...

Jacobethan The Jacobethan ( ) architectural style, also known as Jacobean Revival, is the mixed national Renaissance revival style that was made popular in England from the late 1820s, which derived most of its inspiration and its repertory from the Engli ...

styles. Despite the recognition of his work in Guernsey, he appears to have done little work outside the island and remains a rather elusive figure.

Early life

John Wilson was born in

Dalston, Cumbria Dalston is a large village and civil parish in Cumbria, England, on the B5299 road south-west of Carlisle. The village is on the River Caldew, just to the north of where the Roe Beck joins it. Dalston railway station is on the Cumbrian ...

, and baptised on the 6 June 1781, the son of Robert and Mary Wilson of Cardewlees. In 1816, he married Ann Strong, the daughter of John Strong, a solicitor of

Carlisle Carlisle ( , ; from ) is a city in the Cumberland district of Cumbria, England. Carlisle's early history is marked by the establishment of a settlement called Luguvalium to serve forts along Hadrian's Wall in Roman Britain. Due to its pro ...

, at the church of

St George's, Hanover Square St George's, Hanover Square, is an Church of England, Anglican church, the parish church of Mayfair in the City of Westminster, central London, built in the early eighteenth century as part of a project to build fifty new churches around London ...

, London. He joined the

as a mason. He had been promoted to master mason, and was appointed Clerk of Works by 1813. Torteval church 2 Guernsey

Work in Guernsey (1813–1830)

He was sent to Guernsey in about 1813 to supervise the construction of permanent barracks for the garrison in

and

Alderney Alderney ( ; ; ) is the northernmost of the inhabited Channel Islands. It is part of the Bailiwick of Guernsey, a British Crown Dependencies, Crown dependency. It is long and wide. The island's area is , making it the third-largest isla ...

. His work with the Board of Ordnance allowed him time to take on private commissions, and his first major project was Torteval Church.

Notable works

*Torteval Church, Guernsey (1816) *

St James, Guernsey St James (formerly known as St James-the-Less) is a former church in Saint Peter Port, Guernsey. After falling out of use, it was converted in 1985 and is now used as a concert and assembly hall. It stands on College Street, roughly opposite Eliza ...

(1818) * Town Church, Guernsey – repairs and renovation on this medieval church *Meat Market, Guernsey (1822) – described as 'one of the most convenient, both for the buyers and sellers, that can be found in any part of the world... Much praise is due to the architect, Mr J Wilson.' *Castle Carey, L'Hyvreuse, St Peter Port *Les Arcades, Guernsey *Fountain Street, St Peter Port – as part of a slum clearance programme, the street was widened from eight to thirty feet. * Elizabeth College (1828)

Other works

*Map of

for William Berry's ''History of Guernsey'' (1815).

Subsequent career (1830–1845)

In 1831, he informed the Elizabeth College board that he was being transferred to Scotland. In 1837, he was transferred to Woolwich Arsenal, from where he retired in 1845 on the grounds of ill health. After he left Guernsey, he was not permitted to take on private commissions, and his only known work in England is a memorial to Sir Alexander Dickson, erected in

Woolwich Woolwich () is a town in South London, southeast London, England, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich. The district's location on the River Thames led to its status as an important naval, military and industrial area; a role that was mainta ...

in 1841, and subsequently moved to the

Royal School of Artillery The Royal School of Artillery (RSA) is the principal training establishment for artillery warfare in the British Army. Established in 1915, it is based at Larkhill, Wiltshire, on the south edge of the Salisbury Plain Training Area. The school is t ...

Larkhill Larkhill is a garrison town in the civil parish of Durrington, Wiltshire, England. It lies about west of the centre of Durrington village and north of the prehistoric monument of Stonehenge. It is about north of Salisbury. The settlement ...

Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated to Wilts) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It borders Gloucestershire to the north, Oxfordshire to the north-east, Berkshire to the east, Hampshire to the south-east, Dorset to the south, and Somerset to ...

Retirement (1845–1866)

Wilson retired to Southampton, where he lived in Cardew Villa,

Shirley, Southampton Shirley is a broad district and a former village on the western side of Southampton, in the ceremonial county of Hampshire, England. Shirley's main roles are retailing and residential. It is the most important suburban shopping area in the we ...

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Berkshire to the north, Surrey and West Sussex to the east, the Isle of Wight across the Solent to the south, ...

. He died in 1866, the same year as his wife, Ann. In his will, he left £12,000 to his great-nephew and namesake to purchase an estate in his native

Cumberland Cumberland ( ) is an area of North West England which was historically a county. The county was bordered by Northumberland to the north-east, County Durham to the east, Westmorland to the south-east, Lancashire to the south, and the Scottish ...

Legacy

In his 1975 survey of the architecture of St Peter Port, Guernsey, Sir Charles Brett concluded that Wilson was 'certainly the most important figure in Guernsey's architectural development'. C.E.B. Brett, ''Buildings in the Town and Parish of St Peter Port'' (National Trust of Guernsey, 1975)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wilson, John Architects from Cumbria People from Dalston, Cumbria Guernsey people Gothic Revival architects British neoclassical architects 1781 births 1866 deaths