John Wilson (1781, Dalston, Cumbria – 1866, Shirley, Hampshire) was a

Clerk of Works A clerk of works or clerk of the works (CoW) is employed by an architect or a client on a construction site. The role is primarily to represent the interests of the client in regard to ensuring that the quality of both materials and workmanship ar ...

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 o ...

who became one of the most celebrated architects in the island of Guernsey 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 a ...

(which he called '

Roman cement Roman cement is a substance developed by James Parker in the 1780s, being patented in 1796. The name is misleading, as it is nothing like any material used by the Romans, but was a "natural cement" made by burning septaria – nodules that are ...

') in the neoclassical, Gothic Revival or

Jacobethan The Jacobethan or Jacobean Revival architectural style 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 English Renaissance (1 ...

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 within the Carlisle district of Cumbria, historically part of Cumberland. It is situated on the B5299 road south-south-west of Carlisle city centre, and approximately from Junction 42 of the M6 m ...

, 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 xcb, Caer Luel) is a city that lies within the Northern English county of Cumbria, south of the Scottish border at the confluence of the rivers Eden, Caldew and Petteril. It is the administrative centre of the City ...

, at the church of

St George's, Hanover Square St George's, Hanover Square, is an 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 (the Queen Anne ...

, London. He joined the

as a mason. He had been promoted to master mason, and was appointed

by 1813.

Work in Guernsey (1813–1830)

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

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

. 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 Eli ...

(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 Guernsey 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 district in 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 maintained thro ...

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 located at Larkhill, Wiltshire, on the south edge of Salisbury Plain in the United Kingdom. The Sch ...

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 Wilts) is a historic and ceremonial county in South West England with an area of . It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset to the southwest, Somerset to the west, Hampshire to the southeast, Gloucestershir ...

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, England. Shirley's main roles are retailing and residential. It is the most important suburban shopping area in the west of the city. Housing is a mixture of co ...

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English citi ...

. 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.

Legacy

In his 1975 survey of the architecture of St Peter Port, Guernsey, Sir

Charles Brett Sir Charles Edward Bainbridge Brett, KBE, CBE (30 October 1928 - 19 December 2005), was a Northern Irish solicitor, journalist, author and founding member, and first chairman, of the Ulster Architectural Heritage Society (UAHS). He was known ...

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