Thomas Hayton Mawson (5 May 1861 – 14 November 1933), known as T. H. Mawson, was a British

garden design Garden design is the art and process of designing and creating plans for layout and planting of garden, gardens and landscapes. Garden design may be done by the garden owner themselves, or by professionals of varying levels of experience and expe ...

er,

landscape architect A landscape architect is a person who is educated in the field of landscape architecture. The practice of landscape architecture includes: site analysis, site inventory, site planning, land planning, planting design, grading, storm water manage ...

, and town planner.

Personal life

Mawson was born in Nether Wyresdale, Lancashire, and left school at age 12. His father, who died in 1877, was a warper in a

cotton mill A cotton mill is a building that houses spinning or weaving machinery for the production of yarn or cloth from cotton, an important product during the Industrial Revolution in the development of the factory system. Although some were driven ...

and later started a building business. Thomas married Anna Prentice in 1884 and the Mawsons made their family home in

Windermere Windermere (historically Winder Mere) is a ribbon lake in Cumbria, England, and part of the Lake District. It is the largest lake in England by length, area, and volume, but considerably smaller than the List of lakes and lochs of the United Ki ...

Westmorland Westmorland (, formerly also spelt ''Westmoreland''R. Wilkinson The British Isles, Sheet The British IslesVision of Britain/ref>) is an area of North West England which was Historic counties of England, historically a county. People of the area ...

, in 1885. They had four sons and five daughters. Their eldest son, Edward Prentice Mawson, was a successful landscape architect and took over the running of his father's firm when his father developed

Parkinson's disease Parkinson's disease (PD), or simply Parkinson's, is a neurodegenerative disease primarily of the central nervous system, affecting both motor system, motor and non-motor systems. Symptoms typically develop gradually and non-motor issues become ...

in 1923. Another son, John Mawson, moved to

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

in 1928 as Director of Town Planning for that country. Mawson died at Applegarth, Hest Bank, near

Lancaster, Lancashire Lancaster (, ) is a city in Lancashire, England, and the main cultural hub, economic and commercial centre of City of Lancaster district. The city is on the River Lune, directly inland from Morecambe Bay. Lancaster is the county town, although ...

, aged 72, and is buried in Bowness Cemetery within a few miles of some of his best gardens and overlooking

Working life

To make a living, he worked first in the building trade in Lancaster, then at a London nursery where he gained experience in

landscape gardening A landscape is the visible features of an area of Terrestrial ecoregion, land, its landforms, and how they integrate with Nature, natural or human-made features, often considered in terms of their aesthetic appeal.''New Oxford American Diction ...

. In the 1880s he moved back north, where he and two brothers started the Lakeland Nursery in

. The firm became sufficiently successful for him to be able to turn his attention to garden design. Mawson's first commission was a local property,

Graythwaite Hall Graythwaite Hall, near Ulverston, Cumbria in the Lake District of England is the home of the Sandys family. One of the more famous members of the family was Edwin Sandys (archbishop), Edwin Sandys, who was Archbishop of York (1576–88) and was ...

, and his work there showed his hallmark blend of architecture and planting. He went on to design other gardens in Cumbria such as Langdale Chase, Holehird, Brockhole, and Holker Hall around the turn of the century. In 1891 Mawson was commissioned to design and construct Belle Vue Park in Newport,

Monmouthshire Monmouthshire ( ; ) is a Principal areas of Wales, county in the South East Wales, south east of Wales. It borders Powys to the north; the English counties of Herefordshire and Gloucestershire to the north and east; the Severn Estuary to the s ...

, Mawson's first win in an open competition. His design was, in fact, designed for the neighbouring field, the site of the then Newport and Monmouthshire Hospital after Mawson misunderstood directions on his first visit. The mistake was not realised until the first site visit, after the contract had been awarded. Between 1894 and 1909 Mawson was commissioned to design and construct Dyffryn Gardens, the home of John Cory, in the

Vale of Glamorgan The Vale of Glamorgan ( ), locally referred to as ''The Vale'', is a Principal areas of Wales, county borough in the South East Wales, south-east of Wales. It borders Bridgend County Borough to the west, Cardiff to the east, Rhondda Cynon Taf t ...

. Mawson was the landscape designer for Glyn Cory Garden Village, funded by Cory and close to Dyffryn, in nearby Peterston-super-Ely. It was the first garden suburb in Wales. Other work in Wales included Maes Manor, near

Blackwood, Caerphilly Blackwood ( or ) is a town, community (Wales), community and an Wards and electoral divisions of the United Kingdom, electoral ward on the Sirhowy River in the South Wales Valleys administered as part of Caerphilly County Borough. It is located ...

, for a local colliery owner, where Mawson extended the house and laid out an important garden. In 1896, Mawson created the garden at Mount Stuart House on the Isle of Bute. The garden was said to have been inspired by the garden at

Calvary Calvary ( or ) or Golgotha () was a site immediately outside Jerusalem's walls where, according to Christianity's four canonical gospels, Jesus was crucified. Since at least the early medieval period, it has been a destination for pilgrimage. ...

and the Via Dolorosa in the

Old City of Jerusalem The Old City of Jerusalem (; ) is a walled area in Jerusalem. In a tradition that may have begun with an 1840s British map of the city, the Old City is divided into four uneven quarters: the Muslim Quarter, the Christian Quarter, the Arm ...

. Between 1902 and 1903 Thomas Mawson designed the summerhouse, balustraded terraces and pond within a formal garden for Albert Ochs at his new house at Walmer, Kent. Walmer Place was built in 1901 on the site of the earlier building known as Walmer Lodge. The summerhouse itself is of architectural merit with high quality stonework to its classical detailing and it survives largely intact. The designs for the gardens at Walmer Place were exhibited in 1903 at the Royal Academy. The Rushton Hall estate in

Northamptonshire Northamptonshire ( ; abbreviated Northants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It is bordered by Leicestershire, Rutland and Lincolnshire to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshi ...

has early 20th century formal terraced gardens designed by Mawson between 1905–1909 and implemented by his brother Robert. In 1908 Mawson was enlisted to design the main public park in the new town of

Barrow-in-Furness Barrow-in-Furness is a port town and civil parish (as just "Barrow") in the Westmorland and Furness district of Cumbria, England. Historic counties of England, Historically in the county of Lancashire, it was incorporated as a municipal borou ...

. In 1907 Mawson designed the terraced gardens for Lindeth Fell, near

. The gardens remain remarkably intact; the terraces and richly planted borders sit the house in a relaxed style on a sloping hillside with views over lake Windermere to the Coniston mountains. Elizabeth Kissack's 2006 book on Mawson describes the gardens here as 'where Mawson excelled in making the garden seem to wrap itself around the house as if they were one'. In London Mawson designed gardens at The Hill, in Hampstead for Lord Leverhulme. The impressive 800 ft long

pergola A pergola is most commonly used as an outdoor garden feature forming a shaded walkway, passageway, or sitting area of vertical posts or pillars that usually support crossbeams and a sturdy open lattice, often upon which woody vines are t ...

is now open to the public as The Hill Garden and Pergola, part of the West Heath. He designed

Rivington Rivington is a village and Civil parishes in England, civil parish of the Borough of Chorley, Lancashire, England, occupying . It is about southeast of Chorley and about northwest of Bolton. Rivington is a rural area consisting primarily of ...

Gardens and Lever Park in Lancashire also for Lord Leverhulme. Padiham Memorial Park (1921) was another commission in Lancashire. Mawson also designed the gardens a
Wood Hall
near Cockermouth, Cumbria, which were completed in 1920. Much of this garden still survives today. From 1910 to 1924 he lectured frequently at the school of civic design, Liverpool University.

Oxford Dictionary of National Biography The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from History of the British Isles, British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') ...

He also contributed articles on garden design to '' The Studio'' magazine and its annual ''The Studio Year Book of Decorative Art''. In the 1920s he designed gardens for Dunira, a country house in Perthshire. In 1924 he designed the Fazl Mosque in London. In 1923 he became president of the Town Planning Institute, and in 1929 the first president of the Institute of Landscape Architects.

International work

left, alt=Old map, Proposal by Thomas Mawson for modern Line 1.">Line 1 (Thessaloniki Metro)">Line 1. In 1908 he won a competition to lay out the Peace Palace gardens at

The Hague The Hague ( ) is the capital city of the South Holland province of the Netherlands. With a population of over half a million, it is the third-largest city in the Netherlands. Situated on the west coast facing the North Sea, The Hague is the c ...

. He also advised on the development of the

Great Smoky Mountains National Park Great Smoky Mountains National Park is a List of national parks of the United States, national park of the United States in the southeastern United States, southeast, with parts in North Carolina and Tennessee. The park straddles the ridgeline o ...

in the United States. In 1912 Mawson toured several Canadian cities, beginning in Halifax and ending up in

Victoria, British Columbia Victoria is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of British Columbia, on the southern tip of Vancouver Island off Canada's Pacific Ocean, Pacific coast. The city has a population of 91,867, and the Gre ...

. As well as giving talks, he proposed several (unaccepted) designs including for Wascana Centre in Regina,

Brockton Point Brockton Point is a headland off the Downtown Peninsula of Vancouver, on the north side of Coal Harbour. Named after Francis Brockton, it is the most easterly part of Stanley Park and is home to a 100-year-old lighthouse and several hand-carve ...

lighthouse, Coal Harbour and Lost Lagoon in Vancouver, and urban design plans for Banff and downtown

Calgary Calgary () is a major city in the Canadian province of Alberta. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806 making it the third-largest city and fifth-largest metropolitan area in C ...

. Mawson's vision for Calgary, had it been implemented, would have changed what was then a dusty prairie town, into a city of the

City Beautiful movement The City Beautiful movement was a reform philosophy of North American architecture and urban planning that flourished during the 1890s and 1900s with the intent of introducing beautification and monumental grandeur in cities. It was a part of th ...

Preservation and restoration

With the passage of time many of Mawson's finished schemes have either disappeared or decayed out of all recognition. However, efforts have been made to preserve his designs by heritage listings (mainly the Register of Historic Parks and Gardens, although some of his structures such as the terraces at Rydal Hall are

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

s). Also, a number of Mawson's parks and gardens have been restored, sometimes on a one-off basis or as part of wider initiatives such as the "Parks for People" programme for historic parks and cemeteries in the UK. Examples of restorations include: *Rydal Hall,

Cumbria Cumbria ( ) is a ceremonial county in North West England. It borders the Scottish council areas of Dumfries and Galloway and Scottish Borders to the north, Northumberland and County Durham to the east, North Yorkshire to the south-east, Lancash ...

, where Mawson's

Grade II* listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, H ...

Italianate terraces have been restored. *Two Grade II* listed municipal parks in the city of Stoke-on-Trent ( Hanley Park and Burslem Park) * Bushey Rose Garden, Hertfordshire (Grade II listed). * The Hill Garden and Pergola, Hampstead Heath, designed for Lord Leverhulme. In 2019, work started on the restoration of Mawson's garden at Mount Stuart House. The work was due to be completed in August 2022.

Selected writings

*1900: ''The Art and Craft of Garden Making'', 1st edn 1900, 5th edn (recommended), 1926. *1908: "The Designing of Gardens", article in ''The Studio Year Book of Decorative Art 1908'' *1911: ''Civic Art'' Covers the principles of town planning *1927: ''The Life and Work of an English Landscape Architect''

Footnotes

Bibliography

* *

External links

*
Eden Bridge Gardens, CarlisleThomas H. Mawson, Landscape ArchitectBowness Cemetery, South Lakeland Council
*
Lancashire Gardens TrustBolton as it is and as it might be : six lectures delivered under the auspices of the Bolton housing and town planning society (1916)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mawson, Thomas Hayton 1861 births 1933 deaths British landscape architects People from Windermere, Cumbria People from Garstang Presidents of the Royal Town Planning Institute Architecture of Thessaloniki