William Thomas (architect)

William Thomas (born c. 1799 in Suffolk, England – died 26 December 1860 in Toronto, Canada) was an English architect.

He was born in Suffolk, England and apprenticed under Charles Barry and A.W. Pugin as a carpenter-joiner.

He began his own practice at Leamington Spa in 1831 but suffered bankruptcy in 1837 and emigrated with his wife and 10 children to Toronto, Ontario, Canada in 1843. It was in Toronto that his career as an architect flourished. He was also city engineer in Toronto and across Canada. Two of his sons, William Tutin Thomas and Cyrus Pole Thomas, also became architects.

Buildings designed by Thomas include:

* Lansdowne Crescent, Leamington Spa,Warwickshire, England, 1835--1838

* Brock's Monument, Queenston, Ontario, 1852-1856
* Church Street Row Housing, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, 1848.
* Don Gaol, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, 1852. Italianate style.
* Granville Street Mall--Central Block, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, 1859--1860. Facades of shops and new pedestrian area. Romanesque and Italianate detail.
* Granville Street Mall--North End, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, c. 1860. Romanesque and Italianate detail.
* Guelph Civic Museum, Guelph, Ontario, Canada, 1847 (originally built as a hotel and commercial building)
* Guelph City Hall, Guelph, Ontario, Canada, 1856--1857. Renaissance revival.
* Halifax Old County Court House, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, 1858--1862. Italian renaissance style.
* Halton County Court House, Milton, Ontario, Canada, 1855--1857. Baronial-Gothic style. Crenellated towers, cut-stone construction.
* Halton County Gaol and Court House Complex, Milton, Ontario, Canada, 1855--1857. Restored 1990.
* Toronto House of Industry (Workhouse), Toronto, Ontario, Canada, 1848. Tudor-Gothic style. (Now used as the Laughlen Lodge for the Aged).
* Niagara District Court House, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, Canada, 1847. Classical revival style. (Now used as a theatre.)
* Norfolk County Gaol, Simcoe, Ontario, Canada, 1847--1848
* Oakham House, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, 1848. Tudor-Gothic style.
* Quebec City Customs Building, Quebec, Quebec, Canada, 1856. Classical style.
* St. George's Anglican Church, Montreal, Quebec, Canada, 1870. Gothic revival.
* St. Lawrence Hall, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, 1850. Neo-classical.
* St. Matthew's Anglican Church, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, 1858. Gothic revival.
* St. Michael's Cathedral, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, begun in 1845. Gothic revival.
* St. Michael's Cathedral Episcopal Palace, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, 1845--1848. Gothic revival.
* St. Paul's Cathedral, London, Ontario, Canada, 1844--1846. Gothic revival.
* St. Paul's Presbyterian Church, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, 1854--1857. Gothic style.
* Wellington County Court House, Guelph, Ontario, Canada, 1841--1843

References

* H.M. Colvin, "A Biographical Dictionary of British Architects, 1600-1840" (1997) ISBN 0-300-07207-4

ee also

* List of oldest buildings and structures in Toronto

External links

* [http://www.biographi.ca/009004-119.01-e.php?&id_nbr=4217 Biography at the "Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online"]