Harry S. Fairhurst
Harry S. Fairhurst (3 April 1868 – 31 May 1945) was a prominent architect in Edwardian Manchester. He was responsible for many of the city's iconic warehouses and his commissions include Blackfriars House, headquarters of the Lancashire Cotton Corporation and Arkwright House, headquarters of the English Sewing Cotton Company.[1]
Harry S. Fairhurst | |
|---|---|
 Lancaster House, Manchester 67 Whitworth Street | |
| Born | 3 April 1868 Blackburn, Lancashire, England |
| Died | 31 March 1945 (aged 76) |
| Nationality | English |
| Occupation | Architect |
| Practice | Harry S. Fairhurst & Son |
| Buildings | Bridgewater House Lancaster House India House, Manchester |
Work and professional life
Harry Smith Fairhurst was born in Blackburn on 3 April 1868. He commenced articles in 1883 with James Wolstenholme and improved with Maxwell and Tuke. He moved to Cardiff where he worked as assistant to William Frame.[2] He qualified in 1891 and started his own practice in Blackburn in 1895. He moved to Manchester in 1901 where he worked in partnership with James Harold France until 1905. From 1905 his assistant was James Alexander Mitchell Hunter who became his partner in 1908. The practice's first commissions were warehouses for Lloyds Packing Company.[3]
Fairhurst's commissions include India House, Bridgewater House and Lancaster House which are Grade II or II* listed buildings. York House in Major Street was another but has been demolished.[1]
Fairhurst's warehouses were built using fire-proof techniques. He was known for his high standards. Some buildings were finished with Portland stone façades while the Lloyd's warehouses had Edwardian Baroque frontages built from red brick and orange terracotta or faience, and exposed glazed steel-frame backs.[4]
Fairhurst was president of the Manchester Society of Architects in 1926–27. He took his son Philip Garland Fairhurst (P Garland Fairhurst aka Garry), into partnership in 1929.[3] Father and son were influenced by trips to North America and they perfected the steel and concrete technique. Buildings from this era were Lee House in Oxford Street and Rylands Warehouse in Market Street. They also designed Christie's Hospital and Holt Radium Institute.[5]
Harry Smith Fairhurst retired in 1941 and died in 1945. The practice was continued by his son who was president of the Manchester Society of Architects in 1947–49.[5]
His descendants
Harry M Fairhurst and Ian Fairhurst are the third generation, who joined the practice alongside their father, Philip Garland Fairhurst. The practice continued in the medical buildings field. It was responsible for building the Manchester Medical School, and the Chemistry and Physics Buildings for UMIST. Harry M Fairhurst was president of the Manchester Society of Architects in 1969–71. He left the practice in 1981 to work on conservation for English Heritage, Ian changed his career to farming.[5]
The fourth generation is represented by Mark Fairhurst who has a London practice.[5] He has completed two projects in Smithfields, a refurbishment at 25 Church Street and a new build at 38 High Street.
Notable projects
- National Buildings (1905-9)[6]
- India House, (1905) [2]
- Bridgewater House (1913)[2]
- Lancaster House (1906)[2]
- York House
- Blackfriars House (1923)[7]
- Arkwright House (1927)[6]
- Ship Canal House[2]
- Manchester Liners House[2]
- Lee House (1928–31)
References
Notes
- Taylor & Holder 2002
- Wyke, Terry (2005). Public Sculpture of Greater Manchester. Liverpool University Press. p. 444. ISBN 978-0-85323-567-5.
- Dictionary of Scottish Architects Biography Report (7 November 2012, 6:22 pm)
- Hartwell 2001, p. 207
- Mark Fairhurst, architect, London
- Hartwell 2001, p. 245
- Hartwell 2001, p. 243
Bibliography
- Hartwell, Clare; Hyde, Matthew; Pevsner, Nikolaus (2004), The Buildings of England: Lancashire: Manchester and the South East, Yale University Press, ISBN 0-300-10583-5
- Hartwell, Clare (2001), Manchester, Pevsner Architectural Guides, Yale University Press, ISBN 0-300-09666-6
- Taylor, Simon; Holder, Julian (2002). Manchester: The Warehouse Legacy. An introduction and guide. London: English Heritage. ISBN 1-873592-67-1.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
