List of ecclesiastical works by Alfred Waterhouse facts for kids
Alfred Waterhouse (1830–1905) was a very busy and famous English architect who lived in the late 1800s. He designed many buildings, mostly in the Victorian Gothic Revival style. One expert said he was "the most widely employed British architect" between 1865 and 1885. He worked on all sorts of buildings, including offices, public places, schools, homes, and churches.
Waterhouse was born in Liverpool. He learned architecture in Manchester and then traveled around Europe. After that, he started his own architecture business in Manchester. Many of his first jobs came from Quaker and other non-Anglican Christian groups. He became well-known when he won a competition to design the Manchester assize courts. He also designed Strangeways Gaol and Manchester Town Hall in Manchester. In 1865, he opened an office in London. His first big job there was the Natural History Museum. He also designed large country houses, like Eaton Hall in Cheshire, which was the most expensive country house built in the 1800s! He designed many buildings for universities like Cambridge, Oxford, Manchester, and Liverpool. For businesses, he designed banks and offices, especially for the Prudential Assurance Company, building 27 offices for them.
Waterhouse was successful because he was very professional and paid great attention to details. Even though he designed huge buildings, he still took on smaller projects. Most of his work was in the Gothic Revival style, but he also used other styles like Romanesque and French Renaissance. He used many different building materials, but he was especially known for using red brick and terracotta. This is why many university buildings in the north of England are called "red brick universities." Besides designing, Waterhouse also helped judge about 60 architecture competitions. He won the Royal Gold Medal in 1878 for his design of Manchester Town Hall. He was also the president of the Royal Institute of British Architects from 1888 to 1891. He received international awards and an honorary law degree from Manchester University in 1895. Waterhouse was also a painter and showed 80 of his watercolours at the Royal Academy. He passed away in 1905. His son, grandson, and great-grandson continued his architecture business.
Waterhouse designed new churches and helped fix up older ones. This list shows the church buildings he worked on that are now protected as listed buildings in England. This includes new churches, chapels, and related buildings, plus monuments and memorials in cemeteries. His most famous church designs are the Eaton Chapel in Cheshire, built for the 1st Duke of Westminster, and St Elisabeth's Church in Reddish, Greater Manchester. Both are considered very important buildings.
Understanding Building Grades
Buildings in England are given special "grades" to show how important they are.
| Grade | What it means |
|---|---|
| Grade I | These are buildings of amazing interest, sometimes seen as important worldwide. |
| Grade II* | These are very important buildings, more special than just "special interest." |
| Grade II | These are buildings important to the country and have special interest. |
Churches Designed by Waterhouse
Here's a list of some of the churches and religious buildings Alfred Waterhouse designed or worked on.
| Name | Location | Photograph | Date | Notes | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cemetery chapel | Ince-in-Makerfield, Wigan, Greater Manchester 53°31′54″N 2°37′03″W / 53.5318°N 2.6176°W |
 |
1855–57 | A Roman Catholic chapel made of stone with a slate roof. It's in the Norman style, with a main hall (nave) and a rounded end (chancel apse). | II |
| Cemetery chapel | Ince-in-Makerfield, Wigan, Greater Manchester 53°31′56″N 2°37′02″W / 53.5323°N 2.6173°W |
 |
1855–57 | This chapel is made of stone with a slate roof. It's in the Early English style, with a main hall (nave), a short chancel, a porch, and a small bell tower. | II |
| Kershaw Memorial, West Norwood Cemetery | West Norwood, Lambeth, Greater London 51°25′56″N 0°05′55″W / 51.4323°N 0.0986°W |
|
c. 1864 | A memorial made of pink and grey granite for James Kershaw. | II |
| St Martin's Church | Brasted, Kent 51°16′47″N 0°06′15″E / 51.2796°N 0.1043°E |
 |
1864–65 | This church was originally built in the 1200s. Waterhouse helped fix it up, rebuilt most of the outside, and added a south chapel and a north room (vestry). | II* |
| St John the Divine's Church | Brooklands, Sale, Greater Manchester 53°24′33″N 2°19′07″W / 53.4092°N 2.3187°W |
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1864–68 | This was Waterhouse's first Anglican church. It's built from sandstone with a tiled roof in the Gothic Revival style. | II* |
| West Memorial Hall | Caversham, Reading, Berkshire 51°28′02″N 0°58′21″W / 51.4672°N 0.9724°W |
 |
1865–66 | Built as a Baptist Free Church. It's made of red brick with blue brick patterns, stone details, and a tiled roof. It's in the Gothic Revival style, with a pointed roof (gable) facing the road and a stair tower. | II |
| Congregational Church | Besses o' th' Barn, Bury, Greater Manchester 53°32′34″N 2°17′24″W / 53.5428°N 2.2900°W |
 |
1863 | Made of red brick with yellow and blue brick patterns and slate roofs. | II |
| St Seiriol's Church | Penmaenmawr, Conwy, Wales 53°16′13″N 3°55′06″W / 53.2703°N 3.9182°W |
 |
1867–68 | A new church built for people who spoke English, in the Early English style. | II |
| St Matthew's Church | Blackmoor, Selborne, Hampshire 51°05′46″N 0°53′12″W / 51.0961°N 0.8868°W |
 |
1868 | A new church built for Roundell Palmer, 1st Earl of Selborne. It's made of stone and is in the Gothic Revival style. | II* |
| Spreat Monument, Abney Park Cemetery | Stoke Newington, Hackney, Greater London 51°33′53″N 0°04′38″W / 51.5646°N 0.0773°W |
 |
1868–72 | A monument for John Spreat and his wife, built in three parts with a pyramid-shaped top. | II |
| Eaton Chapel | Eaton Hall, Cheshire 53°08′27″N 2°52′39″W / 53.1409°N 2.8776°W |
 |
1869–84 | A chapel built for the 1st Duke of Westminster. It's made of sandstone with a slate roof. It has a tall, six-story clock tower with a pointed spire. The tower has 28 bells. Inside, there are beautiful mosaics designed by Frederic Shields. | I |
| Buildings, St Matthew's Church | Blackmoor, Hampshire 51°05′46″N 0°53′14″W / 51.096°N 0.8871°W |
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c. 1870 | These include a lychgate (a covered gate to a churchyard) in Gothic style, a churchyard wall, and a shed. | II |
| Elworthy Memorial, West Norwood Cemetery | West Norwood, Lambeth, Greater London 51°25′56″N 0°05′55″W / 51.4323°N 0.0986°W |
|
c. 1871–72 | A Celtic cross and a flat grave stone for F. T. Elworthy. | II |
| Chapel, Reading Grammar School | Reading, Berkshire 51°26′55″N 0°57′21″W / 51.448646°N 0.955721°W |
 |
1873–74 | A church in Gothic style, made of brick with stone details and a tiled roof. | II |
| Caversham Baptist Free Church | Caversham, Reading, Berkshire 51°28′03″N 0°58′21″W / 51.4676°N 0.9726°W |
 |
1875–77 | A church in Gothic style, made of brick with stone details and a tiled roof. It has a two-story tower at the southwest corner. | II |
| Memorial, St Mary's Churchyard |
Bury, Greater Manchester 53°35′38″N 2°17′52″W / 53.5940°N 2.2977°W |
|
c. 1875–80 | A tomb for John Slagg and his family members. | II |
| St Mary's Church | Twyford, Hampshire 51°01′22″N 1°18′54″W / 51.0229°N 1.3151°W |
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1876–78 | Built with knapped flint (a type of stone) and red brick stripes, stone details, and tiled roofs. The main person who paid for it was Thomas Fairbairn. | II* |
| St Bartholomew's Church | Reading, Berkshire 51°27′15″N 0°56′34″W / 51.4543°N 0.9427°W |
 |
1879 | This was Waterhouse's first large Gothic Revival church. It's made of brick and has tiled roofs. | II |
| Heaton Park Congregational Church | Greater Manchester 53°31′53″N 2°16′08″W / 53.5313°N 2.2689°W |
 |
1881 | Built with brick and slate roofs in the Gothic Revival style. It has since been turned into apartments. | II |
| St Andrew's Church | Stanstead Abbots, Hertfordshire 51°47′27″N 0°00′34″E / 51.7908°N 0.0094°E |
 |
1881 | Designed for T. F. Buxton, this is a new church in the Perpendicular style. It's shaped like a cross (cruciform) with a tower at the southwest. It's covered in knapped flint with stone details and tiled roofs. The gates and railings around the churchyard are also special. | II* |
| St Elisabeth's Church | Reddish, Greater Manchester 53°26′17″N 2°09′48″W / 53.4380°N 2.1633°W |
 |
1882–83 | A new church ordered by William Houldsworth, a local mill owner. It's made of red brick with stone stripes and a tiled roof. It has a tower with a lead spire at the east end, and a rounded chancel with a Lady Chapel and a vestry. | I |
| Lyndhurst Road Congregational Church | Hampstead, Camden, Greater London 51°33′10″N 0°10′11″W / 51.55287°N 0.1697°W |
 |
1883–84 | Built with purple brick, red brick, and terracotta details in the Romanesque style. It has a many-sided shape and a hexagonal tiled roof with a central light. It's now used as recording studios for AIR. | II |
| St Ann's Church | Manchester 53°28′54″N 2°14′45″W / 53.4817°N 2.2458°W |
 |
1886–91 | This church was originally built in a Neoclassical style in 1709–12. Waterhouse helped fix it up. | I |
| Former Congregational Church | Westminster, Greater London 51°30′48″N 0°09′03″W / 51.5134°N 0.1507°W |
 |
1888–91 | Built as a Congregational church with red brick and terracotta details, and a tall steeple at the corner. It has a rectangular shape with an oval gallery and roof. It's now the Ukrainian Catholic Cathedral of the Holy Family in Exile. | II* |
| St Peter and St Paul's Church | Yattendon, Berkshire 51°28′02″N 1°12′13″W / 51.4672°N 1.2036°W |
 |
1896 | Waterhouse added the spire to this church, which was originally built in the 1400s. | I |
See also
- List of domestic works by Alfred Waterhouse
- List of educational buildings by Alfred Waterhouse
- List of commercial buildings by Alfred Waterhouse
- List of public and civic buildings by Alfred Waterhouse
