The Turkey Cafe at 24 Granby Street, Leicester - geograph

Arthur Wakerley (May 15, 1862 – 4 April 1931) was a British architect, businessman and politician.

Life

Born in

Melton Mowbray Melton Mowbray () is a town in Leicestershire, England, north-east of Leicester, and south-east of Nottingham. It lies on the River Eye, known below Melton as the Wreake. The town had a population 27,670 in 2019. The town is sometimes promo ...

, he was articled to James Bird. He was a Fellow of the

Royal Institute of British Architects The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) is a professional body for architects primarily in the United Kingdom, but also internationally, founded for the advancement of architecture under its royal charter granted in 1837, three suppl ...

and sometime President of the Leicester Society of Architects. He was President of the Leicester Liberal Association and in 1886 was elected as a councillor for Middle St Margaret's Ward and was

Mayor of Leicester The mayor of Leicester is responsible for the executive function of Leicester City Council in England. The incumbent is Peter Soulsby of the Labour Party. Background In December 2010 the Labour controlled Leicester City Council approved plan ...

in 1897, the youngest mayor since the reforms of 1835. He used the role of mayor to support a wide range of charitable and religious works and attempted to position the role of mayor as a non-party political one. His year of office was marred by two local disasters – the railway accident at Wellingborough and the Whitwick Colliery explosion that claimed 35 lives. He twice (unsuccessfully) contested the Melton Division for a seat in Parliament. He stood as a

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

candidate in 1895 and 1900. Outside work and politics Arthur Wakerley was an enthusiastic

Wesleyan Wesleyan theology, otherwise known as Wesleyan– Arminian theology, or Methodist theology, is a theological tradition in Protestant Christianity based upon the ministry of the 18th-century evangelical reformer brothers John Wesley and Charles W ...

lay preacher Lay preacher is a preacher or a religious proclaimer who is not a formally ordained cleric Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presidi ...

and ardent

temperance Temperance may refer to: Moderation *Temperance movement, movement to reduce the amount of alcohol consumed *Temperance (virtue), habitual moderation in the indulgence of a natural appetite or passion Culture *Temperance (group), Canadian danc ...

worker as well as being interested in archaeology and poetry. He planned the development of the

North Evington North Evington is an area, suburb, electoral ward and administrative division of the city of Leicester, England. North Evington is bordered by Belgrave to the west, Charnwood to the north, Evington and Humberstone & Hamilton to the east and ...

area. Other examples of his architectural work in Leicester include the

Turkey Cafe The Turkey Cafe is a building with a flamboyant Modern Style (British Art Nouveau style) facade in Granby Street, Leicester, England. It was built in 1900 and is now a Grade II listed building, once again used as a café. The facade puns on two ...

, Granby Street (1901), the Synagogue on Highfield Street, the Coronation Buildings, High Street (1901–03; formerly known as the Singer Building) and the Wycliffe Society Cottage Homes for the Blind.JEAN FARQUAR, Arthur Wakerley 1862–1931 (London, Sedgebrook Press: 1984).

Grade II Listed buildings by Arthur Wakerley

Below is a list of the fourteen buildings in Leicester by Arthur Wakerley that have been listed. All are

Grade II In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

, and most relate to the period 1880s to 1900s. Many more of his building survive without being listed, including factories, terraced housing, semi-detached and detached houses, and 'Crown Hill', a substantial brick mansion he built for himself on Gwendolen Road. The listed post-war houses are four example pairs of the design of council house Wakerley produced in the 1920s, selected because they remain closest to the original design and have their original sash windows. As well as Leicester, the design was widely adopted in

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdo ...

and

Welwyn Garden City Welwyn Garden City ( ) is a town in Hertfordshire, England, north of London. It was the second garden city in England (founded 1920) and one of the first new towns (designated 1948). It is unique in being both a garden city and a new town and ...

Notes to the table

References

External links

The Wakerley Trail

Page on Leicester City Council website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wakerley, Arthur 1862 births Architects from Leicester Mayors of places in Leicestershire People from Melton Mowbray Liberal Party (UK) parliamentary candidates Burials at Welford Road Cemetery 1931 deaths