David Stephenson (1757–1819) was an English architect who worked in

Newcastle upon Tyne Newcastle upon Tyne ( RP: , ), or simply Newcastle, is a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. The city is located on the River Tyne's northern bank and forms the largest part of the Tyneside built-up area. Newcastle is ...

and

Northumberland Northumberland () is a county in Northern England, one of two counties in England which border with Scotland. Notable landmarks in the county include Alnwick Castle, Bamburgh Castle, Hadrian's Wall and Hexham Abbey. It is bordered by land on ...

. He was the first Newcastle architect trained in LondonGrundy, J., McCombie, G., Ryder, P., Welfare, H. & Pevsner, N. (1992) ''The Buildings of England: Northumberland.'' 2nd ed. Penguin Books, Harmondsworth, Middx and was "Newcastle's and the North East's leading architect" Faulkner, T. & Greg, A. (2001) ''John Dobson: Architect of the North East.'' Tyne Bridge Publishing, Newcastle upon Tyne at the start of the 19th century.

Life

David Stephenson was the son of John Stephenson and Ann Crawforth.Rennison, R.W. (2002) 'David Stephenson 1757–1819' in Skempton, A.W. and Chrimes, M. eds. ''A Biographical Dictionary of Civil Engineers in Great Britain and Ireland: 1500–1830.'' The eldest of five, he was baptised at Castle Garth Presbytery, Newcastle, on 6 November 1757. John Stephenson (died 1796), was a carpenter who built a temporary wooden bridge after the destruction of the mediaeval Tyne Bridge in 1771.Rennison, R. W. (2001) 'The Great Inundation of 1771 and the Rebuilding of the North-East's Bridges' ''Archaeoligia Aeliana'' 5th Series Vol. 29, pp269–291 David was apprenticed as a carpenter and then turned to architecture, studying at The Royal Academy from 1782 to 1783. He returned to Newcastle and married Margaret Gibbon (1755–1839) in 1783. They had four sons and four daughters. Stephenson was a founder member of the

Literary and Philosophical Society of Newcastle upon Tyne The Literary and Philosophical Society of Newcastle upon Tyne (or the ''Lit & Phil'' as it is popularly known) is a historical library in Newcastle upon Tyne, England, and the largest independent library outside London. The library is still avai ...

and an early member of The Society of Antiquaries. In 1803 he commanded a company of volunteers in Newcastle. He died in Alnwick on 29 August 1819. There is a marble plaque commemorating Stephenson in All Saints' Church, Newcastle, where he is buried.

Work

High Level and Low Level bridges - Newcastle - 1861

Stephenson's style has been characterised by Faulkner and Greg as "delicate Neo-classicism". His grander buildings are in a bold style, using honeycomb sandstone and the highest quality masonry to create an effect that foreshadows work by John Dobson, who served his architectural apprenticeship with Stephenson from 1804 to 1809. He was architect to Newcastle Corporation and laid out Mosley Street and Dean Street, the first streets to deviate from the mediaeval town plan. He widened the Georgian Tyne Bridge in 1802, using "an ingenious contrivance" of iron cramps. He was then appointed architect to the Duke of Northumberland, for whom he designed the uncompleted New Quay development at

North Shields North Shields () is a town in the Borough of North Tyneside in Tyne and Wear, England. It is north-east of Newcastle upon Tyne and borders nearby Wallsend and Tynemouth. Since 1974, it has been in the North Tyneside borough of Tyne and Wea ...

and the Percy Tenantry Column in Alnwick. One of Stephenson's more significant works was All Saints Church, Newcastle. The design was adapted from an unexecuted scheme by

James Gibbs James Gibbs (23 December 1682 – 5 August 1754) was one of Britain's most influential architects. Born in Aberdeen, he trained as an architect in Rome, and practised mainly in England. He is an important figure whose work spanned the transi ...

for Saint Martin-in-the-Fields, London.

List of works

* Mosley St., Newcastle 1780s (only numbers 3–5, 10 and 32–34 survive) * Old Theatre Royal, Mosley Street, Newcastle 1788 (demolished c.1838) * Dean St., Newcastle c. 1789 (only even numbers 18–20 and 30–52 survive) * The Cale Cross, Newcastle (now at Blagdon) 1783 * All Saints Church, Newcastle 1786–1789, spire 1796 * St Nicholas Cathedral, Newcastle 1783–1787 (internal restoration), with William Newton * Church St., Gateshead, 1791 (demolished) *

Guildhall, Newcastle upon Tyne The Guildhall is an important civic building in Newcastle upon Tyne. It is a Grade I listed building. History The original guildhall, which was commissioned by Roger Thornton, was completed in the early 15th century and had to be demolished aft ...

1794–1796 (refronting), with William Newton * Widening of the Georgian Tyne Bridge, Newcastle 1802 (demolished 1876) * New Quay,

1806–1817 (numbers 2–50 survive, now Collingwood Mansions) * Leazes Park Rd., Newcastle c.1811 (only numbers 8–10 and 21–23 survive) * Cast-iron estate bridge, Hulne Park, Alnwick 1812 * The Percy

Tenantry Column The Tenantry Column is a monument to the south of Alnwick town centre, in Northumberland, England. It was erected in 1816 by the tenants of Hugh Percy, 2nd Duke of Northumberland in thanks for his reduction of their rents during the post-Napole ...

, Alnwick, 1816

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stephenson, David People from Newcastle upon Tyne 19th-century English architects 1757 births 1819 deaths Architects from Northumberland