Henry Bevington (26 July 1777''England & Wales, Quaker Birth, Marriage, and Death Registers, 1578-1837'' – 8 November 1850)''London, England, Church of England Deaths and Burials, 1813-2003'' was a prolific English organ builder, active in London during the

Victorian era In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the period of Queen Victoria's reign, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. The era followed the Georgian period and preceded the Edwardia ...

. Many of his organs were erected in Australia and South Africa. Bevington was born in London to Samuel and Elizabeth (Portsmouth) Bevington, who were Quakers. He was an apprentice of Ohrmann & Nutt, and also of

John Snetzler John Snetzler (or Schnetzler) was an organ builder of Swiss origin, who worked mostly in England. Born in Schaffhausen in 1710, he trained with the firm of Egedacher in Passau and came to London about 1741. When he retired in 1781, his business ...

. He began his trade as journeyman with Robert Gray. He set up his own workshop in

Greek Street Greek Street is a street in Soho, London, leading south from Soho Square to Shaftesbury Avenue. The street is famous for its restaurants and cosmopolitan nature. History It is thought to take its name from a Greek church that was built in 1 ...

Soho, London Soho is an area of the City of Westminster, part of the West End of London. Originally a fashionable district for the aristocracy, it has been one of the main entertainment districts in the capital since the 19th century. The area was develo ...

in 1794, his earliest recorded organ is dated 1820. Bevington was also an accomplished organist and was the organist at

King's College, London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public research university located in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of King George IV and the Duke of Wellington. In 1836, King's ...

. He died in 1850, aged 73, and was buried at

St Peter's Church, Walworth St Peter's Church is an Anglican parish church in Walworth, London, in the Woolwich Episcopal Area of the Anglican Diocese of Southwark. It was built between 1823–25 and was the first church designed by Sir John Soane, in the wave of the churc ...

Bevington & Sons

Bevington's organ building business was continued by his sons; Henry and Martin, in Rose Street, Soho, in the same premises as were occupied by Ohrmann. The organ of

St. Martin's in the Fields St Martin-in-the-Fields is a Church of England parish church at the north-east corner of Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, London. It is dedicated to Saint Martin of Tours. There has been a church on the site since at least the mediev ...

and of the

Foundling Hospital The Foundling Hospital in London, England, was founded in 1739 by the philanthropic sea captain Thomas Coram. It was a children's home established for the "education and maintenance of exposed and deserted young children." The word "hospital" w ...

in London, and that of

St. Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin Saint Patrick's Cathedral ( ir, Ard-Eaglais Naomh Pádraig) in Dublin, Ireland, founded in 1191 as a Roman Catholic cathedral, is currently the national cathedral of the Church of Ireland. Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin, Christ Church Cathedr ...

, were built by the Bevington firm. On 21 May 1854, a fire damaged his works on Rose Street, including the original carved case being constructed for St. Martin's in the Fields, and valuable tools. Fortunately, the majority of their inventory was at the Greek Street location.

Some organs built by Bevington & Sons

St. George's Cathedral, Cape Town St George's Cathedral (also referred to as The Cathedral Church of St George the Martyr) is the Anglican cathedral in Cape Town, South Africa, and the seat of the Archbishop of Cape Town. St. George's Cathedral is both the metropolitical chu ...

(17 February 1861) * The

, London (1855) *St Swithin's Church, Wickham (1851) * St Peter and St Paul and St Elizabeth Catholic Church, Coughton (c.1855) *

Nottingham Mechanics' Institution The Nottingham Mechanics' Institution was founded in 1837 in Nottingham to improve the knowledge of working men with classes and lectures, the provision of libraries, performances of music, drama and readings, and through social contact with a g ...

(17 October 1849) *

St Mary's Cathedral, Sydney The Cathedral Church and Minor Basilica of the Immaculate Mother of God, Help of Christians (colloquially, St Mary's Cathedral) is the cathedral church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Sydney and the cathedra, seat of the Catholic Bishops an ...

(c. 1838) * St Michael and St George Cathedral, Grahamstown (1860) * Church of St. John the Evangelist,

Kensal Green Kensal Green is an area in north-west London. It lies mainly in the London Borough of Brent, with a small part to the south within Kensington and Chelsea. Kensal Green is located on the Harrow Road, about miles from Charing Cross. To the w ...

(1846) * The chapel at

Stanbrook Abbey Stanbrook Abbey is a Catholic contemplative Benedictine women's monastery with the status of an abbey, located at Wass, North Yorkshire, England. The community was founded in 1625 at Cambrai in Flanders (then part of the Spanish Netherlands, ...

English College, Rome The Venerable English College (), commonly referred to as the English College, is a Catholic seminary in Rome, Italy, for the training of priests for England and Wales. It was founded in 1579 by William Allen on the model of the English College, ...

All Saints' Church, Turnditch All Saints' Church, Turnditch is a Grade II listed parish church in the Church of England in Turnditch, Derbyshire. History A date of 1630 inscribed over the south door is often taken as the date of completion of the building. It was given a ne ...

1891 * Parroquia de la Concepción, Santa Cruz de Tenerife (1862) * All Saints' Church Dunedin 1877
Hatley St George church
Cambridgeshire – a small Bevington organ of 1878 *St Thomas Church,

Corstorphine Corstorphine (Scottish Gaelic: ''Crois Thoirfinn'') ( ) is an area of the Scottish capital city of Edinburgh. Formerly a separate village and parish to the west of Edinburgh, it is now a suburb of the city, having been formally incorporate ...

- built 1843, now much altered from original concept *

St Peter's Church, Radford St Peter's Church, Radford is an Church of England, Anglican parish church in Radford, Nottingham, located at 171 Hartley Road (St. Peter's Park). It is a Grade II listed building as being of special architectural or historic interest. History ...

1869

Notes and references

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Bevington & Sons

Some organs built by Bevington & Sons

See also

Notes and references

Further reading