Howard Douglas Horsfall (1856-February 1936) was a stockbroker and benefactor based in Liverpool, England. He is remembered for building churches in Liverpool, and as a founding benefactor of

St Chad's College, Durham , motto_English = Not what you have, but who you are , scarf = , established = 1904 , principal = Margaret Masson , senior_tutor = Eleanor Spencer-Regan , undergraduates = 409 , postgraduates = 150 , website = , coordinates = , location_map ...

Early life and education

He was the second son of Robert Horsfall, and nephew of Thomas Horsfall, MP for Liverpool. The

Horsfall family The Horsfall family was a family notable in Liverpool, UK, especially as traders at the heart of British trade with Africa after 1807, and as religious benefactors whose churches are among the most important religious buildings in the city. Cha ...

had a tradition of building churches: Douglas' grandfather,

Charles Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English language, English and French language, French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic, Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''*k ...

, was a founder of

St George's Church, Everton St George's Church is in Everton, Liverpool, Merseyside, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building, and is the earliest of three churches in Liverpool built by John Cragg, who ...

, and Charles' sons built Christ Church, Everton in his memory.Brown & de Figueiredo, Sarah & Peter (2008). Religion and Place: Liverpool's Historic Places of Worship. English Heritage. , p20 Douglas' father Robert had firm Anglo-Catholic convictions, and funded the building of the

Church of St Margaret of Antioch, Liverpool The Church of St. Margaret of Antioch is in Prince's Road, Toxteth, Liverpool, England. It is an active Anglican parish church in the diocese of Liverpool, the archdeaconry of Liverpool, and the deanery of Toxteth and Wavertree. The church is r ...

, in 1868.Brown & de Figueiredo (2008), p21 He studied at Eton College (with William Johnson Cory as his tutor) in 1870-71, before entering his father's stockbroking firm.

Benefactions

Churches

Like his father, Horsfall was a firm supporter of the Anglo-Catholic movement, and his benefactions reflected this aim. In 1883, Horsfall, with his mother, funded the building of the Church of St Agnes and St Pancras, Toxteth Park. It was designed by John Loughborough Pearson and described by Nikolaus Pevsner as "by far the most beautiful Victorian church of Liverpool...an epitome of Late Victorian nobility in church design". in 1975 it received the highest Grade I listing for historical significance. In 1900 he funded the building of St Faith's Church in Great Crosby. In 1913 he funded the building of the

Church of St Paul, Liverpool The Church of St Paul is in Derby Lane, Stoneycroft, Liverpool, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II* listed building. It was designed by Giles Gilbert Scott, who also designed the Angli ...

, designed by Giles Gilbert Scott.Brown & de Figueiredo (2008), p22 It is Europe's largest brick-built church, and was used by Scott as a test bed for many ideas later used in Liverpool Cathedral. Horsfall was also a member of the original committee for the building of Liverpool Cathedral; though he did not make any donation to its building.

St Chad's College

In 1904, he became the major benefactor involved in the founding of St Chad's Hall at

Durham University , mottoeng = Her foundations are upon the holy hills (Psalm 87:1) , established = (university status) , type = Public , academic_staff = 1,830 (2020) , administrative_staff = 2,640 (2018/19) , chancellor = Sir Thomas Allen , vice_chan ...

, to train Anglo-Catholic priests to serve in the Church of England. He retained this link and continued to give to the hall throughout his life, and was celebrated as "Fundator Noster" (our founder) in the college magazine (although in recent years the college has shared that title with Julia Warde-Aldam, benefactor of the predecessor institution St Chad's Hostel). In 1907, the University awarded Horsfall an honorary degree of Master of Arts in recognition of this support. The hall survives as St Chad's College, Durham, and Horsfall's portrait hangs over the high table in the dining hall.

Personal life

In 1887 he married Mabel, daughter of Egerton Parks Smith, and had two sons and two daughters, including Olympic and Oxford rower Major Ewart Horsfall M.C.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Horsfall, Douglas 1856 births 1936 deaths St Chad's College, Durham Businesspeople from Liverpool People educated at Eton College English Anglicans