John Lee Archer (26 April 1791 near
Chatham, Kent
Chatham ( ) is a town located within the Medway unitary authority in the ceremonial county of Kent, England. The town forms a conurbation with neighbouring towns Gillingham, Rochester, Strood and Rainham.
The town developed around Chatham ...
,
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
– 4 December 1852 in
Stanley, Tasmania
Stanley is a town on the north-west coast of Tasmania, Australia. It is the second-last major township on the north-west coast when travelling west, Smithton being the larger township in the Circular Head municipality. According to the , Stanley ...
,
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
) was the Civil Engineer and Colonial Architect in
Van Diemen's Land
Van Diemen's Land was the colonial name of the island of Tasmania used by the British during the European exploration of Australia in the 19th century. A British settlement was established in Van Diemen's Land in 1803 before it became a sepa ...
, serving from 1827 to 1838.
During his tenure, Archer was responsible for all
Tasmanian government
The Tasmanian Government is the democratic administrative authority of the state of Tasmania, Australia. The leader of the party or coalition with the confidence of the House of Assembly, the lower house of the Parliament of Tasmania, is invite ...
buildings including those for penal and military purposes.
His major architectural works include
Parliament House, Hobart
Parliament House, Hobart, located on Salamanca Place in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia, is the meeting place of the Parliament of Tasmania. The building was originally designed as a customs house but changed use in 1841 when Tasmania achieved self-go ...
, the Treasury and the Audit Department buildings in Hobart, the Ordnance Stores in
Salamanca Place
Salamanca Place is a precinct of Hobart, the capital city of the Australian state of Tasmania.
Salamanca Place itself consists of rows of sandstone buildings, formerly warehouses for the port of Hobart Town that have since been converted into ...
, several buildings at Anglesea Barracks; St John's Church, New Town; the nave of
St. George's Church at
Battery Point
Battery Point is a suburb of the city of Hobart, Tasmania, Australia. It is immediately south of the central business district. It is in the local government area of City of Hobart.
Battery Point is named after the battery of guns which were est ...
; Old Trinity (the Penitentiary Chapel) in Hobart; St Luke's Presbyterian Church at Bothwell, St Luke's Church of England at Richmond; and parts of the
Campbell Street Gaol
H.M. Gaol Hobart or Campbell Street Gaol, a former Australian maximum security prison for males and females, was located in Hobart, Tasmania. Built by convict labour, the gaol operated between 1821 until the early 1960s. In 1961, male inmates w ...
, Hobart. His major engineering work was the stone bridge which still carries the Midland Highway over the Macquarie River at Ross.
Personal life
John Lee Archer, born 26 April 1791, was a notable architect whose work helped shape the development of the townships of Tasmania during early settlement. He was the only son of John Archer, an Irish engineer from County Tipperary, and his wife Charlotte Lee, formerly of Kent, England.
The first records show that Archer, at the age of 18, was taught under the guidance of Charles Beazley, an architect based in London. Commencing in April 1809, Archer remained under Beazley's instruction for the duration of his three-year term of articles before moving on to the office of
John Rennie the Elder
John Rennie FRSE FRS (7 June 1761 – 4 October 1821) was a Scottish civil engineer who designed many bridges, canals, docks and warehouses, and a pioneer in the use of structural cast-iron.
Early years
He was born the younger son of James ...
in April 1813 in the position of drawing clerk. Archer's employment with Rennie was terminated in 1818, he returned to Ireland and worked as an engineer for over 8 years, building his reputation. Following his father's death in 1822 and the ongoing strain of the economic depression of the time, Archer sought to find employment elsewhere. His opportunity came in December 1826 when John Rennie's son recommended Archer for the position of Colonial Architect in Van Diemen's Land (now Tasmania) as the need arose for the development of public buildings and offices to accommodate the growing convict and free-settler population of Van Diemen's Land.
Upon arrival in Hobart Town on 2 August 1827, Archer immediately commenced work in the role of Civil Engineer and Architect for the colony. Alongside the high demand for prisons and other buildings of a convict nature, the rise in free settlers due to the ongoing depression called for the development of other public works to accommodate the needs of colonial life, such as police offices, public offices, military barracks and churches. For the majority of the 11 years that John Lee Archer served as Civil Engineer and Colonial Architect, he was responsible for all government commissioned buildings, many still notable today.
Archer married Sophia Mattinson of Hobart on 3 September 1833 and the pair established a home in New Town with their many children. Due to a temporary decline in colonial revenue Archer was retrenched in 1838 and was never reinstated in his role. As others moved in to take over his responsibilities in his absence, Archer became isolated from his profession at the age of 47 with little hope of local employment opportunities.
In October of the same year Archer moved to north-west Tasmania and took the position of police magistrate for the district of Horton. He stayed with this role for the remainder of his life. In 1843 he produced a map of Stanley, reproduced by Betty Jones in ''Along the terrace: the owners and occupiers of Stanley 1843 -1922''.
[Jones, E 2015, ''Along the terrace: the owners and occupiers of Stanley 1843–1922'', Stanley Discovery Museum, Stanley, Tasmania, p. x.]
John Lee Archer died at the age of 61 on 4 December 1852, and is buried at Circular Head.
Notable works
Parliament House, Hobart
![Tasmanian Parliament House 1869](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f9/Tasmanian_Parliament_House_1869.jpg)
Tasmanian Parliament House is one of John Lee Archer's most notable projects.
Its location on the waterfront of Sullivans Cove was seen as ideal for Hobart's new Customs House (which is what it was known as up until 1904). Designed in 1835, construction was completed in 1838 with the majority of labor being carried out by convicts. The Customs Department opened in September 1840 while the first session of Parliament occurred on 19 June 1841. Honey colored sandstone quarried from Salamanca place was used to construct the distinctly 'Colonial Georgian' style building. Parliament House is one of the clearest examples of how Archer designed his work to have a sense of strength and permanence. The entrance hall is fitted with large Doric columns aimed at creating a significant threshold whilst the rusticated masonry and deeply shadowed arches accentuate the boldness of the building and its clean, clear lines. The Old Market Building once screened off the façade, but over its 120 years of existence and further land reclamation, flanking trees, flowerbeds and sweeping lawns, now surround it. Whilst significant renovations to the interior have taken place, and the slate roof was removed and replaced with tiles, the façade still remains today almost exactly how it was first constructed. Unlike a lot of Archer's penal projects, which have since been demolished, Parliament House is still occupied today by the Parliament of Tasmania. For this reason alone it is one of, if not the most significant project of Archer's entire career.
Penitentiary Chapel
![Chapel Pen](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/68/Chapel_Pen.jpg)
In the 1830s,
Van Diemen's Land
Van Diemen's Land was the colonial name of the island of Tasmania used by the British during the European exploration of Australia in the 19th century. A British settlement was established in Van Diemen's Land in 1803 before it became a sepa ...
(now Tasmania) experienced an influx of close to 2000 new convicts, making the total over 10,000. Hobart Town, originally established as a gaol town, was most affected by this population growth. To cope with the increase, penitentiaries were constructed all over the state. In 1829 John Lee Archer was commissioned to design a chapel for the existing Prisoner's Barracks Penitentiary.
The chapel was designed to also act as an extension to the already overflowing Barracks. Cruciform in shape, the chapel arms enclosed exercise yards that could hold 500 prisoners on bench seats. Archer was also instructed to construct a cell block beneath the chapel floor to house prisoners in solitary confinement. To support the inclined floors of the chapel above, the cells have varying ceiling heights. Other features of the cells include no ventilation and no sunlight.
Part of the design for the chapel layout included opening up the northern wing to cope with the overflow of people from the nearby St. David's Church. As a result of this Archer was free to design the tower for the Brisbane Street entrance to the chapel. The tower has trappings of Renaissance Greek Temples and derived inspiration from the English architect Christopher Wren.
The tower of the chapel has a floor level that is 5 meters above street level to make room for the solitary confinement cells. This allowed an inclusion of a spiralling staircase that ran within the tower. The chapel suffered from time and budget delays and was not in full use until 1833. It was used by the public until 1845 when it was decommissioned and used by police offices, convicts, and their families.
List of works
Military
*
Anglesea Barracks
Anglesea Barracks is an Australian Defence Force barracks in central Hobart, Tasmania.
The site was chosen in December 1811 by Lachlan Macquarie and construction began on the first buildings to occupy the site in 1814. It is the oldest Austral ...
,
[ including the Canteen Building, completed between 1831 and 1834, the Drill Hall, completed in 1828, and the Subalterns' Quarters, completed in 1828
* Ordnance Stores, ]Salamanca Place
Salamanca Place is a precinct of Hobart, the capital city of the Australian state of Tasmania.
Salamanca Place itself consists of rows of sandstone buildings, formerly warehouses for the port of Hobart Town that have since been converted into ...
, Hobart, completed 1829[
* Powder Magazine, completed 1828
* Richmond Barracks, completed between 1833 and 1834
]
Bridges and harbour work
* Argyle Street Bridge 1836
* Bridgewater Causeway 1835
* Harrington Street Bridge 1831
* Hobart Rivulet realigned 1828
* Jordan River Bridge, repaired 1835
* Richmond Bridge, repaired 1826–35
* Ross Bridge Ross or ROSS may refer to:
People
* Clan Ross, a Highland Scottish clan
* Ross (name), including a list of people with the surname or given name Ross, as well as the meaning
* Earl of Ross, a peerage of Scotland
Places
* RoSS, the Republic of Sout ...
over the Macquarie River
The Macquarie River - Wambuul is part of the Macquarie– Barwon catchment within the Murray–Darling basin, is one of the main inland rivers in New South Wales, Australia.
The river rises in the central highlands of New South Wales near the ...
, completed between 1831 and 1836[
* Entally Chapel, Hadspen 1835
* Sullivan's Cove improvements, completed in 1830][
]
Religious
* Jericho Church 1834
* Norfolk Plains Chapel 1829–32
* St David's Church, Hobart (new tower) 1828
* St George's Church, Battery Point, completed between 1836 and 1838[
* St John's Anglican Church, New Town, completed between 1834 and 1835][
* St John's Church, Ross 1838
* St Luke's Presbyterian Church, ]Bothwell
Bothwell is a conservation village in the South Lanarkshire council area of Scotland. It lies on the north bank of the River Clyde, adjacent to Uddingston and Hamilton, east-south-east of Glasgow city centre.
Description and history
An ancie ...
, completed between 1828 and 1829[
* St Luke's Church, Campbell Town 1836
* St Luke's Church of England, Richmond, completed between 1834 and 1836][
* St Paul's Church, Stanley 1843–44
* St Peter's Church, Hamilton 1834
* Trinity or Penitentiary Chapel, Hobart 1831–34
* Westbury Church 1836
]
Civil
* Court House Hobart, extended 1835
* Court House, Launceston 1837
* Court House & Police Offices, New Norfolk 1831
* Custom House, Hobart 1835–41
* Custom House, Launceston 1836
* Government House, Hobart alterations and repairs
* Offices & Treasures Room, Hobart 1829
* Police Offices, Murray Street, Hobart 1833–35
* Public Offices, Murray Street, Hobart 1837–40
Dwellings
* Chaplain's Cottage, Maria Island 1827
* Commandant's House, Maria Island 1829
* Gaoler's House, Richmond, completed in 1832[
* 'Highfield', Stanley 1843
* 'Jutland', New Town, (Archer's own house) 1831
* Parsonage, Hobart, 1837
* Parsonage, St John's Parish, New Town, completed in 1835][
* Store Keeper's Residence, Circular Head 1851
]
Gaols
* Factory, Maria Island 1829
* Female Factory, Cascades 1827
* Female House of Correction, Launceston, 1832
* Hobart Gaol, 1829
* Lock-up Houses, New Norfolk 1830
* Oatlands Gaol, 1834
* Richmond Gaol, 1832–35
Hospitals
* Hamilton 1836
* Norfolk Plains 1836
* Oatlands 1836
* Willow Court, New Norfolk 1827–1830
Lighthouses
* Cape Bruny Lighthouse
The Cape Bruny Lighthouse is an inactive lighthouse located at the southern tip of Bruny Island, Tasmania, Australia.
Features and location
It is the List of lighthouses in Australia, second oldest extant lighthouse tower in Australia, as well ...
1835–38
* Low Head Lighthouse
Low Head Lighthouse is in Low Head, Tasmania, about north of George Town on the east side of the mouth of the Tamar River. It was the third lighthouse to be constructed in Australia, and it is also Australia's oldest continuously used pilot s ...
1833–38
Others
* Theatre Royal, Hobart
Theatre Royal is an historic performing arts venue in central Hobart, Tasmania. It is the oldest continually operating theatre in Australia; Noël Coward once called it "a dream of a theatre" and Laurence Olivier launched a national appeal for ...
, 1834
* Dairy 'Highfield' for the Van Diemen's Land Company 1842
* Hot House, Domain Garden, Hobart 1829
* Store House, for the Van Diemen's Land Company 1843
Schools
* Infant School, Hobart 1833
* National Day School, Hobart 1835
* Orphan Schools, Hobart 1830
* Parsonage House, Hobart converted to school 1837
* Public School, New Norfolk 1828
* Richmond School House, 1834–35
Gallery
File:HobartGaol.jpg, Campbell Street Gaol
H.M. Gaol Hobart or Campbell Street Gaol, a former Australian maximum security prison for males and females, was located in Hobart, Tasmania. Built by convict labour, the gaol operated between 1821 until the early 1960s. In 1961, male inmates w ...
, completed in 1829.
File:Ross Bridge.jpg, Ross Bridge Ross or ROSS may refer to:
People
* Clan Ross, a Highland Scottish clan
* Ross (name), including a list of people with the surname or given name Ross, as well as the meaning
* Earl of Ross, a peerage of Scotland
Places
* RoSS, the Republic of Sout ...
over the Macquarie River
The Macquarie River - Wambuul is part of the Macquarie– Barwon catchment within the Murray–Darling basin, is one of the main inland rivers in New South Wales, Australia.
The river rises in the central highlands of New South Wales near the ...
, completed between 1831 and 1836.
File:St Georges, Battery Point.jpg, St George's Anglican Church, Battery Point
Battery Point is a suburb of the city of Hobart, Tasmania, Australia. It is immediately south of the central business district. It is in the local government area of City of Hobart.
Battery Point is named after the battery of guns which were est ...
, completed between 1836 and 1838.
File:St_Johns_Anglican_New_Town.jpg, St. John's Anglican Church, New Town, Tasmania, completed between 1830 and 1835.
See also
* Circular Head, Tasmania
Bibliography
*
*
*
*
References
External links
Penitentiary Chapel Hobart, Tasmania
{{DEFAULTSORT:Archer, John Lee
1791 births
1852 deaths
Irish emigrants to colonial Australia
Tasmanian architects
Tasmania
)
, nickname =
, image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates:
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdi ...
Van Diemen's Land people
19th century in Tasmania
History of Hobart