Thomas Rowe (20 July 1829 – 14 January 1899) was a British-born architect, builder and goldminer who became one of Australia's leading architects of 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 ...

. He was also a politician, who was the first Mayor of Manly.

Early life

Thomas Rowe was born in

Penzance, Cornwall Penzance ( ; kw, Pennsans) is a town, civil parish and port in the Penwith district of Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is the most westerly major town in Cornwall and is about west-southwest of Plymouth and west-southwest of London. Situated ...

, United Kingdom, the eldest son of Richard Rowe and Ursula Mumford, and attended Barnes Academy. At 15 he became a draftsman in his father's building business before the family emigrated to Australia in 1848. From 1857 he practised as an architect in

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

, Bathurst,

Orange Orange most often refers to: *Orange (fruit), the fruit of the tree species '' Citrus'' × ''sinensis'' ** Orange blossom, its fragrant flower *Orange (colour), from the color of an orange, occurs between red and yellow in the visible spectrum * ...

Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to: *Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England *Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England *Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area in Australia, named after Newcastle ...

and

Goulburn Goulburn ( ) is a regional city in the Southern Tablelands of the Australian state of New South Wales, approximately south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Canberra. It was proclaimed as Australia's first inland city through letters pate ...

. As an architect he was often successful in competitions and his firms built commercial premises, large houses and many

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's b ...

churches.

Political career

In 1872 he was elected alderman for Bourke Ward of the

Sydney City Council The City of Sydney is the local government area covering the Sydney central business district and surrounding inner city suburbs of the greater metropolitan area of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Established by Act of Parliament in 1842, th ...

, which he held until 1876. During his time on the council he worked on sanitation efforts related to improving the Sydney water supply. Rowe Street, which runs from Pitt Street to Castlereagh Street, was at that time named after him by in a vote by the council. In February 1877 he was elected to the first Manly Municipal Council and was elected first Mayor of Manly, overseeing the first laying-out of the town of Manly, and serving as an alderman until 1880.

Military career

Rowe was also involved in the volunteer NSW Colonial Forces, receiving a commission as a lieutenant in the newly formed New South Wales Corps of Engineers in 1872, and was promoted to the rank of captain in 1874. When the Colonial Volunteer Force was disbanded and reorganised as the ''NSW Defence Force'' in 1878, Rowe was recommissioned a captain, and promoted to major in 1880. Raised to rank of

brevet Brevet may refer to: Military * Brevet (military), higher rank that rewards merit or gallantry, but without higher pay * Brevet d'état-major, a military distinction in France and Belgium awarded to officers passing military staff college * Aircre ...

Lieutenant Colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

in 1886, Rowe undertook a European tour the following year, visiting

Aldershot Aldershot () is a town in Hampshire, England. It lies on heathland in the extreme northeast corner of the county, southwest of London. The area is administered by Rushmoor Borough Council. The town has a population of 37,131, while the Alders ...

Chatham Chatham may refer to: Places and jurisdictions Canada * Chatham Islands (British Columbia) * Chatham Sound, British Columbia * Chatham, New Brunswick, a former town, now a neighbourhood of Miramichi * Chatham (electoral district), New Brunswic ...

Enfield Enfield may refer to: Places Australia * Enfield, New South Wales * Enfield, South Australia ** Electoral district of Enfield, a state electoral district in South Australia, corresponding to the suburb ** Enfield High School (South Australia) ...

, and

Woolwich Woolwich () is a district in southeast London, England, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich. The district's location on the River Thames led to its status as an important naval, military and industrial area; a role that was maintained throu ...

, in search of information relating to defence matters. Rowe later designed several entrenching tools for the use of the engineers corps, including a bullet-proof shovel. Following the return to England of Colonel

Henry Renny-Tailyour Henry Waugh Renny-Tailyour (9 October 1849 – 15 June 1920) was a British amateur all-round sportsman who appeared for Scotland in some of the earliest international football and rugby union matches, remaining to this day the only player to have ...

in 1894, Rowe took up the position of Commander of the New South Wales Corps of Engineers, was promoted to the rank of Colonel in 1895, and served until his retirement on 30 June 1898.

Later life and career

Rowe was also the founder, and for many years president, of the New South Wales Institute of Architects, and was elected 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 ...

in 1884. In 1888 the Premier

Sir Henry Parkes Sir Henry Parkes, (27 May 1815 – 27 April 1896) was a colonial Australian politician and longest non-consecutive Premier of the Colony of New South Wales, the present-day state of New South Wales in the Commonwealth of Australia. He has be ...

appointed Rowe as the first President of the Board of Water Supply and Sewerage, and served in that office until his death, with the exception of the period 1892 to 1896 when Cecil West Darley presided. His presidency was well-received, with an account after his death noting: "The great leaps and bounds by which the department has progressed, and its present state of efficiency, bear ample testimony to the capability of his administration." He died age 69 in January 1899 at ''Mona'', his leased residence since 1881 in

Darling Point Darling Point is a harbourside eastern suburb of Sydney, Australia. It is 4 kilometres east of the Sydney central business district and is part of the local government area of Woollahra Council. Darling Point is bounded by Sydney Harbour to t ...

. In accordance with his wishes "to be laid to rest near the sea", he was buried in his military uniform at

Waverley Cemetery The Waverley Cemetery is a heritage-listed cemetery on top of the cliffs at Bronte in the eastern suburbs of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Opened in 1877 and built by R. Watkins (cemetery lodge, 1878) and P. Beddie (cemetery office, 1915 ...

following a service at

St Mark's Church, Darling Point St Mark's Church is an active Anglican church in Darling Point, a suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is part of a significant local heritage group that includes the church, rectory, and adjacent cottage. The group forms part of a la ...

Key works

(Many of the following buildings are heritage-listed): *

Chatswood South Uniting Church The Chatswood South Uniting Church is a Heritage register, heritage-listed Uniting Church in Australia, Uniting church (building), church at 518 Pacific Highway (Australia), Pacific Highway, Lane Cove North, New South Wales, Lane Cove North in ...

Artarmon, New South Wales Artarmon is a suburb on the lower North Shore of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia, 9 kilometres north-west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of the City of Willoughby. History ...

(1871) * Presbyterian Church, Bridge Road,

Glebe, New South Wales Glebe is an inner-western suburb of Sydney. Glebe is located southwest of the Sydney central business district and is part of the local government area of the City of Sydney, in the Inner West region. Glebe is surrounded by Blackwattle Bay ...

(1881) * Original Randwick Borough Chambers (later Parish Centre of

St Jude's Church, Randwick The St Jude's Church is an active Anglican church in Randwick, a suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is part of a significant heritage group that includes the church, cemetery, rectory and original Randwick Borough Chambers, later c ...

) (1862) * Catherine Hayes Building (based on design by

John Horbury Hunt John Horbury Hunt (1838 – December 30, 1904) was a Canadian-born Australian architect who worked in Sydney and rural New South Wales from 1863. Life and career Born in Saint John, New Brunswick, the son of a builder, Hunt was trained in B ...

), Prince of Wales Hospital,

Randwick, New South Wales Randwick is a suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Randwick is located 6 kilometres south-east of the Sydney central business district and is the administrative centre for the local government area of the City of Randwi ...

(1870) *

Tresco, Elizabeth Bay ''Tresco'' is a heritage-listed residence located at 97 Elizabeth Bay Road, Elizabeth Bay, City of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It was designed by Thomas Rowe and built by Rowe from 1867 to 1883. The property is privately owned. It was a ...

, New South Wales (1868) * F.L. Kelly and Company Building,

Yass, New South Wales Yass () is a town in the Southern Tablelands of New South Wales, Australia in Yass Valley Council. The name appears to have been derived from an Aboriginal word, "Yarrh" (or "Yharr"), said to mean 'running water'. Yass is located 280 km s ...

(1869) * St Paul's Presbyterian Church,

Hill End, New South Wales Hill End is a former gold mining town in New South Wales, Australia. The town is located in the Bathurst Regional Council local Government area. History What is now Hill End was originally a part of the Tambaroora area: Tambaroora town was a f ...

(1872) *

Presbyterian Church Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...

, Bathurst (1871) * Holy Trinity Anglican Church,

(1879) * Aliiolani Hale,

Honolulu, Hawaii Honolulu (; ) is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, which is in the Pacific Ocean. It is an unincorporated county seat of the consolidated City and County of Honolulu, situated along the southeast coast of the island o ...

(1872) * Great Synagogue,

Elizabeth Street, Sydney Elizabeth Street is a major street in the central business district of Sydney in New South Wales, Australia. The street continues south of the central business district (CBD), through the inner city suburbs of Surry Hills, Redfern and Waterloo ...

(1874) * Former

Stanmore Stanmore is part of the London Borough of Harrow in London. It is centred northwest of Charing Cross, lies on the outskirts of the London urban area and includes Stanmore Hill, one of the highest points of London, at high. The district, which ...

Methodist Church Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related Christian denomination, denominations of Protestantism, Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John W ...

(1874), now part of the Newington College drama centre *

Sydney Hospital Sydney Hospital is a major hospital in Australia, located on Macquarie Street in the Sydney central business district. It is the oldest hospital in Australia, dating back to 1788, and has been at its current location since 1811. It first rece ...

, including Nightingale Wing,

Macquarie Street, Sydney Macquarie Street is a street in the central business district of Sydney in New South Wales, Australia. Macquarie Street extends from Hyde Park at its southern end to the Sydney Opera House at its northern end. Apart from connecting these two m ...

(1879) *

Newington College , motto_translation = To Faith Add Knowledge , location = Inner West and Lower North Shore of Sydney, New South Wales , country = Australia , coordinates = , pushpin_map = A ...

, Founders Wing including Prescott Hall,

(1878) * Sydney Arcade,

Pitt Street Pitt Street is a major street in the Sydney central business district in New South Wales, Australia. The street runs through the entire city centre from Circular Quay in the north to Waterloo, although today's street is in two disjointed sec ...

(1874) * Vickery's Building, Pitt Street, Sydney (1874) * Vickery houses, Banksia, Wych Hazel, Ellerslie and Edina, now part of the War Memorial Hospital

Waverley, New South Wales Waverley is a suburb in the Eastern suburbs of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Waverley is located 7 kilometres east of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of Waverley Council. Waverley Counci ...

. * Former

Petersham Town Hall The Petersham Town Hall is a heritage-listed town hall located at 107 Crystal Street in Petersham, a suburb in the Inner West of Sydney, Australia. It was built in 1937–38 in the Inter-War Stripped Classical architectural style by architects ...

, Petersham (1882; extended 1892, demolished 1937) * Former Stanmore Methodist

Parsonage A clergy house is the residence, or former residence, of one or more priests or ministers of religion. Residences of this type can have a variety of names, such as manse, parsonage, rectory or vicarage. Function A clergy house is typically own ...

(1886), now Headmaster's residence, Newington College * Ashton, Elizabeth Bay Road, Elizabeth Bay * Imperial Arcade, Sydney (1891) File:Hill End Presbyterian Church.JPG, St Paul's Presbyterian Church, Hill End Image:Stanmore Newington College 1.JPG, Founders Wing, Newington College File:Prescotthall.png, Prescott Hall, Newington College File:Dramacentre.png, Stanmore Methodist Church, now part of the drama centre, Newington College File:Parsonagenewington.jpeg, Stanmore Methodist

, now Headmaster's residence, Newington College Image:SydneyHospital.JPG, Sydney Hospital, Macquarie Street File:Great Synagogue, Sydney Window.jpg, Great Synagogue, Elizabeth Street Image:(1)Edina War Memorial Hospital-1.jpg, Edina, Waverley File:Ashton1111.JPG, Ashton, Elizabeth Bay File:Town Hall, Petersham c. 1890.jpg, Petersham Town Hall c. 1890 File:(1)_Mona1.jpg, Mona, where Rowe died

Architectural partners

* W. B. Field * Sydney Green * Alfred Spain

Harry Ruskin Rowe

Rowe's son Harry Ruskin Rowe was also successful as an architect. One of his most significant achievements was the creation in 1950 of Ruskin Rowe, an estate in the Sydney suburb of

Avalon Avalon (; la, Insula Avallonis; cy, Ynys Afallon, Ynys Afallach; kw, Enys Avalow; literally meaning "the isle of fruit r appletrees"; also written ''Avallon'' or ''Avilion'' among various other spellings) is a mythical island featured in the ...

. Rowe acquired a house, The Cabbage Trees, in the estate and used it as a weekender. The estate still exists and is heritage-listed.State Heritage Register
/ref>

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rowe, Thomas 1829 births 1899 deaths Military personnel from Cornwall People from Penzance Australian people of Cornish descent British emigrants to Australia Australian ecclesiastical architects Gothic Revival architects New South Wales architects 19th-century Australian architects 19th-century Australian politicians 19th-century Australian military personnel Mayors of Manly, New South Wales Australian Army officers Australian military engineers Public servants of New South Wales Burials at Waverley Cemetery