William Martin (1829–1900) was a British architect who worked in

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1. ...

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 ...

, particularly in the practice

Martin & Chamberlain John Henry Chamberlain, William Martin, and Frederick Martin were architects in Victorian Birmingham, England. Their names are attributed singly or pairs to many red brick and terracotta buildings, particularly 41 of the forty-odd Birmingham ...

. Born in

Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lord_ ...

in 1829 he joined a Birmingham architect called Thomson Plevins, and then became a partner of D. R. Hill, public works architect of early 19th century Birmingham. In 1864 J. H. Chamberlain joined the practice, succeeding Hill. Martin & Chamberlain were architects to the Birmingham School Board and designed the majority of the new board schools created by the

Elementary Education Act 1870 The Elementary Education Act 1870, commonly known as Forster's Education Act, set the framework for schooling of all children between the ages of 5 and 12 in England and Wales. It established local education authorities with defined powers, autho ...

, with Chamberlain doing much of the actual design work, as well as many other public buildings such as police stations, baths, and libraries. They were surveyors to the new Corporation Street from 1878. The trading name of ''Martin & Chamberlain'' continued after Chamberlain's death in 1883, and many buildings attributed to the partnership were, in fact, Martin's. He later brought his sons,

Frederick Frederick may refer to: People * Frederick (given name), the name Nobility Anhalt-Harzgerode *Frederick, Prince of Anhalt-Harzgerode (1613–1670) Austria * Frederick I, Duke of Austria (Babenberg), Duke of Austria from 1195 to 1198 * Frederick ...

and Herbert Martin, into partnership, and traded under the name ''Martin & Martin''. Martin was followed as architect to the School Board by H. T. Buckland.

Works

*forty one board schools *extension to

Birmingham General Hospital Birmingham General Hospital was a teaching hospital in Birmingham, England, founded in 1779 and closed in the mid-1990s. History Summer Lane In 1765, a committee for a proposed hospital, formed by John Ash and supported by Sir Lister ...

, Summer Lane, 1857 * St David's Church, Bissel Street, Highgate, Birmingham 1860 * Northwood Street public baths, 1862 *Central Library, 1864 (destroyed by fire, 1879) *

Spring Hill Library Spring Hill Library () is a red brick and terracotta Victorian building in Ladywood, Birmingham, England. Designed in 1891 by Frederick Martin of Martin & Chamberlain with a clock tower on the corner of Icknield Street and Spring Hill and ope ...

*Completed Birmingham School of Art after the death of its designer, J. H. Chamberlain * St John's Church, Sparkhill, 1888, church with unusually large central space *''Harborne Tenants'' Moor Pool

garden suburb The garden city movement was a 20th century urban planning movement promoting satellite communities surrounding the central city and separated with greenbelts. These Garden Cities would contain proportionate areas of residences, industry, and ...

housing estate centred on ''The Circle'' in

Harborne Harborne is an area of south-west Birmingham, England. It is one of the most affluent areas of the Midlands, southwest from Birmingham city centre. It is a Birmingham City Council ward in the formal district and in the parliamentary constitu ...

, founded by John Sutton Nettlefold 1907, including, ''North gate, High Brow, Margaret Grove'' *

Grand Hotel A grand hotel is a large and luxurious hotel, especially one housed in a building with traditional architectural style. It began to flourish in the 1800s in Europe and North America. Grand Hotel may refer to: Hotels Africa * Grande Hotel Beir ...

, mainly interior works including the Grosvenor Suites, 1894–95

Sources

*''Birmingham Buildings, The Architectural Story of a Midland City'', Bryan Little, 1971, *''Pevsner Architectural Guides - Birmingham'', Andy Foster, 2005, {{DEFAULTSORT:Martin, William 19th-century English architects 1829 births 1900 deaths Architects from Birmingham, West Midlands

Works

See also

Sources