Edward Milner (20 January 1819 – 26 March 1884) was an English
landscape architect
A landscape architect is a person who is educated in the field of landscape architecture. The practice of landscape architecture includes: site analysis, site inventory, site planning, land planning, planting design, grading, storm water manageme ...
.
Early life and career
Edward Milner was born in
Darley, Derbyshire, the eldest child of Henry Milner and Mary née Scales. Henry Milner was employed at
Chatsworth by
William Cavendish, 6th Duke of Devonshire
William George Spencer Cavendish, 6th Duke of Devonshire, (21 May 1790 K. D. Reynolds, ‘Cavendish, William George Spencer, sixth duke of Devonshire (1790–1858)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, Sept 2004; ...
, as a gardener and porter. Edward was educated at
Bakewell Grammar School and was then apprenticed to Chatsworth's head gardener,
Joseph Paxton
Joseph is a common male given name, derived from the Hebrew Yosef (יוֹסֵף). "Joseph" is used, along with "Josef", mostly in English, French and partially German languages. This spelling is also found as a variant in the languages of the mo ...
. In 1841 he continued his studies in Paris at the
Jardin des Plantes and returned home to become Paxton's assistant. He worked with Paxton in developing and managing
Princes Park, Liverpool
Prince's Park in Toxteth, Liverpool, England, is a municipal park, south east of Liverpool city centre. In 2009, its status was upgraded to a Grade II* Historic Park by English Heritage.
History
The park was originally a private development ...
and assisted him at
Osmaston Manor in Derbyshire.
[ In 1847 he laid out the Italian Garden at ]Tatton Park
Tatton Park is an historic estate in Cheshire, England, north of the town of Knutsford. It contains a mansion, Tatton Hall, a medieval manor house, Tatton Old Hall, Tatton Park Gardens, a farm and a deer park of . It is a popular visitor attr ...
, Cheshire, which had been designed by Paxton. When Paxton re-erected The Crystal Palace
The Crystal Palace was a cast iron and plate glass structure, originally built in Hyde Park, London, Hyde Park, London, to house the Great Exhibition of 1851. The exhibition took place from 1 May to 15 October 1851, and more than 14,000 exhibit ...
in Penge Park, Sydenham Sydenham may refer to:
Places Australia
* Sydenham, New South Wales, a suburb of Sydney
** Sydenham railway station, Sydney
* Sydenham, Victoria, a suburb of Melbourne
** Sydenham railway line, the name of the Sunbury railway line, Melbourne ...
in 1852, Milner was appointed as the superintendent of works. He also worked for Paxton in creating the People's Park, Halifax
The People's Park is a park in Halifax, West Yorkshire, Halifax, West Yorkshire, England. It was given to the people of Halifax in 1857 by local carpet manufacturer Sir Francis Crossley.
The park was originally designed by Joseph Paxton, but suff ...
for Francis Crossley.[ ()]
Independent career
From the mid-1850s, Milner worked as an independent landscape gardener. He received commissions for work in England and Wales, including designing three public parks in Preston, Lancashire.[ These parks were constructed as part of a scheme for relieving unemployment caused by the ]cotton famine
The Lancashire Cotton Famine, also known as the Cotton Famine or the Cotton Panic (1861–65), was a depression in the textile industry of North West England, brought about by overproduction in a time of contracting world markets. It coincided w ...
in the 1860s. He also designed gardens in Germany and Denmark. In 1881 he became principal of the Crystal Palace School
Crystal Palace School of Art, Science, and Literature, also known as Crystal Palace Company's School of Art, (1854–1936) was opened in 1854 by the Crystal Palace Company as a new enterprise, to occupy part of its buildings when it re-erected t ...
of Gardening, established by the Crystal Palace Company.[
]
Works as an independent designer
This is an incomplete list.
Personal life
In 1844 he married Elizabeth Mary Kelly of Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...
with whom he had 11 children. The family moved to Norwood, London, and later to Dulwich Wood Park. Milner appointed his son Henry Ernest as his principal assistant.[ Edward Milner founded the garden design and landscape architecture firm of Milner-White.][
]
References
Further reading
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Milner, Edward
1819 births
1884 deaths
People from Darley Dale
English gardeners
English landscape architects