Arthur Hill Holme (1814–1857) was a Liverpool architect and brother of builder Samuel Holme, who served as

Mayor of Liverpool The mayor of Liverpool is the executive mayor of the city of Liverpool in England. The incumbent mayor is Joanne Anderson, who was elected in May 2021. The mayor of Liverpool was previously branded 'the most powerful politician in England outs ...

in 1852–1853.

Life and career

Holme trained with

Thomas Rickman Thomas Rickman (8 June 17764 January 1841) was an English architect and architectural antiquary who was a major figure in the Gothic Revival. He is particularly remembered for his ''Attempt to Discriminate the Styles of English Architecture'' ...

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...

and won the design competition for the Mechanics Institute in Mount Street (now

Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts The Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts (LIPA) is a performing arts higher education institution in Liverpool, founded by Paul McCartney and Mark Featherstone-Witty and opened in 1996. LIPA offers 11 full-time BA (Hons) degrees in a range ...

) but because of his junior status the work was carried out under the supervision of

James Picton Sir James Allanson Picton (2 December 1805 – 15 July 1889) was an English antiquary and architect who played a large part in the public life of Liverpool. He took a particular interest in the establishment of public libraries. James Picton wa ...

and the institute opened in 1837. Holme mostly designed in the neoclassical style typical of Liverpool at this time. Sometime after 1834 Holme formed a partnership with Scottish architect John Cunningham and collaborated on the design of the roof for the train shed at

Liverpool Lime Street station Liverpool Lime Street is a terminus railway station and the main station serving the city centre of Liverpool. Opened in August 1836, it is the oldest still-operating grand terminus mainline station in the world. A branch of the West Coast M ...

, his brother's firm being responsible for its construction. The station opened in 1836. In the same year a start was made on St Anne's Church at

Aigburth Aigburth () is a suburb of Liverpool, England. Located to the south of the city, it is bordered by Dingle, Garston, Mossley Hill, and Toxteth. Etymology The name Aigburth comes from Old Norse ''eik'' and ''berg'', meaning ''oak-tree hill''. T ...

, and the following year the partnership undertook the Apothecaries Hall in Colquitt Street, followed by the Union Bank in Brunswick Street and Holy Trinity church, Price Street,

Birkenhead Birkenhead (; cy, Penbedw) is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, Merseyside, England; historically, it was part of Cheshire until 1974. The town is on the Wirral Peninsula, along the south bank of the River Mersey, opposite Liver ...

(opened 1838, demolished 1970s). The partnership may not have thrived as it terminated in 1840 with Arthur joining his brother's firm as architect and draughtsman, living in accommodation over the yard offices. This is presumably 8–10 Benson Street which Sharples ascribes to Arthur Holme c. 1842. Arthur was not, however, taken on as a partner. In his biography Samuel Holme is critical of his brother's "extravagant" designs which frequently ate into the company's profits when building common structures with, in Samuel's estimation, unnecessary elaboration. Arthur Hill Holme was responsible for design of a replacement for St Matthias's church which was displaced during construction of Great Howard Street railway station. Sharples attributes no.27 Castle Street to Arthur Holme. Located in what was originally Liverpool's business quarter, the building has a pediment with Corinthian columns and was built in 1846 for lawyer and developer Ambrose Lace. The same year saw the start of St Paul's church in Prince's Park. Designed by Holme in the gothic revival style, it was opened two years later and demolished in 1974. Holme also designed the School for the Blind on Hardman Street which opened in 1851 having been displaced from London Road on extension of Lime Street station. Sharples comments on its "elegant classical front". It is currently used as a restaurant. When the Music Hall on Concert Square was destroyed by fire in 1852, Holme designed a replacement which opened the following year and remains in use as a bar. Arthur Hill Holme died in 1857.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Holme, Arthur Hill 1814 births 1857 deaths