Joseph Aloysius Hansom (26 October 1803 – 29 June 1882) was a British architect working principally in the

Gothic Revival Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic or neo-Gothic) is an Architectural style, architectural movement that after a gradual build-up beginning in the second half of the 17th century became a widespread movement in the first half ...

style. He invented the

Hansom cab The hansom cab is a kind of horse-drawn carriage designed and patented in 1834 by Joseph Hansom, an architect from York. The vehicle was developed and tested by Hansom in Hinckley, Leicestershire, England. Originally called the Hansom safet ...

and founded the eminent architectural journal '' The Builder'' in 1843.

Career

Hansom was born in the parish of St Martin's (possibly on St Martin's Lane),

York York is a cathedral city in North Yorkshire, England, with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss. It has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a Yor ...

to a large Roman Catholic family and baptised as Josephus Aloysius Handsom(e). He was the brother of the architect Charles Francis Hansom and the uncle of Edward J. Hansom. He was apprenticed to his father, Henry, as a joiner, but showing an early aptitude for draughtsmanship and construction, he transferred his apprenticeship to a York architect named Matthew Philips, without informing the City of York. By around 1823 he had completed his apprenticeship and became a clerk in Philips' office. About 1825 he settled in Halifax, Yorkshire, and in the same year he married Hannah Glover, the elder sister of the architect George Glover (1812–1890), at St Michael le Belfrey in York. He took a post as assistant to John Oates and there befriended the brothers John and Edward Welch, with whom he formed his first architectural partnership (Handsom & Welch) in 1828. Together they designed several churches in Yorkshire and Liverpool, and also worked on the renovation of Bodelwyddan Castle in

Denbighshire Denbighshire ( ; ) is a county in the north-east of Wales. It borders the Irish Sea to the north, Flintshire to the east, Wrexham to the southeast, Powys to the south, and Gwynedd and Conwy to the west. Rhyl is the largest town, and Ruthi ...

and

King William's College King William's College () is a co-educational Private schools in the United Kingdom, private school for pupils aged 3 to 18 near Castletown, Isle of Man, Castletown on the Isle of Man. It is a member of the International Baccalaureate and Hea ...

in the Isle of Man. In 1831 their designs for

Birmingham Town Hall Birmingham Town Hall is a concert hall and venue for popular assemblies opened in 1834 and situated in Victoria Square, Birmingham, England. It is a Grade I listed building. The hall underwent a major renovation between 2002 and 2007. It no ...

were accepted; however, the contract led to their bankruptcy, as they had stood surety for the builders. The disaster led to the dissolution of the partnership."Joseph Aloysius Hansom (1803-1882)", York Civic Trust
/ref> Hansom supported the views of social reformers

Robert Owen Robert Owen (; 14 May 1771 – 17 November 1858) was a Welsh textile manufacturer, philanthropist, political philosopher and social reformer, and a founder of utopian socialism and the cooperative movement, co-operative movement. He strove to ...

and Thomas Attwood, and the Operative Builders Union, which was formed in 1831/3, which led to some viewing him as a socialist. On 23 December 1834 he registered the design of a 'Patent Safety Cab' on the suggestion of his employer. Distinctive safety features included a suspended axle, while the larger wheels and lower position of the cab led to less wear and tear and fewer accidents."Joseph Aloysius Hansom", History of York
/ref> He went on to sell the patent to a company for £10,000; however, as a result of the purchaser's financial difficulties, the sum was never paid. The first

Hansom Cab The hansom cab is a kind of horse-drawn carriage designed and patented in 1834 by Joseph Hansom, an architect from York. The vehicle was developed and tested by Hansom in Hinckley, Leicestershire, England. Originally called the Hansom safet ...

travelled down

Hinckley Hinckley is a market town in south-west Leicestershire, England, administered by Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council. Hinckley is the third largest settlement in Leicestershire, after Leicester and Loughborough, and is about halfway between L ...

's Coventry Road in 1835. The Hansom cab was improved by subsequent modifications and exported worldwide to become a ubiquitous feature of the 19th-century street scene. In 1843 Hansom founded a new architectural journal known as ''The Builder'', another venture which was to flourish through the century; renamed ''

Building A building or edifice is an enclosed Structure#Load-bearing, structure with a roof, walls and window, windows, usually standing permanently in one place, such as a house or factory. Buildings come in a variety of sizes, shapes, and functions, a ...

'' in 1966, it continues to this day. However, neither he nor his partner Alfred Bartholomew (1801–45) profited from the enterprise, because they were compelled to retire for lack of capital. Between 1854 and 1879 Hansom devoted himself to architecture, designing and erecting a great number of important buildings, private and public, including numerous churches, schools and convents for the Roman Catholic Church. Buildings from his designs are to be found all over the United Kingdom, as well as in Australia and South America. Hansom practised in a succession of architectural partnerships. From 1847 to 1852 he practised in

Preston, Lancashire Preston () is a city on the north bank of the River Ribble in Lancashire, England. The city is the administrative centre of the county of Lancashire and the wider City of Preston, Lancashire, City of Preston local government district. Preston ...

, working briefly in association with Augustus Welby Northmore Pugin towards the end of the latter's life. After the practice moved to London, he took his brother Charles Francis Hansom into partnership in 1854. But this partnership was dissolved in 1859 when Charles established an independent practice in Bath with his son Edward Joseph Hansom as clerk. In 1862 Joseph Hansom formed a partnership with

Edward Welby Pugin Edward Welby Pugin (11 March 1834 – 5 June 1875) was an English architect, the eldest son of architect Augustus Welby Northmore Pugin and Louisa Barton. His father was an architect in the Gothic Revival style, and after his early death in 1 ...

, which broke up acrimoniously in 1863. Finally, in 1869, he took his son

Joseph Stanislaus Hansom Joseph Stanislaus Hansom FRIBA (1845–1931) was a British architect. He was the son and partner of the better-known Joseph Aloysius Hansom, inventor of the Hansom cab. He trained with his father, becoming his partner in 1869, and taking over ...

into partnership. Hansom lived at 27 Sumner Place,

South Kensington South Kensington is a district at the West End of Central London in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Historically it settled on part of the scattered Middlesex village of Brompton. Its name was supplanted with the advent of the ra ...

, London, and there is a

blue plaque A blue plaque is a permanent sign installed in a public place in the United Kingdom, and certain other countries and territories, to commemorate a link between that location and a famous person, event, or former building on the site, serving a ...

there in his memory. Hansom moved to manage an estate at

Caldecote Hall Caldecote is a common place name and means "cold cottage". In the United Kingdom: * Caldecote, Buckinghamshire (City of Milton Keynes) * Caldecote, Huntingdonshire, Cambridgeshire * Caldecote, South Cambridgeshire, Cambridgeshire * Caldecote, H ...

. He retired on 31 December 1879 and died at 399

Fulham Road Fulham Road is a street in London, England, which comprises the A304 and part of the A308. Overview Fulham Road ( the A219) runs from Putney Bridge as "Fulham High Street" and then eastward to Fulham Broadway, in the London Borough of Hamm ...

, London, on 29 June 1882.

Surviving works

Hansom designed around 200 buildings, including

;

Arundel Cathedral The Cathedral Church of Our Lady and St Philip Howard is located in Arundel, West Sussex, England. Dedicated in 1873 as the Catholic parish church of Arundel, it became a cathedral at the foundation of the Diocese of Arundel and Brighton in 1965 ...

;

Oxford Oratory The Oxford Oratory Church of St Aloysius Gonzaga (or Oxford Oratory for short) is the Catholic Church, Catholic parish church for the centre of Oxford, England. It is located at 25 Woodstock Road (Oxford), Woodstock Road, next to Somerville Col ...

;

Cathedral of St John the Evangelist, Portsmouth The Cathedral Church of St John the Evangelist (also known as St John's Cathedral) is a Catholic Church, Roman Catholic cathedral in Portsmouth, England. It is the mother church of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portsmouth, Portsmouth diocese and ...

; St George's Catholic Church in York; Mount St Mary's Church, the 'Famine Church' in Leeds; St Walburge's Church in Preston (with the tallest church spire in England);

Church of the Immaculate Conception, Spinkhill Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a place/building for Christian religious activities and praying * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian comm ...

in 1846; St Beuno's Jesuit Theologate in North Wales (1848); St Mary's Church, Hartlepool in 1850; the

Church of the Assumption of Our Lady, Torquay The Church of the Assumption of Our Lady is a Roman Catholic parish church in Torquay, Devon, England. It was built from 1853 to 1854 and designed by Joseph Hansom in the Gothic revival style. It is located on the junction of Abbey Road and Warre ...

, St Mary's Church, Madeley, and St David's Church, Dalkeith, in 1853; Annunciation Church, Chesterfield and St Mary's Star of the Sea Church, Leith, Edinburgh in 1854; St Joseph's Roman Catholic Church, Leigh in 1855; St Duthac's, Dornie, Ross and Cromartie, 1860; St Wilfrid's Church, Ripon in 1862; Our Lady the Immaculate Conception Church in Devizes, Wiltshire (opened 1865); Our Lady Help of Christians and St Denis Church, Torquay, in 1869; St Edward King and Confessor Catholic Church, Clifford; the Church of the Holy Name of Jesus, Manchester (1871); The Roman Catholic

Plymouth Cathedral The Cathedral Church of Saint Mary and Saint Boniface in Plymouth, England, is the seat of the Bishop of Plymouth and mother church of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Plymouth, which covers the counties of Cornwall, Devon and Dorset. The Diocese ...

(built 1856 – 1858); and Our Lady of Dolours, Chelsea with St Mary's Priory,

(1876). The Exhibition Hall Theatre, Ushaw Historic House, County Durham (1849 – 1851) In

Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area, and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest city in the East Midlands with a popula ...

, the

Leicester Museum & Art Gallery The Leicester Museum & Art Gallery (until 2020, New Walk Museum and Art Gallery) is a museum on New Walk in Leicester, England, not far from the city centre. It opened in 1849 as one of the first public museums in the United Kingdom. Leicest ...

building, formerly New Walk Proprietary School (1836), and a Baptist chapel (1845), later used as the town's central library, are in Hansom's Classical style, and he also designed Lutterworth Town Hall (1836). In Cornwall he designed the Roman Catholic churches of Falmouth and Liskeard. St Clare's Abbey, Darlington (1856).

Gallery of architectural work

File:Arundel Cathedral -West Sussex, England-21Sept2012.jpg,

File:Arundel Cathedral Nave 2, West Sussex, UK - Diliff.jpg, Arundel Cathedral Nave File:Birmingham Town Hall from Chamberlain Square.jpg,

File:ExCathedra-BirminghamTownHall-byJamesAshby-20080301.jpg, Birmingham Town Hall, interior File:St Walburge's Church spire, Preston 231-10.jpg, St Walburge's Church, Preston File:Church of the Holy Name of Jesus, Manchester.JPG, Interior, Church of the Holy Name of Jesus, Manchester File:Image-The Holy Name of Jesus, Manchester-2.jpg, Exterior, Church of the Holy Name of Jesus, Manchester, tower added later File:Beaumaris Anglesey Wales.jpg, Victoria Terrace, Beaumaris, Anglesey, on right File:Cathedral Church of St Mary and St Boniface.jpg,

File:New Walk Museum 2008.jpg, Leicester

File:HansomHall BelvoirStChapel Leicester.jpg, Belvoir Street Chapel, renamed Hansom Hall File:JJC ExhibitionTheatre.jpg, Joliet Junior College Theatre

References

Sources

*Daffurn, John, 'Young and Hansom', ''The Victorian,'' No 71 November 2022, 11 ( The Victorian Society, ISSN 1467-7970) *Daffurn, John, ''George Glover (1812-1890): the unfulfilled potential of a Victorian architect'' (Stamford, UK: Eptex, 2022), pp. 4–8 *Harris, Penelope, ''The Architectural Achievement of Joseph Aloysius Hansom (1803–1882), Designer of the Hansom Cab, Birmingham Town Hall, and Churches of the Catholic Revival'' (The Edwin Mellen Press, 2010) *Harris, Penelope, 'A Nomadic Mission: The Northern Works of the Catholic Architect J.A. Hansom 1803–82', ''Northern Catholic History'' 50: 24–40. *Harris, Penelope, 'J.A. Hansom and E.W. Pugin at St Wilfrid, Ripon: a division of labour?' ''True Principles, the Journal of the Pugin Society'', vol iv no iii Spring 2012, 261–267. *Harris, Penelope, 'Joseph Aloysius Hansom (1803–82): His Yorkshire Works, Patronage and Contribution to the Catholic Revival', ''York Archaeological and Historical Journal'', Vol no. 85, Issue no. 1, (2013), pp. 175–193. *Johnson, Michael A., 'The architecture of Dunn & Hansom' (Newcastle upon Tyne: University of Northumbria, MA Dissertation, 2003) *

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hansom, Joseph 1803 births 1882 deaths Architects from York 19th-century English architects 19th-century English inventors Gothic Revival architects Architects of Roman Catholic churches Architects of cathedrals English Roman Catholics English ecclesiastical architects Buildings by Joseph Hansom Architects from Bristol