WOOD GREEN ALMSHOUSES
ARCHITECT
FOR THE CHARITIES
ALFRED WILLIAM STEPHENS
CROSS
1858-1932
A.W.S. Cross was to
become Vice President of the RIBA, Vice President of The Incorporated Association
of Architects and Surveyors; and his son, K.M.B. Cross, was President of The
RIBA.
According to a Report
in the Builder of 6th January 1933,
"The late A.W.S.
Cross : It is with much regret we have to report the death of Mr. A.W.S. Cross,
details of whose long and honourable career follow. By his death the architectural profession has lost one of its
ablest members, whose scholarly municipal, educational and other works gave him
a prominent position in the ranks of the profession. He came into prominence many years ago by his fine Technical
College in Manchester. Apart from his
architectural work, he was a prolific and able writer on architectural
subjects, and his judgement, technical knowledge and good taste contributed to
the making of an architect in the best sense of the word. Mr. Cross made many friends, who found much
in his character to admire, and by whom his loss is deeply regretted."
Compiling from Grey
and The Builder, A.W.S. Cross was articled to his father's firm of Cross &
Wells of Hastings and London. In 1882
he moved to Weston-Super-are and opened his practice. Alfred William Stephens
Cross moved to Hastings in 1885, and moved to London in 1889. An Associate 1883-86 and a Fellow in
1892. From 1889 he was associated with
Henry Spalding as Spalding and Cross, taking part in many competitions, and
also acted as competition assessor, later to become Chairman of The Competition
Reform Society. Spalding and Cross
dissolved their partnership in 1899. Alfred Cross and his son ( Kenneth Mervyn
Baskerville Cross, 1890-1968 ) became almost entirely specialised in public
bath designs.
Besides the Almshouses
at Wood Green, Alfred Cross’ work also includes …
Remodelling of Stanton
Drew Church 1881 and other churches
Restoration of Market
Cross Cheddar
The Vicarage
Easton-in-Gordano 1885
Glendale Clevedon 1887
Two hospitals in the
West of England
Finalist in the London
County Hall Competition 1908
Headquarters 17th
Rifle Volunteers Camden Town 1890
Camberwell Baths
Dulwich Baths 1890
Mission Premises
Kentish Town 1891
Congregational Church and
School Hall Finchley Road 1891
Hoxton Baths
Walthamstow Baths
Wandsworth Baths
Coventry Baths
Church West Hampstead
Church Harlesden
Artisans’ Dwellings
Manchester
Schools at Cricklewood, Hendon, New Barnet and West
Hampstead
Hampstead Baths 1891
Manchester School of
Technology
Haggerston Baths 1904
Marshall Street Swimming
Baths St James Westminster
Westminster Baths 1931
Technical College
Manchester 1890s
Gosport Free Library
1900
Portsmouth Technical
Institute 1900
Municipal Dye House
Manchester 1903 ( part of the Municipal Technical School )
Merchant Venturers’
Technical College Bristol
Davis Memorial Laboratories,
University College, Aberystwyth 1905
Restoration of
Shoreditch Town Hall 1906
Schools at Finchley,
Poplar, Gospel Oak and Kentish Town
Additions to St John’s
College Cambridge
Public Baths Clyde
Street Deptford
Public Library
Deptford
Public Baths Finsbury
Seymour Place Baths
Marylebone 1933 ( after his death )
His writing produced
"Public Baths and Washhouses", "A History of Architecture",
"Practical Notes for Architectural Draughtsmen", "Rome in the
Augustan Age", and many contributions to the press, especially "The
Builder" With his son he reproduced
James Gibbs' "Book of Architecture", ensuring the correct application
of design orders to buildings.
"In 1903, he
found his happiest expression in the best work of the 18th century in this
country. The faculty for producing a
good workable plan for buildings of various types which had proved successful
had developed into a artist's enjoyment of the formalities of axial and
symmetrical planning."
Kenneth M.B. Cross (
son ) writes, "He possessed boundless courage and incurable optimism and
spoke of the wonder of work. He was
entirely devoted to architecture. He
amazed others with his energy and almost boyish enthusiasm. He had a gift of
being able to infect us all with his keenness.
He was an artist to the depths of being."
Herbert W. Wills
writes, "No one I have known had preserved to a fuller extent the spirit
and hopes of youth in spite of advancing years and he was always generous and
fair with his appreciation of his fellow architects' work. The buildings he designed and carried out
are an ample testimony of his ability and to his unusual power of work and
concentration in the effort to give the best he was capable of, in his
calling."
Article in The Builder
9th December 1905
Including drawings and
a perspective view of St. Leonard's House.
"These buildings
were erected for the Charity Trustees of St. Leonards, Shoreditch, at a cost of
between six and seven thousand pounds.
The materials employed
were Lawrence's red bricks for the general facings, and Eureka green slates for
the roofs. The iron railings and gates and the sundial were supplied by Messres
T. Elsey & Sons. The cartouche in
the pediment of the front building, containing married couples' quarters, was
carved by Mr. W. Hearn.
The general contractor
was Mr. C. Gray of Coventry and the architect Mr. Alfred W.S. Cross."
From GREY, Porter's
and Walter's, Old Street, Shoreditch, were demolished to make way for the
Police Court & Station, 1906 (by John Dixon Butler : 1861-1920 : who
specialised in Police Station buildings).
▬▬▬▬▬
INFORMATION
SHOWN ON THE DRAWINGS
OF
THE ALMSHOUSES AT WOOD GREEN
The cartouche was
formed of Mark's Park Bath Stone. The elevation proudly boasted shutters,
either side of each window and the metal pins are still to be seen on site at
head and sill of these. At the apex of
the pediment stood a fine cupola, with a base of lead, having the sundial on
the roadside elevation, surmounted by a teak circular open colonnade and then
topped with a copper dome and a final iron fleche and weather vane. The internal walls were of Cranham brick,
all plastered. WC spaces were built of
glazed brick.
The Site plan shows
that the whole complex, save for the Fuller's Almshouses, were part of one
project, and it is probable that Porter's and Walter's were completed
first. The site plan shows the outline
of the original 1865/6 building of Fuller's, as was indicated on the Ordnance
Survey map.
It is obvious from the
present face of brickwork that there has been some alteration to the plans and
the rear elevations of St. Leonard's House and of Porter's and Walter's, where
original soldier arches are to be seen, as are areas of differing brick colours
and styles. The plans originally
included open lobbies/landings, with a timber balustrading to the facade. This may well have been the case on the
gable ends of Porter's and Walter's, but closer inspection will be necessary.
On the rear of St.
Leonard's House, the pedimental spandrel is infilled with rendering, there used
to be circular windows at either end of the roof. This rendering is applied to other areas of the buildings,
notably to the gable ends of Porter's and Walter's and to the base of the
projecting bay windows. It is an
attempt to repair and copy the original rendering to the base of the bays.