Henry Budden

Henry "Harry" Ebenezer Budden CBE (11 August 1871 – 25 December 1944) was a Sulman Award winning Australian architect active in the first 40 years of the 20th century. His work encompassed the styles of the Federation Arts and Crafts and Bungalow through to the Inter-War Stripped Classical and Art Deco. He was a leader of his profession and in the wider community, serving as the first Australian War Chest Commissioner during World War I.

Henry Budden

CBE
Born(1871-08-11)11 August 1871
Rockley, New South Wales
Died25 December 1944(1944-12-25) (aged 73)
Sydney, New South Wales
NationalityAustralian
Alma mater
OccupationArchitect
AwardsSir John Sulman Medal (1933 & 1936)
Practice
  • Kent & Budden (1899-1912)
  • Kent Budden & Greenwell (1912-19)
  • Budden & Greenwell (1919-22)
  • H. E. Budden (1922-1931)
  • H. E. Budden & Mackey (1931-1939)
  • H. E. Budden (1939-1940)
  • Budden & Nangle (1940-44)
Buildings
Projects
  • Housing development, Prince Edward Parade, Hunters Hill (1899-1912)
Design

Family and early life
Budden's store and Stanger's Flour Mill, Rockley, in the 1870s

Budden was born in Rockley, New South Wales, the son of Sarah Hale (née Stanger) and Arthur Budden. His mother's family were flour millers and his father was a bank manager and store keeper who was born in Braintree, Essex, England. The Budden and Stanger families were active and committed members of the Congregational Church.[1]

Bathurst is the nearest major town to Rockley and Budden travelled there daily to attend Bathurst Superior Public School. At 14 years of age he commenced senior education, in Sydney, as a boarding student of Newington College (1886–1888). His three years at Newington coincided with the headmastership of Professor William Henry Williams.[2]

In 1889 Budden was articled in architecture to Harry Kent and in the ensuing five years studied at Sydney Technical College and the University of Sydney.[3]: 218 

Sulman Scholarship

In 1894 he won the John Sulman Travelling Scholarship and studied in Europe. Budden attended the Royal Academy in London and became an associate by examination of the Royal Institute of British Architects. After travelling on the Continent, he returned to England and worked in the office of Sir Aston Webb. He then crossed the Atlantic and worked in the Boston firm of Peabody & Stearns before returning to Australia via San Francisco.

Architectural career

Hunters Hill

The Budden family moved to the Sydney suburb of Hunters Hill in 1892 and Henry resided there until 1910.

From 1887 Arthur Budden had owned two hectares (four acres) of land on Woolwich Road and from 1899 he developed housing and a street known as Blake Avenue that gave access to Prince Edward Parade. The houses were designed by Henry Budden, with his father as the developer, and today are found at: 41 Woolwich Road, Wallawa; 43 Woolwich Road, Gunagulla; 2 Prince Edward Parade, Wirringulla; and 4 Prince Edward Parade, Lucknow. The speculative land and building aspirations of father and son came to fruition with the completion in 1912 of houses at 1 and 3 Prince Edward Parade. In this exercise the Budden's showed enlightened town planning and architectural principles.[4] These houses form part of the Sunnyside Estate and are listed on the local government heritage register.[5]

At first Henry Budden lived in Hunters Hill with his parents at Moocooboolah, 65 Alexandra Street,[6] until he married the girl next door, Ella Thomas, in 1902. As a couple they lived in a house designed by Budden, Morillah, at 54 Woolwich Road.[7] This house, with Kurrowah at 74 Alexandra Street,[8] distinctly shows the emerging asymmetrical style of Budden as his angles take advantage of the northerly sun and river aspect of this suburb. Budden's most distinctive design in Hunters Hill is Mornington at 16 Vernon Street,[9] completed in the Federation Bungalow style at its most creative.[10]

War Chest Commission

At the outbreak of World War I, Budden was appointed 1st War Chest Commissioner by the Minister for War. This was an honorary appointment and Budden sailed for Egypt in July 1915 with full authority to reorganise and administer the distribution of comforts to Australian troops on active service. These comforts had been made available by various Australian charities.[11] In April 1916, he sailed from Egypt to London and continued his work in England and France, until his return to Australia in 1917. The following year he was honoured by the award of Commander of the Order of the British Empire for his services rendered.[12][13]

Architectural partnerships

On Budden's return to Sydney, in 1899, he entered into partnership with his mentor, Harry Kent and the firm became known as Kent & Budden.

In 1913, Henry Kent and Henry Budden were joined in partnership by Carlyle Greenwell. Greenwell had served his articles with Kent & Budden and after attending Sydney Technical College and the University of Sydney he had completed a Bachelor of Architecture at the University of Pennsylvania.

The partnership of Kent, Budden and Greenwell was dissolved in 1919 with the departure of Harry Kent. Budden and Greenwell continued to work in partnership until 1922 and Kent joined H H. Masie and practiced with him until his retirement in 1930.[14]

On two occasions between partnerships, 1922–1931 and 1939–1940, Budden worked as a sole-trader under the name of H. E. Budden. He worked in conjunction with other Sydney architects on particular projects during this time.

From 1931 until 1939, Budden was in partnership with Nicholas Mackey. In the Sydney central business district, in 1938 the partnership designed Railway House, York Street, and in 1939 the former Metropolitan Water Sewerage & Drainage Board Building in Pitt Street.

From 1940, until his death, Budden practiced in partnership with Alan Nangle.

Personal life

Congregational Church and Newington College

Throughout the 45 years that Budden worked as an architect in New South Wales, two institutions had a strong influence on his commissions and partnerships - his church and his school. Harry Kent, Henry Budden and Carlyle Greenwell, and their extended families, were all active Congregationalists at a time when that Christian denomination was very influential in the upper middle classes of Sydney society and business. Much of his firms' work came from the church itself and from members of its parishes.[14] As an Old Newingtonian, Budden served on the Council of the college, as an honorary architect and as President of the Old Newingtonians' Union.[15]: 347  He employed and worked with many Old Newingtonians during his professional career including Carlyle Greenwell, William Hardy Wilson, Eric Heath and his final partner Alan Nangle. As with the church, the Newington community provided a good deal of work for Budden's firms. Sydney was a small and parochial city until World War II and this was Henry Budden's social and professional milieu.

Community involvement

Family life and death

From 1910, Budden and his wife lived at Kingsbury, Powell Street, Killara. They had two sons (Philip and Thomas) and five daughters (Joan, Janet, Alice, Louise and Helen), all of whom survived him on his death in Sydney in 1944.

Partial list of works

The following buildings designed either in part or in full by Budden:

Buildings designed either in part or in full by Henry Budden
Building name Image Location Year
completed		 Award(s) Heritage register(s) Notes
Emu CreekEmu Creek Road, Walcha1908
The Whurley26 Cleveland Street, Wahroonga1913
Griffith Teas buildingWentworth Avenue, Surry Hills1912Local government register[16]
Mothers and Wives Memorial to SoldiersPotts Point / Woolloomooloo1922[17][18]
David JonesCorner of Elizabeth Street
and Market Street, Sydney		1927Local government register[19]
Brassey HouseBarton, Australian Capital Territory1927[20]
Extensions and renovation to Hotel Metropole
(demolished in 1970)		Bent, Phillip, and Young Streets, Sydney1929; 1935[21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28]
Primary Producers Bank
(demolished in 1964)		105 Pitt Street, Sydney1933Sulman Medal
Railway House19-31 York Street, Sydney1936Sulman MedalNSW State Heritage Register[29][30]
Transport House99 Macquarie Street, Sydney1938[31]
Metropolitan Water Sewerage &
Drainage Board Building (former)		Pitt Street, Sydney1939NSW State Heritage Register[32]

See also

References
  1. Who's Who in Australia. Sydney: International Press Service Association. 1935. p. 171.
  2. Newington College Register of Past Students 1863-1998 (Sydney, 1999) pp 24
  3. Freeland, J. M. (1971). The Making of a Profession. Sydney: Angus & Robertson.
  4. "Hunters Hill Trust". Archived from the original on 19 July 2008. Retrieved 12 January 2009.
  5. "Sunnyside Estate- Res, subdivision & houses, New South Wales Heritage Database (NSW HD) Number H00014". New South Wales Heritage Database. Office of Environment & Heritage. Retrieved 22 March 2019.
  6. "Moocooboolah, New South Wales Heritage Database (NSW HD) Number H00014". New South Wales Heritage Database. Office of Environment & Heritage. Retrieved 22 March 2019.
  7. "Morillah, New South Wales Heritage Database (NSW HD) Number H00014". New South Wales Heritage Database. Office of Environment & Heritage. Retrieved 22 March 2019.
  8. "Kurrowah, New South Wales Heritage Database (NSW HD) Number H00014". New South Wales Heritage Database. Office of Environment & Heritage. Retrieved 22 March 2019.
  9. "Mornington, New South Wales Heritage Database (NSW HD) Number H00014". New South Wales Heritage Database. Office of Environment & Heritage. Retrieved 22 March 2019.
  10. Sherry, Beverley (1982). "Henry E. Budden and Federation Architecture in Hunters Hill". Hunters Hill Trust Journal. Sydney. XI (2).
  11. "War Chest Commissioner". The Argus. Melbourne. 29 October 1915. Retrieved 22 March 2019 – via Trove, National Library of Australia.
  12. Architecture. Sydney: NSW Institute of Architects. April 1931. p. 85.
  13. "The Order of the British Empire - Commander (Civil) (Imperial) (CBE) entry for Henry Ebenezer BUDDEN". It's an Honour, Australian Honours Database. Canberra, Australia: Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. 15 March 1918. Retrieved 22 March 2019. In recognition of service as organiser of the Australian Comforts Fund
  14. Jones, Cathy (2004). Harry Chambers Kent 1852-1938. Sydney: Strathfield District Historical Society.
  15. Swain, P. L. (1999). Newington Across the Years, A History of Newington College 1863 - 1998. Sydney.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  16. "Griffith's Building including interior, New South Wales Heritage Database (NSW HD) Number HI1648". New South Wales Heritage Database. Office of Environment & Heritage. Retrieved 22 March 2019.
  17. "FIRST WORLD WAR SOLDIERS MEMORIAL (WIVES AND MOTHERS MEMORIAL)". CityArt. City of Sydney. Retrieved 22 March 2019.
  18. "Woolloomooloo Bay Mothers and Wives Memorial to Soldiers". Register of War Memorials in NSW. Government of New South Wales. 2019. Retrieved 22 March 2019.
  19. "David Jones Department Store Including Interior, New South Wales Heritage Database (NSW HD) Number HI1888". New South Wales Heritage Database. Office of Environment & Heritage. Retrieved 22 March 2019.
  20. "Brassey Hotel". DOMA Hotels Group. Retrieved 22 March 2019.
  21. "Advertising". Construction and Local Government Journal. New South Wales, Australia. 6 April 1927. p. 1. Retrieved 23 July 2023 – via National Library of Australia.
  22. "HOTEL METROPOLE". The Sydney Morning Herald. New South Wales, Australia. 27 April 1927. p. 9. Retrieved 23 July 2023 – via National Library of Australia.
  23. "The Hotel Metropole". The Catholic Press. New South Wales, Australia. 13 September 1928. p. 79. Retrieved 23 July 2023 – via National Library of Australia.
  24. "Hotel Metropole LARGEST & MOST MODERN HOTEL IN AUSTRALIA". Sydney Mail. New South Wales, Australia. 4 December 1929. p. 29. Retrieved 23 July 2023 – via National Library of Australia.
  25. "Hotel Metropole — Magnificent Additions". Sydney Mail. New South Wales, Australia. 30 January 1929. p. 21. Retrieved 23 July 2023 – via National Library of Australia.
  26. "HOTEL METROPOLE". The Sydney Morning Herald. New South Wales, Australia. 22 January 1935. p. 3. Retrieved 23 July 2023 – via National Library of Australia.
  27. "Building Application (BA) Plans - Bent St (Hotel Metropole) (01/01/1934 - 31/12/1934), [A-00567542]". City of Sydney Archives. City of Sydney. Retrieved 23 July 2023.
  28. "Building Application (BA) Plans - Bent St (Hotel Metropole) (01/01/1935 - 31/12/1935), [A-00583442]". City of Sydney Archives. City of Sydney. Retrieved 23 July 2023.
  29. "Transport House". New South Wales State Heritage Register. Department of Planning & Environment. H01271. Retrieved 22 March 2019. Text is licensed by State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) under CC-BY 4.0 licence.
  30. "Former Railway House (Part of Transport House) Including Interiors". New South Wales Heritage Database. Office of Environment & Heritage. Retrieved 20 December 2018.
  31. "Transport House: Former Department of Motor Transport". Sydney Architecture. n.d. Retrieved 22 March 2019.
  32. "Sydney Water Head Office (former) (1939 building)". New South Wales State Heritage Register. Department of Planning & Environment. H01645. Retrieved 14 October 2018. Text is licensed by State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) under CC-BY 4.0 licence.
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