Watson Fothergill (12 July 1841 – 6 March 1928) was a British architect who designed over 100 unique buildings in Nottingham in the East Midlands of England. His influences were mainly from the Gothic Revival and Old English vernacular architecture styles.
His work dates from 1864 (when he set himself up in practice) to around 1912. His earliest surviving known building dates from 1866.
Early life
Born Fothergill Watson in Mansfield, Nottinghamshire in 1841, he was the son of wealthy Nottingham Lace merchant Robert Watson and Mary Ann Fothergill. He changed his name to Watson Fothergill in 1892 to continue his maternal family name.
Family He married Anne Hage in 1867 at St. John's Church, Mansfield. They had the following children: Marian Watson (1868–1955) Annie Forbes Watson (1869–1930) Edith Mary Watson (1871–1936) Eleanor Fothergill Watson (1872–1946) Samuel Fothergill Watson (1875–1915) Harold H Watson (1877-1905) Clarice Watson (1877–1955)
His father-in-law was Samuel Hage, one of the founding partners of Mansfield Brewery.
His half-brother was Robert Mackie Watson, chairman of the Mansfield Improvement Commission and the Brunts' Charity.
Career In 1856, he entered the St Peter's Gate office of Frederick Jackson, an architect and surveyor in Nottingham. In mid-1860 he moved as assistant to Isaac Charles Gilbert who was based in Clinton Street, Nottingham. After spending around 18 months with Gilbert, he moved in early 1862 to join the office of Arthur William Blomfield in London. In 1864 he was working with John Middleton in Cheltenham, but in the same year, left to set up his own office at 6 Clinton Street, Nottingham. He remained at Clinton Street until it was demolished by the works in connection with the arrival of the Great Central Railway in 1894. He moved to a new temporary office at 18 George Street and arranged to rebuild 15 George Street opposite which he completed the next year and moved in on 12 December 1895.
He is credited as having had a great impact on the architecture of the major British industrial city of Nottingham, and designed over a hundred buildings in the city, from offices, banks and warehouses, to churches and private dwelling houses. His easily recognisable style includes the use of contrasting horizontal bands of red and blue brick, dark timber eaves and balconies, and elaborate turrets and stone carvings.
On his death in 1928, he left an estate valued at £73,908 5s 11d ().
List of major works
All Nottinghamshire unless otherwise stated.
1860s
Cemetery Chapels, High Street, Ongar (joint architect with Isaac Charles Gilbert) – 1866
1870s
Dwelling House, Mapperley Road, Nottingham (Fothergill's own house) – 1870 Two Villas, 5 & 7 Lenton Road, The Park, Nottingham – 1873 Temperance Hall (later Albert Hall), North Circus Street, Nottingham – 1873–1876 Nottingham and Nottinghamshire Bank, Church Street, Mansfield – 1874–1875 Nottingham Daily Express Offices, Printing Works and Shops, Parliament Street, Nottingham – 1875 King's Arms, Ratcliffe Gate and Newgate Lane, Mansfield – 1875–1877 Cattle Market, Nottingham Road, Mansfield – 1876–1878 Congregational Church (later United Reformed), Westgate, Mansfield – 1876–1878 Nottingham and Nottinghamshire Bank and Residence, Thurland Street, Nottingham – 1877–1882
1880s
Villa, Crow Hill Drive, Mansfield – 1880 Six Dwelling Houses, Shops and Carriage House, Castle Road and Houndsgate, Nottingham – 1882–1883 Five Houses and Shops, Derby Road, Nottingham – 1884 Institute and Coffee Tavern, High Street, Hucknall – 1884 Nottingham and Nottinghamshire Bank, Cattle Market, Loughborough, Leicestershire – 1885 Villa, Loscoe Hill (Clawson Lodge), 405 Mansfield Road, Nottingham – 1885 Institute and Coffee Tavern (Budworth Hall), High Street, Ongar, Epping Forest, Essex – 1885–1887 Villa (Walton House), 39 Newcastle Drive, The Park, Nottingham – 1886 St. Nicholas' Church Rectory, Castle Gate, Nottingham – 1886–1887 Pair of Villas, Loscoe Hill, 409 and 411 Mansfield Road, Nottingham – 1886–1887 Nottingham and Nottinghamshire Bank, Kirk Gate, Newark on Trent 1885–1887 Rebuilding Black Boy Hotel (first major rebuild / extension), Long Row, Nottingham – 1886–1888 Pair of Villas, 62 and 64 Castle Boulevard, Nottingham – C1888 Pair of Villas, 3 and 4 Huntingdon Drive, Nottingham – C1888 Samuel Smith & Co's Bank, 24 Market Place, Long Eaton, Derbyshire – 1889 Warehouse (Milbie House), 33 Pilcher Gate, Nottingham – 1889
1890s
Villa, (Elberton House), Cavendish Hill, 9 Hardwick Road, Nottingham – 1890 Eight Ladies' Homes – Norris Almhouses, Berridge Road, Nottingham – 1892–1893 Emmanuel Church, Woodborough Road (1883–1893) – demolished 1972 Woodborough Road Baptist Church, Woodborough Road and Alfred Street North, Nottingham – 1893–1895 Simons and Pickard Paper Warehouse, Lenton (Castle) Boulevard, Nottingham – 1893–1894 House, Kingswood, Bulcote – 1893 Two Semi-Detached Villas (Cleave House), 1 and 3 Sherwood Rise, Nottingham – 1894–1895 Rebuilding of Nos 15 & 17 George Street, Nottingham (Watson Fothergill's offices) – 1894–1895 Jessops' Shop and Workrooms, 14–30 King Street, Nottingham – 1894–1897 Four Shops and Offices (Queen's Chambers), Long Row and King Street, Nottingham – 1896–1899 Shop and Office (Furley and Co) (now Lloyds Bank), Parliament Street and Clinton Street, Nottingham – 1896–1897 Ellenborough House, 3 South Road, The Park, Nottingham – extended 1896–1897 Cuckson, Hazeldine and Manderfield Warehouses, Stoney Street and Barker Gate, Nottingham – 1897–1898 Black Boy Hotel Additions and Two Shops (second major rebuild/extension), Long Row, Nottingham – 1897–1900 Rebuilding of the Rose of England Inn, Mansfield Road, Nottingham – 1898–1900 Brewery, Mar Hill, Carlton – 1899 Nottingham and Nottinghamshire Bank and House, 111 Carrington Street, Nottingham – 1899
1900s
Nottingham and Nottinghamshire Branch Bank, St Ann's Well Road, Nottingham – 1900–1901 Sixteen Houses, Foxhall Road, Nottingham – 1901–1902 Union of London and Smith's Bank, Market Place, Bulwell – 1904 Villa, Mapperley Road, Nottingham (Joint Architect with Lawrence George Summers) – 1905 Four Houses, Mansfield Road and Bingham Road, Nottingham – 1906–1907
Gallery
Further reading Brand, Ken (2009) "Watson Fothergill: a provincial goth", in: Ferry, Kathryn, ed. Powerhouses of Provincial Architecture, 1837–1914. London: Victorian Society; pp. 28–43 Turner, Darren (2012) "A Catalogue of the Works of Watson Fothergill, Architect." Turner, Darren (2024) "Watson Fothergill: An Architectural Pocket Guide."
References
External links The Watson Fothergill Home Page A catalogue of Watson Fothergill's work Norris Ladies Almshouses, Berridge Road, Nottingham on Google Street View. Clawson Lodge, Watcombe Road, Nottingham on Google Street View 21 and 23 Newcastle Drive, The Park, Nottingham on Google Street View 39 Newcastle Drive, The Park, Nottingham on Google Street View Edale House, Clumber Road East, The Park, Nottingham on Google Street View No 3, South Road, The Park, Nottingham on Google Street View No. 5 and No. 7 Lenton Road, The Park, Nottingham on Google Street View No. 3 and No. 4 Huntingdon Drive, The Park, Nottingham on Google Street View 93–95 Derby Road, Nottingham on Google Street View The 'Buildings' section of Nottingham21 Web Site has photographs of most of the surviving Fothergill buildings in the city. A collection of photographs of Fothergill buildings on Geograph UK