Architects

Name:

Ormrod Maxwell Ayrton

Designation :

Architect

Date of Birth:

Year Only

Exact DOB:

05/06/1926

Year of Birth :

1874

Circa Year of Birth :

Date of Birth Before (Year):

Date of Birth After (Year):

DOB (1st 'Or' Year):

DOB (2nd 'Or' Year):

Date of Death:

Exact Date

Exact DOD:

18/02/1960

Year of Death:

Circa Year of Death:

Date of Death Before (Year):

Date of Death After (Year):

DOD (1st 'Or' Year):

DOD (2nd 'Or' Year):

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Bio Notes :

Ormrod Maxwell Ayrton was born in 1874. His career began inauspiciously as an articled apprentice to Harry Beswick of Chester in 1890. He remained with him as an assistant until 1897 when he moved to London as assistant first to William Eden Nesfield's former chief clerk, Richard Creed, then William Alfred Pite and finally Edwin Landseer Lutyens from 1897 to 1899. These posts enabled him to study at the South Kensington Schools. He passed the qualifying exam in 1903 and was admitted ARIBA on 30 November that year, his proposers being Pite, John William Simpson and Lacy William Ridge. He was briefly in independent practice from 1899 until he joined Simpson in 1905.

In 1905, Ayrton was taken into partnership by John William Simpson. From 1905 onwards Ayrton was responsible for most of the practice's design work, his best known work in these later years being the British Empire Exhibition at Wembley in 1924-25 which brought Simpson a knighthood. The exhibition put Ayrton in contact with its civil engineer Owen Williams, resulting in their subsequent collaboration on the design of Williams's Scottish bridges. Prior to that time he had been elected FRIBA in 1920, proposed by Lutyens and Aston Webb.

In 1928 the partnership of Simpson and Ayrton was dissolved. Although now seventy years old, Simpson did not retire, taking into partnership Frank W Knight and Henley Cornford. Ayrton continued in independent practice.

Ayrton died on 18 February 1960.

Bio Notes continued...

Additional Notes

The following private or business addresses are associated with this person:

Private Addresses2 classic

Address	Class	Date From Char	Date From Type	Date To Char	Date To Type	Notes
28 Theobald's Road London England	Private
Manor Mansions/14 Belsize Park Gardens London England	Private

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Business Addresses2 classic

Address	Class	Date From	Date To
64 Charlotte Stree, Fitzroy Square London England	Business	1899
3 Verulam Gardens, Gray's Inn London England	Business	Before 1906	After 1926
7 Grosvennor Street London England	Business	1928

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The following individuals or organisations employed or trained this person (click on an item to view details):

Employers2 classic

Name	Name Link	Date From	Date To	Position
Edwin Landseer Lutyens	200727	After 1897	In year 1899	Assistant
Harry Beswick	203192	In year 1890	c. 1894	Apprentice
Richard Creed	201629	In year 1897	Before 1899	Assistant
Simpson & Ayrton	202199	In year 1905	In year 1928	Partner
Harry Beswick	203192	c. 1894	In year 1897	Assistant
William Alfred Pite	202312	c. 1897	Before 1899	Assistant

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The following individuals proposed this person for RIBA membership (click on an item to view details):

RIBA PROPOSERS2 classic

Proposer	Proposer Link	Date Proposed	Notes
(Sir) John William Simpson	200100	1903/11/30	for Associateship
Lacy William Ridge	203633	1903/11/30	for Associateship
William Alfred Pite	202312	1903/11/30	for Associateship
Edwin Landseer Lutyens	200727	In year 1920	for Fellowship
Aston Webb	200972	In year 1920	for Fellowship

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This person was involved with the following buildings or structures from the date specified (click on an item to view details):

Buildings and Designs2 classic

Building Name	Date Started	Town, District or Village	City or County	Country	Notes
Victoria Institute	1904 or 1905	Worcester	Worcestershire	England	Alterations? - unclear whether under firm of Simpson & Allen or Simpson & Ayrton
Haileybury College	In year 1905		Hertfordshire	England	Additions - Form Rooms, Lodge and Big School (New Hall)
Gresham's School Chapel	In year 1912	Holt	Norfolk	England
Fields House, Gibbs' House and Masters' Tower at Lancing College	In year 1913		West Sussex	England	Additions
British Empire Exhibition	In year 1924	Wembley	London	England	Designed entire exhibition, including all pavilions
Findhorn Bridge	In year 1925	Tomatin	Inverness-shire	Scotland	As consulting architects
Loch Alvie Bridge	In year 1925		Inverness-shire	Scotland
Spey Bridge	In year 1925	Newtonmore	Inverness-shire	Scotland
Bridge at Dalnamein	In year 1926	Dalnamein	Perthshire	Scotland

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The following periodicals contain references to this person:

Period ref classic

Periodical Name	Publisher	Date Circ	Edition	Notes
RIBA Journal		1960/05	*	p347 (or 247?) Obituary
Builder		1960/02/26	*

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The following archives hold material relating to this person:

Arc ref classic

Archive Name	Source	Source Cat No	Building Id	Item Name	Notes
RIBA Nomination Papers	RIBA Archive, Victoria & Albert Museum	100005			A v15 p125 (microfilm reel 1918); F v23 no1666 (microfilm reel 14)

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Basic Biographic Details

Addresses

Private Addresses

Private Addresses2 classic

Business Addresses

Business Addresses2 classic

Employment and Training

Employers2 classic

RIBA Proposers

RIBA PROPOSERS2 classic

Buildings and Designs

Buildings and Designs2 classic

References

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