Henry Darbishire

Henry Astley Darbishire FRIBA JP DL (15 May 1825 – 4 June 1899) was a British architect, best known for working on philanthropic schemes. He worked on projects for Angela Burdett-Coutts, and was the architect for the Peabody Trust from 1863 until 1885,^[1] when he was succeeded by Victor Wilkins.^[2]

Peabody dwellings, Commercial Street, London, designed by Darbishire: a wood-engraving published in the Illustrated London News in 1863, shortly before the building opened

He was born in Chorlton-on-Medlock, Lancashire,^[3][4] the son of James Darbishire and his wife, Mary Roberts.^[5] He qualified as a Fellow of the Royal Institute of British Architects in 1856, and finally retired from practice in 1894.^[4]

In 1858, Darbishire married Eliza Paget, sister of Sir Ernest Paget.^[6] They had three children: Frederic Astley Darbishire (3 November 1859 – 15 March 1926); Eilie Gwendoline Darbishire (1863–1936); and Harry Vernon Darbishire (2 August 1864 – 29 February 1949) and.^[5]

He died in 1899 at Oakdene, Edenbridge, Kent.^[7]

Notable works

• Columbia Square, Bethnal Green (1857–60), demolished
• Baroness Burdett Coutts Drinking Fountain, Victoria Park, London (1862)
• Peabody dwellings, Commercial Street, Spitalfields (1864)
• Holly Village, Highgate, London (1865)^[8][9]
• Peabody Estate, Islington (1865)
• Columbia Market, Bethnal Green (1866), demolished
• Peabody Estate, Shadwell (1866)
• Guilford Place drinking fountain (1870)
• Peabody Square, Blackfriars Road, Bermondsey (1871)
• Peabody Estate, Pimlico (1876)
• Peabody Estate, Whitechapel (1881)