Louis-Jules Bouchot

Louis Jules César "Louis-Jules" Bouchot (French pronunciation: [lwi ʒyl buʃo]; 12 August 1817 – 15 August 1907) was a 19th-century French architect responsible in particular for the construction of the Nice and Milan railway stations.

Louis-Jules Bouchot
Bouchot in 1848
Born	Louis Jules César Bouchot 12 August 1817 Paris, France
Died	15 August 1907(1907-08-15) (aged 90) Paris, France
Education	École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts
Occupation	Architect
Awards	Ordre des Arts et des Lettres

Biography

Louis-Jules Bouchot was born 12 août 1817^[1] at No 47 rue de Seine in Paris, from Félix Bouchot, an employee of the General Post Office administration, and Adélaïde Louise Étienne.^[2]

A student of the 1834 class, he studied at the École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts in Paris where he was a pupil of his uncle, Alphonse de Gisors.

He alternated work with institutional commissions and private orders.

Chief architect of the Compagnie des chemins de fer de Paris à Lyon et à la Méditerranée (PLM) before becoming the official architect of the French government,^[3] he was one of the recipients of the rare album of the PLM railway commissioned in 1859 by James de Rothschild to photographer Édouard Baldus.^[4]

Bouchot died 15 August 1907^[5] at his home No 6 rue de l'université in Paris.^[6] His funeral was held in the French capital, followed by a religious ceremony at église Saint-Thomas-d'Aquin then the burial at Montparnasse Cemetery.^[7]

Realisations

• Palais de justice de Tarbes (1850)
• Château Talabot (Bastide du Roucas-Blanc)^[8] Marseille for Paulin Talabot (1860)
• Hôtel des Docks^[9] à Marseille (1863). Classified as a Monument historique.
• The old Milan Central railway station (1864), (demolished after 1931)
• Gare de Valence-Ville
• Gare d'Avignon-Centre^[10] (1866)
• Gare de Nice-Ville (PLM) (1865–1867)
• Gare de Toulon (Reconstruction after the fire that destroyed the station of architect Laroze)
• Ministère de la Défense at 231 boulevard Saint-Germain in Paris. (1866-1883)

• 
  Milan railway station in 1864
• 
  Nice railway station in 1865
• 
  Facade of Valence-Ville railway station.
• 
  Facade of gare d'Avignon-Centre railway station.

Distinctions

Bouchot was made a chevalier in the Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur 12 August 1860 and was promoted an officer on 5 February 1878.^[11]

Bust of Louis-Jules Bouchot

A bust of Louis-Jules Bouchot was cast by Gustave Adolphe Désiré Crauk. The musée des beaux-arts de Valenciennes [fr] preserves a plaster copy and the Musée d'Orsay a bronze that belonged to the sculptor's widow before its acquisition in 1928.^[12]