Henry Hunter


Stonehenge homestead near Oatlands, designed by Henry Hunter, 1975 (ALMFA, SLT)

Henry Hunter (1832–92), architect, was born in Nottingham, migrated to South Australia in 1848, and moved to Tasmania in 1851. He commenced architectural practice in 1855 and became a zealous student and practitioner of the Gothic Revival Movement. This resulted in numerous commissions for both the Roman Catholic and Anglican churches throughout Tasmania. Hunter's work was not limited to ecclesiastical buildings, and included many notable public buildings, schools and private residences. He moved to Brisbane in 1888 where he continued to practise until his death.

Hunter was extensively involved in community affairs, being a property valuation commissioner, a magistrate, a commissioner to the Asylum for the Insane at New Norfolk, and a member of the Hobart Board of Health and the Tasmanian Board of Education. He dominated the architectural scene in Tasmania.

Further reading: 'In Memoriam', Building & Engineering Journal, 13 May 1893; 'In Memoriam', Brisbane Morning Star, 24 June 1893; B Shelton, Henry Hunter, architect, Hobart Town, Hobart, 1982.

Peter Cripps