John Carr (architect)

John Carr
Portrait of John Carr by William Beechey, 1791
Born	1723 Horbury, West Riding of Yorkshire
Died	22 February 1807 (aged 83–84) Askham Richard
Nationality	English
Occupation	Architect
Buildings	Harewood House, Buxton Crescent, Constable Burton Hall, Tabley House, Basildon Park, Lytham Hall, Fairfax House

John Carr (1723–1807) was a prolific English architect. Best known for Buxton Crescent and Harewood House, much of his work was in the Palladian style. In his day he was considered to be the leading architect in the north of England.

He was born in Horbury, near Wakefield, England, the eldest of nine children and the son of a master mason, under whom he trained. He started an independent career in 1748 and continued until shortly before his death. John Carr was Lord Mayor of York in 1770 and 1785. Towards the end of his life Carr purchased an estate at Askham Richard, near York, to which he retired. On 22 February 1807 he died at Askham Hall. He was buried in St Peter and St Leonard's Church, Horbury, which he had designed and paid for.

Carr decided to remain in Yorkshire rather than move to London because he calculated that there was ample patronage and the wealth to sustain it. No job was too small. His largest work, only partially finished, was the in Oporto, Portugal. In order to maximise his income, he kept his staff to the minimum. His earliest assistant was William Lindley (architect 1739-1818), who from 1774 developed an independent practice. He was followed by the elder Peter Atkinson (1735-1805) and possibly his son Peter the younger (1780-1843). Carr's nephew William Carr also assisted his uncle in his latter years. These architectural assistants had 'boys' to help them in turn. Carr rarely delegated matters that others would regard as too trivial, and in consequence Carr had to travel immense distances mostly on horse back. However the frequency of such visits brought him into regular contact with his many clients to mutual advantage.

Carr’s own favourite work was the Crescent at Buxton in Derbyshire, an early example of multifunctional architecture. As well as hotels and lodging houses, it contained Assembly Rooms, shops, a post office and a public promenade all under one roof. On a smaller scale, the same is true of his Newark Town Hall.