Samuel Knight (architect)

Samuel Knight (1834-1911) was a British architect practicing from Cornhill Chambers, 62 Cornhill, London EC and later 175 and 176 Temple Chambers, Tudor Street, London EC.

Knight was born in Exeter on 3 September 1834 to Samuel Knight and Mary Boalch Anning., living in his early life at Summerland Street, St Sidwell, Exeter. He was educated at Exeter Cathedral School. His father was a master statuary (sculptor) with work on a number of Devon churches. His paternal grandfather (Lewis) was also a stonemason. Samuel's sister, Mary Charlotte Knight, was the mother of the artist Robert Anning Bell (1863-1933), who was articled to Knight for three years.

Knight was articled to William Gilbee Habershon and Edward Habershon (d. 1901) in 1854 and remained for 16 years as Chief Assistant. He became an Associate of the Royal Institute of British Architects on 17 March 1873 (proposed by T H Wyatt, E Habershon and T Roger Smith) and a Fellow of RIBA on 10 Feb 1879 (proposed by T H Wyatt, W Emerson and T Roger Smith). He was in partnership with Henry Spalding (1832-1910) from around 1871 and in independent practice from 1878.

In 1879, Knight won a competition (from amongst 18 entries) to design Devonport Public Hall in Fore Street. Costing some £10,000 and opened in 1881, it provided space for concerts and other public gatherings with the occasional use as a theatre. The hall was converted into the Electric Cinema in 1909 with seating for 700, and then further enlarged in 1931 to seat 2,300. The cinema was destroyed by German bombs on 24 April 1941.

In 1882-83, Knight designed The Drill Hall, in Chenies Street, London, for the Bloomsbury Rifles, a volunteer unit in which Knight was at the time a captain (and later an Honorary Major). The building is now known as RADA Studios and is a grade II listed building with English Heritage. He also designed a number of private dwelling houses and other buildings in North Finchley, including the family home during the 1890s, Netherelms on Woodside Avenue. With Henry Spalding RIBA he also designed a prestigious villa for a solicitor's family (with connections to the Andrews family of Gainsborough's Mr & Mrs Andrews) called Belle Vue House in Sudbury, Suffolk.

...
Wikipedia