Frederick William Cumberland
Frederick William Cumberland (10 April 1821 – 5 August 1881) was a Canadian engineer, architect and politician. He represented the riding of Algoma in the 1st and 2nd Ontario Parliaments, and he served in the House of Commons of Canada from 1871 to 1872.
Also recorded as Frederic W. Cumberland · Frederic William Cumberland · Frederic W Cumberland
Frederick William Cumberland
- Name
- Frederick William Cumberland
- Born
- 10 April 1821
- Birthplace
- London, England
- Died
- 5 August 1881
- Place of death
- Toronto, Ontario
- Occupation
- civil engineer, architect
- Nationality
- Canada
- Education
- King's College School
- Languages
- English
VALÉORINE Encyclopedia
VALÉORINE documentary reading
Documentary summary
Frederick William Cumberland (10 April 1821 – 5 August 1881) was a Canadian engineer, architect and politician. He represented the riding of Algoma in the 1st and 2nd Ontario Parliaments, and he served in the House of Commons of Canada from 1871 to 1872.
Admitted source layer · organised and presented by VALÉORINE
Reference Check
Propose documentary evidence for Frederick William Cumberland. A contribution is never written directly as fact: identity, source, rights and evidence gates still decide.
Sign in to contribute
World of VALÉORINE
Documentary connections
Only confirmed graph relationships appear here. Images are shown only when their identity and reuse rights both pass the documentary gate.
Documentary evidence
Documentary basis
Authority files
wikidata · Q5499066 · wikipedia · Frederick William Cumberland
In this article
Biography
Biography
Frederick William Cumberland studied at King's College School. The recorded working language is English. Places of work recorded in the authority are Ottawa. Employment is recorded with University of Toronto. Positions recorded include member of the Ontario Provincial Parliament and member of the House of Commons of Canada.
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Frederick William Cumberland • Constituency Mp — Algoma • Parliament — Canadian • Predecessor — Wemyss Mackenzie Simpson • Successor — John Beverley Robinson • Term Start — 1871 • Term End — 1872 • Office2 — Member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario for Algoma • Successor2 — Simon James Dawson • Term Start2 — 3 September 1867 • Term End2 — 23 December 1874 • Born — 10 April 1821 • Birthplace — London, England • Died — 5 August 1881 • Place of death — Toronto, Ontario • Party — Conservative • Other Party — Conservative Party of Ontario • Occupation — civil engineer, architect
Life and career
Life and career
Cumberland was born in London, England, and grew up in Rathmines, Dublin, where his father was employed at Dublin Castle. His mother died there. The family returned to London in the mid-1830s, where he studied at King's College School and apprenticed as a civil engineer. Starting in 1843, he was employed with the engineering department of the British Admiralty, working on the construction of dry docks and fortifications. • Illustration — Pendarvis at 33 St. George Street in Toronto was Cumberland's home (now owned by University of Toronto) In 1845, Cumberland married Wilmot Mary Bramley, whose sisters had married prominent men in the city of Toronto, and he came to that city with his wife in 1847. He worked there as a surveyor and as an engineer for the united counties of York and Peel. In partnership with architect Thomas Ridout, he designed the Cathedral Church of St. James and School, the York County Court House, and a post office. Later, with William George Storm, Cumberland designed other important public buildings in Toronto. At the University of Toronto, he designed University College, the Provincial Magnetic Observatory (1853–55) and the Director's Residence (1858; demolished in 1901), as well as major additions and reconstruction of the Centre Block (1856–59) of the Osgoode Hall law courts. Cumberland designed residences for prominent people living in Toronto. He also designed the Queen Street Wesleyan Chapel (1856), which was demolished c. 1980. He built several public buildings in Hamilton. During the 1850s, Cumberland became involved in railway management at the Ontario, Simcoe and Huron Railroad Union Company (later the Northern Railway Company), as well as other railway and related companies of the time. From 1868, Cumberland served as a director of the Rama Timber Transport Company. As was common at the time, he used railway money to gain the support of Members of Parliament and to help elect candidates favourable to their cause. After Cumberland's death, the Northern Railway Company was absorbed by the Grand Trunk Railway. He was also director of a number of banks and a member of the Toronto Board of Education. Cumberland helped establish a new battalion in the local militia during the 1860s. He was a member of the senate of the University of Toronto. He was also a freemason, becoming deputy grand master for the Toronto district. He died in Toronto in 1881.
Notable works
Notable works
• Building — Year Completed — Builder — Style — Source — Location — Image • Toronto Normal School — 1852 — Frederick Cumberland and Thomas Ridout (Design) — Gothic Revival architecture Romanesque — 3 — St James Square, bounded by Gerrard, Church, Younge and Gould, Toronto, Ontario — • Consumers' Gas Building — 1852 — Frederick Cumberland and Thomas Ridout (Design) — Neo-Renaissance Revival — 3 — Toronto Street, Toronto, Ontario — • Adelaide Street Court House — 1852 — Frederick Cumberland and Thomas Ridout (Design) — Greek Revival architecture — 3 — 57 Adelaide Street East, Toronto, Ontario — • Toronto Street Post Office — 1853 — Frederick Cumberland and Thomas Ridout (Design) — Greek Revival architecture — 2, 3 — 10 Toronto Street, Toronto, Ontario — • Cathedral Church of St. James — 1853 — Frederick Cumberland and Thomas Ridout (Design) — Gothic Revival architecture — King and Church Streets, Toronto, Ontario — • Illustration — Cathedral Church of St. James • Louis B. Stewart Observatory/Toronto Magnetic and Meteorological Observatory — 1853–1857 — Frederick William Cumberland and William George Storm — Gothic Revival architecture — W, 15 — 12 Hart House Circle – University of Toronto, Kings College Circle, Toronto, Ontario — • Former Upper Canada College campus (1854); additions to Resident School House, 1856; new Porter's Lodge, Bursar's Office, gates, fences and outbuildings (1857) — 1854-7 — Frederick William Cumberland and William George Storm — Gothic Revival architecture — King and Simcoe Streets in downtown Toronto — • University College, University of Toronto — 1856–1859 — Frederick William Cumberland and William George Storm; David Dick (1892) — Norman Romanesque — 15 — 15 King's College Circle, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario — • University College, University of Toronto, Croft House — 1859 — Frederick William Cumberland (Design) William George Storm — Norman Romanesque — 2 — Kings College Circle, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario — • Chapel of St. James-the-Less, St. James Cemetery (Toronto) — 1860 — Frederick William Cumberland and William George Storm (Design) — Romanesque — 2 — Parliament Street, Toronto, Ontario —
Life and career
Dated record
Life and career
The full dated record · 2 entries
1821
Frederick William Cumberland born at London.
1881
Frederick William Cumberland died at Toronto.
Places
Named by the record
Places
Only places the record itself states, plotted where the house gazetteer settles their coordinates. Nothing is inferred from a name or a nationality.
London.
Birth place
Toronto.
Death place
References
Citations
References
Each reference names the institution holding it, so a reader may go to the document itself.
reference work
Secondary witnessreference work
Secondary witness
Further particulars
Held on the record
Further particulars
Open the remaining particulars
He was employed by University of Toronto. Recorded positions include member of the Ontario Provincial Parliament and member of the House of Commons of Canada. He worked at Ottawa.
Career and activity
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 17 August 2026.
Elsewhere in Design
11,558 published records in this field, each with its sources named.
- Frederick WaltersDesigner
- Frederick Ward PutnamDesigner
- Frederick Webster OrdishDesigner
- Frederick WidmannDesigner
- Frederick William PorterDesigner
- Frederick William StevensDesigner
- Frederick Wilson WarrenDesigner
- Frederik DraibyDesigner
Best supported in this field
For owners
Own a work by Frederick William Cumberland?
A specialist will read what you send and tell you what the house can establish, what it cannot, and whether the object is suited to sale. There is no charge and no obligation. The object stays with you throughout; nothing is shipped to us unless it is arranged in writing beforehand.