James Kellaway Colling

• Name — James Kellaway Colling • Born — 1816 • Birthplace —?London, England • Died — 1905 • Place of death — Wandsworth, London, England • Education — Pupil of Mathew Habershon; John Brown and John Colson (of Norwich). • Practice — Office of Sir George Gilbert Scott 1841-42. • Significant Buildings — The Albany, Liverpool; Garthmyl Hall, Montgomeryshire and Ashwicke Hall, Marshfield, Gloucestershire

Initially Colling trained as an engineer and then from 1832 worked in the architectural office of Mathew Habershon (1789–1852)[4] Habershon was talented artist and an early enthusiast for timber-framed houses, publishing in 1836 The Ancient Half Timbered Houses of England.[5] Between 1836 and 1840 he moved to Norwich to work under firstly John Brown and then, John Colson, who specialised in Church architecture, and it was during this period that Colling started preparing his illustrations of painted church furnishings and sculpture in East Anglian Churches.[6]

The first of these projects was the partial rebuilding of Hooton Hall on the Wirral. The Hooton Estate was purchased by Richard Naylor in 1849 from Sir Massy Stanley, who had run up gambling debts. Colling was commissioned to provide plans for a new tower in Italianate style and an orangery. Hooton Hall was demolished in 1932, but some of the columns from the orangery were preserved by Clough Williams-Ellis at Portmeirion.[11]

The Albany was erected in 1856 for Richard Naylor, and it was built as a meeting place for cotton brokers. It contained offices and meeting rooms, together with warehousing facilities in the basement. It is one of the earliest examples of Victorian offices in Liverpool. The central courtyard was originally uncovered, to provide good light for the brokers to examine their cotton samples. To undertake this work Colling formed a partnership with his former pupil John Hubbard Sturgis, now working as an architect at Leatherhead. Sturgis' father was Russell Sturgis an American merchant from Boston who was now chairman of Barings Bank. This may provide the connection with the Naylors who were major Liverpool bankers. Colling appears to have provided the plans, while Sturgis supervised the work.

In 1843 Nantclwyd Hall was purchased from the Kenrick family by Richard Christopher Naylor and in 1857 he got Colling to produce plans for the enlargement of the house[12] which included the south-east wing, in a style matching the original house, except for the substitution of sash windows for mullion-and-transom windows. This part contains a nursery wing with fine plasterwork ceilings.[13]

Colling's next project in 1857–60, (presumably as the result of the Albany), was the building of Ashwicke Hall in Marshfield, Gloucestershire for the Liverpool Attorney John Orred.[15] This was a massive castellated Tudor Gothic House with a lofty octagonal tower at the S E. Corner. The octagonal tower is very similar to the octagonal tower at Leighton Hall, Powys in Montgomeryshire. Colling is also likely to be the architect for the castelatted gatehouse to Ashwicke Park and Ashwicke Grange.

• Illustration — Garthmyl Hall by J K Colling, 1859 A further commission was in 1859 from John Naylor, brother of Richard Naylor, who was also a banker and Montgomeryshire landowner to re-build Garthmyl Hall, Berriew for his brother-in-law Major-General William George Gold.[16] Colling was given a free hand by the wealthy John Naylor when building Garthmyl Hall, as seen by the use of lavish gilding and plasterwork for ceiling decoration, and for the ornamental terracotta on the exterior. This was an opportunity for him to put into practice some of the designs illustrated in his books.

• Illustration — St Paul's Church, Hooton Colling was also responsible for some church architecture and restoration work, including a new aisle for Scole church in Norfolk. His most impressive example of church architecture was St Paul's Church, Hooton, built from his designs for Richard Naylor between 1858 and 1862. • Illustration — Boston Museum of Fine Arts • Illustration — Boston Museum of Fine Arts

Colling's partner Sturgis became interested in replacing the carved stone with the cheaper Terracotta, for decorating their buildings and started to bring in commissions from Boston, using moulded terracotta from Blashfield's works at Stamford. In 1869 Colling provided designs for "Pinebank'’ a house in Boston and in 1870 Colling provided some of the designs for the elaborately decorated Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. Although it was demolished in 1906, it was one of the first major buildings in the US to be decorated with terracotta ornamentation.[17]

• Garthmyl Hall, Berriew, Montgomeryshire[18] Garthmyl Hall was completely rebuilt in 1859 by Colling for Major-General William George Gold. • Albany Building in Liverpool.[19] This was speculative venture for John Naylor's brother Richard. • Ashwicke Hall in Marshfield, Gloucestershire for the Liverpool attorney John Orred 1857–1860[20] • Cuxwold Hall, Cuxwold, Lincolnshire. 1861. Tudor Gothic with red brick and blue brick diaperwork with chimneys and bellcote with spirelet.[21]

James Kellaway Colling is recorded as architect, painter, drafter and illustrator.