Samuel Charles Brittingham
Samuel Charles Brittingham (1860 - 12 November 1944) was a British-born architect who worked extensively in Australia in the early twentieth century.
Samuel Charles Brittingham
- Name
- Samuel Charles Brittingham
- Born
- 1 January 1860
- Died
- 12 November 1944
- Place of death
- Abbotsford, Victoria, Australia
- Nationality
- Australia · United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
- Occupation
- architect
- Languages
- English
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Documentary summary
Samuel Charles Brittingham (1860 - 12 November 1944) was a British-born architect who worked extensively in Australia in the early twentieth century.
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Note VALÉORINE
Samuel Charles Brittingham was an Australian and British architect. The architect died in Abbotsford. Samuel Charles Brittingham worked in Australia. Languages used include English.
Composed from admitted, traceable facts · 29 September 2026
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Authority files
wikidata · Q7411096 · wikipedia · Samuel Charles Brittingham
In this article
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Samuel Charles Brittingham • Born — 1 January 1860 • Died — 12 November 1944 • Place of death — Abbotsford, Victoria, Australia • Significant Buildings — Burke St West Police Station, Parkville Post Office, Maryborough State High School, Box Hill Primary School, Old Arts Building, Horsham Base Hospital • Significant Projects — Morwell Planning Scheme
Early life and career
Early life and career
Brittingham was a pupil in the Victorian Education Department from 1875 to 1879 and then remained as assistant 1879–85, before taking up a position with the Victorian Public Works Department in 1886. He passed the examination of the Royal Institute of British Architects in London on 9 November 1906, although he appears to have sat it in Melbourne at the time. • Illustration — Old Arts Building at Melbourne University He became Victorian Government Architect and was responsible for a number of prominent public buildings in Victoria including the Old Arts Building at Melbourne University, 1919–24, Parkville Post Office, and Bourke St West Police Station as well as a number of other public buildings. As government architect he was responsible for the first buildings in national parks, including the rangers house (1909) and visors' Chalet (1923) at Wilsons Promontory National Park. It is likely he also designed the Mount Buffalo Chalet. In 1918 Brittingham proposed a scheme to alleviate Melbourne's traffic congestion by constructing a bridge to extend Exhibition Street across the Jolimont railway yards anticipating the present Exhibitions Street extension by 80 years. He later attended own planning conferences and was instrumental in the new planning scheme devised for the Morwell coal fields.
Family
Family
His parents were William and Ann Amelia Brittingham siblings – Walter Edgar Brittingham. died 14 Feb 1945 (6th son) Elizabeth, Rachel, May, and Alfred Furkess. wife – Mrs. Lily Edith Brittlngham, died at home in Chrystobel crescent Hawthorn around 2 June 1937 two sons – Dr. L. C. Brittingham, of East St. Kilda, and Mr. G. J. Brittingham, of Port Kembla. Brittingham died on 12 November 1944 at his home in Chrystobel crescent Hawthorn, aged 84. For 47 years he was associated with the public service and was a trustee of the Methodist Church, Oxley Road, Auburn. He was buried at Kew Cemetery.
Works
Works
• Morwell Town Planning Scheme. • Old Burke St West Police Station (with S.E. Bindley) 1887-9 • Parkville Post Office and Quarters (with S.E. Brindley) 1889 • Central Telephone Exchange, Melbourne 1907-9 • Mount Buffalo Chalet, 1910 – probably designed by Brittingham – he inspected the site in 1924 in regards extensions. • Fairfield Primary School 1910 • Maryborough High School 1912 • The Box Hill Primary School 1919 • Women's VD Clinic 'Septic Clinic for Women' 372- 378 Little Lonsdale Street 1919 • Old Arts Building (Melbourne University) 1921 • Horsham Base Hospital in 1926.
Life and career
Dated record
Life and career
The full dated record · 2 entries
1860
Samuel Charles Brittingham was born on 1 January 1860.
1944
Samuel Charles Brittingham died on 12 November 1944.
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.
Samuel Charles Brittingham died in Abbotsford.
Deathplace
Abbotsford.
Death place
Primary material
Documents and archives
authority record
- Wikidata, structured authority record Q7411096: Samuel Charles Brittingham
General reference · Wikidata
reference work
- “Samuel Charles Brittingham”, English Wikipedia, consulted as further reading
Reputable secondary · Wikipedia
Awards and membership
Associate of the Royal Institute of British Architects 10 June 1907 proposed by G C Inskip, W A Pite, E A Gruning. RIBA nomination papers A v17 p102
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Directory of British Architects, 1834-1914: Vol. 1 (A-K) by Alison Felstead, Jonathan Franklin p.258
- 2.National Library of Australia. General Cable News. The Register. 7. 10 November 1906.
- 3.Walking Melbourne
- 4.Victorian Heritage Register H1167
- 5.Victorian Heritage Register H0655
- 6.National Library of Australia. Melbourne Street Traffic. The Advertiser. 7. 31 May 1918.
- 7.National Library of Australia. Family Notices. The Argus. 2. 16 February 1945.
- 8.National Library of Australia. OBITUARY. The Argus. 15. 5 June 1937.
- 9.National Library of Australia. MR GEORGE H. THOMAS. The Argus. 5. 13 November 1944.
- 10.Directory of British Architects, 1834-1914: Vol. 1 (A-K) by Alison Felstead, Jonathan Franklin p.258
- 11.National Library of Australia. MORWELL ELECTRIC SCHEME. Morwell Advertiser. 3. 9 July 1920.
- 12.Walking Melbourne
- 13.Onmydoorstep
- 14.'Mount Buffalo' The Argus 25 November 1921 p.12, retrieved 27 August 2012 National Library of Australia
- 15.Context Pty Ltd, May 2010, City of Darebin, Heritage Study additional Stage 2 place assessments
- 16.Victorian Heritage Register H2143
- 17.National Trust Register B6691
- 18.Historic monument to Women's Health and World War I under threat
- 19.Victorian Heritage Register H924
- 20.National Library of Australia. The Base Hospital. The Horsham Times. 4. 26 March 1926.
References
Citations
References
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authority record
Secondary witnessreference work
Secondary witness
Further particulars
Held on the record
Further particulars
Open the remaining particulars
Samuel Charles Brittingham is recorded as a citizen of United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. Recorded with the occupation architect.
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 18 August 2026.
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