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ROWE, Henry Rowe

Born: 1870 07 06
Died: 1932 12 09

Architect


Also refered to as ROWE-ROWE, Henry.

Was born in Great Gaddesen, Hertfordshire, England. He was the son of William Henry Rowe and was educated at Norton College, Luton in Bedfordshire, England. For a time he worked with his father, a building contractor. He moved to London to become chief assistant to H Woodzell of Tottenham Court Road in London before arriving in the Cape in 1893. He settled in Cape Town where he became chief assistant to Max ROSENBERG. He married in 1897 and in 1899 or 1900 commenced practice on his own account. He was mainly engaged on domestic architecture and assisted in the development of Camps Bay and Oranjezicht. By 1915 he was resident in Krugersdorp, Transvaal, and the latter part of his career was spent in Johannesburg where again he was responsible for a number of private houses and blocks of flats. So far no buildings by Rowe are known before 1924. According to a note in the Architect, Builder & Engineer (Sep 1922:11), he worked mainly as a quantity surveyor.

ISAA 1927; FCIA; MSAIQS. (ISAA mem list; Picton-Seymour 1977; SAA&B Mar 1905:123 Contemporary architects; SA Clywkr & Bldr Jan 1904:70 bus dir; SAAE&S Jnl Sep 1907:212 ill; SAWW 1909, 1910, 1931-2 port)

Entry on page 264 of the South African Who's Who (Social & Business) 1927-28; Ken Donaldson, Cape Town, 1927.

ROWE, Henry Rowe, F.C.I.A., Mem. of South African Institute of Quantity Surveyors; Mem. of Association of Transvaal Architects; Architect and Quantity Surveyor; b. 6th July, 1870, Great Gaddesden, Herts.; 2nd s.o.l. William Henry Rowe. Educ. Norton College, Luton, Beds., was Chief Assistant to Henry Woodzell, Totenham Court Road, Architect and Quantity Surveyor. Came to South Africa in 1893. Chief Assistant to Max Rosenberg, Architect, Cape Town. A prominent Freemason. Past D.G. Reg.S.A., W.D.; Past D.G.W. (Mark); Past D.G.H. (R.A.), S.A.W.D. Went to Transvaal in 1911. Member of Councils S.A. Inst. of Q.S., and Assoc. of Trans. Architects. Represented Cape Town Ratepayers' Association at Government Commission of Inquiry into Unadopted Streets Contract. Member of Governing Body of Forest Hill High School (Technical High School), Church Warden Christ Church (Church of England) Johannesburg; m. 1897, Florence Elizabeth, 2nd d.o. Andrew White, Wynberg, Cape; 3 c. Mem. Scientific and Technical Club, Johannesburg. Add., 3, Commercial Exchange Buildings, 81, Main Street, Johannesburg.

On 13 July 2010, Mr D.A.V. Elliott, the District Grand Scribe and Asst. District Grand Secretary and Librarian/Archivist of the District Grand Lodge/Chapter of South Africa (Western Division) provided the following information on Rowe:

Further to your enquiry concerning a Henry Rowe-Rowe (the surname is shown as such in all our records) I am able to report as follows:

Henry Rowe-Rowe was Initiated in Wynberg Lodge No. 2577 on 23 April 1896, passed to the 2nd degree (Fellowcraft) on 11 June 1896 & raised to the 3rd degree (Master Mason) on 9 July 1896, he resigned from the Lodge on 10 November 1914.

He became a founder member of the Mowbray Lodge No. 2993 on 30 October 1903; retained his membership until his resignation on 15 April 1907 and was subsequently made an honorary member on 17 May 1905. According to lodge records he died on 9 December 1932. It would seem that he was Master of Stellenbosch Lodge, but I am awaiting confirmation of that.

W. Bro. Henry Rowe-Rowe was appointed District Grand Registrar at the Annual Meeting of the District Grand Lodge of South Africa (Western Division) on 21 March 1905. It was noted that he was a member of Wynberg Lodge No. 2577, Mowbray Lodge No. 2993 and Stellenbosch Lodge No. 2646; he was possibly a founder member in January 1897 of the latter.

Henry Rowe-Rowe was a member of Woodstock Royal Arch Chapter No. 2379 and was 1st Principal in 1904. He was appointed 2nd District Grand Principal (Haggai) in the District Grand Chapter of South Africa (Western Division) in 1909.

Both Frederick Rowe-Rowe & George Rowe-Rowe were members of the Craft within the district. Frederick was initiated in Wynberg Lodge on 27 May 1903 and (I presume his brother) George joined Wynberg Lodge in 1903 from a Scottish Lodge.

The titles associated with the various Freemasonry abbreviations were provided by Andrew Arthur, the Grand Secretary, Grand Lodge of South Africa, and are noted below:
Past D.G. Reg.S.A., W.D.: Past District Grand Register, South Africa, Western Division.
Past D.G.W. (Mark): Past District Grand Warden in the Mark Degree.
Past D.G.H. (R.A.), S.A.W.D.: Past District Grand Haggai Royal Arch, South Africa, Western Division.

The terms are:
The local (District) Lodge controls all Daughter Lodges and, after a Mason becomes Master of his Lodge, he is invited to join the relevant District Grand Lodge. The position of District Grand Registrar is about half-way up the District hierarchy.
The Mark Degree is undertaken after the Master Mason Degree and is a separate allied body. District Grand Warden is a very senior rank therein.
In the Royal Arch Degree, also completed after the Master Masons Degree, the title of Haggai represents one of the senior Chapter Officers.

Confirmation of his name being Rowe-Rowe was provided in this article from Die Burger Woongids, 3 Junie 1989:

"DIÉ imposante Victoriaanse huis, Glynnville Terrace, in Tuine, wat pas tot nasionale gedenkwaardigheid verklaar is, is oorspronklik op die plaas Krynauw-se-Hof gebou. Die landgoed is later by die Goeie Hoop-Seminarie aan die oorkant van die straat, ingelyf. 'n Ry vrystaande enkelverdieping-huise, deur die argitek Henry Rowe-Rowe ontwerp, is deur die boukontrakteur Glynville in die middel-negentiende eeu gebou. Die ontwerp van dié huise, asook dié van die ontwikkeling van Kampsbaai, Tuine en Oranjezicht, was projekte waarin Rowe-Rowe gespesialiseer het. Glynville het by die eeuwending van die geboue vergroot deur onder meer 'n tweede verdieping by te voeg. Hy het ook nuwe huise op die erfgedeeltes tussen die bestaande huise gebou. Glynville Terrace 1, met sy kenmerkende toringdak, is geleë op 'n hoek-erf en wat die grens van die terras aandui. Dié huis is die grootste en die imposantste van almal. Die stadsraad kan die onooglike kragpaal gerus verskuif of ondergronds plaas."

All truncated references not fully cited in 'References' are those of Joanna Walker's original text and cited in full in the 'Bibliography' entry of the Lexicon.

List of projects

With photographs
With notes

Beckett's Buildings, alterations: 1931. Johannesburg, Gauteng - Architect
Claradon House: 1926. Johannesburg, Gauteng - Architect
Gereformeerde Kerk Johannesburg-Suid: 1930. Johannesburg, Gauteng - Architect
Glynnville Terrace: n.d.. Gardens, Cape Town, Western Cape - Architect
Harrowby for Mrs E Birnie: 1928. Berea, Johannesburg, Gauteng - Architect
House (next to Northwards): 1924. Johannesburg, Gauteng - Architect
House Aronsen, resident architect for LA LUBYNSKI: 1924. Parktown, Johannesburg, Gauteng - Architect
House Barton Short: 1926. Rosebank, Johannesburg, Gauteng - Architect
House C Athanasoponlos: 1927. Kensington, Johannesburg, Gauteng - Architect
House C Athanasopoulos: 1927. Kensington, Johannesburg, Gauteng - Architect
House Dr Aaronson: 1924. Forest Town, Johannesburg, Gauteng - Supervising Architect
House EA Walker: 1925. Saxonwold, Johannesburg, Gauteng - Architect
House Sachs: 1926. Saxonwold, Johannesburg, Gauteng - Architect
House Thomas Graham: 1925. Orange Grove, Johannesburg, Gauteng - Architect
HW Vorenberg, bldg: 1925. Johannesburg, Gauteng - Architect
Motor Corp of SA Ltd, alt, Claradon Bldgs: 1924. Johannesburg, Gauteng - Architect
Queen's Court: n.d. : 1936. Johannesburg, Gauteng - Architect
Shops, for Segal Bros: 1926. Braamfontein, Johannesburg, Gauteng - Architect

Books citing ROWE

Fransen, Hans. 2004. The old buildings of the Cape. A survey of extant architecture from before c1910 in the area of Cape Town - Calvinia - Colesberg - Uitenhage. Johannesburg & Cape Town: Jonathan Ball Publishers. pp 65

ISAA. 1927. Register of Members the Institute of South African Architects. Johannesburg: ISAA (Unpublished Record). pp R9

Johnson, Brian Andrew. 1987. Domestic architecture at the Cape, 1892-1912 : Herbert Baker, his associates and his contemporaries. Cape Town: Unpublished Thesis UNISA. pp 390

Walker, Michael. 2015. Old hotels of Cape Town (1890-1911), The : A history long forgotten, seldom told. St James: Published Privately. pp 76