Argus (Melbourne, Vic. : 1848 - 1957), Saturday 26 June 1915, page 16


DEATH OF LEADING ARCHITECT.

Mr. J. J. Clark, the well-known architect, died at his residence, Canterbury road, St. Kilda, yesterday morning. He was engaged, together with his son, in carrying out the new Melbourne Hospital block of buildings, which is now approaching completion. Mr. Clark was aged 77, and was therefore prob-ably the oldest practising architect in Aus-tralia. He was born in Liverpool, and came to Victoria in 1857, entering the Public Works department at the age of 13. During his connection with the de-partment he designed and carried out many of the most important buildings in that office, viz., the Treasury Buildings at the top of Collins street, which he designed at the age of 21; the Government Printing Office, the Custom House, Public Office,

Bendigo; Government House, the Law Courts, the Mint, the principal insane asylums and gaols.

In 1883 he was appointed Government architect for Queensland, where he de-signed many of the important buildings in that State including the Treasury Build-ings, one of the largest departmental build-ings in Australia. Later he had charge of the hospitals for the West Australian Go-ernment, when, in 1897 he resumed pri-vate practice in partnership with his son, who came out from London to join him after some years of study in that city. It was at this time when at the age of 60, that he began a period of further architectural competition successes, viz., winning in suc-cession the Fremantle Town Hall altera-tion; St. Andrew's Church, Perth; the Children's Hospital, Perth; the Newcastle and Maitland hospitals, N.S.W.; and the City Baths, Melbourne; when he returned to Melbourne, and during the last 10 years the firm has won the following competi-tions and carried out the buildings:—The National Mutual Life, Ballarat; the Women's Hospital Carlton; the Carlton

Refuge, the Auckland Town Hall, and, finally, the new Melbourne Hospital, which forms a fitting monument to a fine career.

Mr. Clark, after securing the Melbourne

Hospital work, made a trip round the world to view hospital buildings.

His sole surviving immediate relatives are his sister, Mrs. M. M. Panter, of Williams-town, and his only son, Mr. E. J. Clark, of

St. Kilda.