Charles Cowles Voysey (1889-1981) was a renowned architect from the early part of the 20th Century. In Bromley he was responsible for the ‘Town Hall extension’ (1939) and the former Magistrates Court (1939). Elsewhere, his notable works include Worthing Town Hall, seven years before (old) Bromley Magistrates Court (6) and Kingsley Hall in the East End of London (3).
Charles Cowles Voysey was the son of C.F.A. Voysey, and he was the 3rd generation in a dynasty of architects (6). He graduated from the Barlett school of London University, eventually setting up his own practise in 1912, and in the same year he married Charles married Dorothea Denise Cowles. He chose to add her maiden name to his own and became known as Charles Cowles-Voysey.
“In his work he consciously avoided his father’s distinctive style, often relying upon classical proportion. He insisted, however, upon good materials and fine craftsmanship and avoided elaborate decoration”.[5]
Worthing Town Hall, also by Charles Cowles-Voysey
Kingsley Hall, a trend-setting social development that Charles Cowles-Voysey architected
[5] Obituary, The Times (London), Wednesday 15th April 1981, p.16
(6) https://www.voyseysociety.org/voysey/biography/architects.html (accessed 2019/09/30)
(3) https://wikivisually.com/wiki/Charles_Cowles-Voysey (accessed 2019/09/30)
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