History | The contribution of Sir James Campbell Irwin (23/6/1906–22/6/1990) to South Australia was not just architectural but through his services to local government and the wider community.
Irwin was educated at Queen’s School and St Peter’s College. Influenced by his cousin Leighton Irwin, founder of the Architectural Atelier at the University of Melbourne, he studied architecture at the South Australian School of Mines and Industries, graduating in 1926 with an Architectural Draftsman’s Certificate. In 1924 he was articled to George K. Soward of English and Soward, architects principally engaged on substantial homes for the wealthy.
Following the completion of his articles, in 1928 Irwin joined Woods, Bagot, Jory and Laybourne Smith. In 1930, at the age of 24, he became a partner, with the practice renamed Woods, Bagot, Laybourne Smith and Irwin; he remained a senior partner from 1965 until his retirement in 1974.
James Irwin was the designer of Carrick Hill, a large English manor-style house set on a 43 hectare site at Springfield (1937–9). The two-storey house, constructed of Basket Range sandstone, has an asymmetric design with Elizabethan-style chimney stacks and gabled and hipped roof forms. Much of the internal wood finishings came from sixteenth-century Beau Desert Castle, Staffordshire.
From 1947 to 1974 Irwin continued the firm’s connection with the Anglican Church when he replaced Bagot as architect for St Peter’s Cathedral, North Adelaide. Other religious, educational and medical buildings designed by Irwin’s firm included Scotch College Chapel, Seymour College, St Mark’s College, Calvary Hospital and the Julia Farr Centre. Central Business District office buildings included the Da Costa Building in Grenfell Street, the Bennett and Fisher and Dalgety buildings in Currie Street, City Mutual Building, CBC Bank and ANZ Bank in King William Street, the Prudential and Bagot’s Trustee buildings in North Terrace and the Building Centre in South Terrace.
During 1957 the Advertiser newspaper and other Adelaide businesses sponsored Irwin to visit the USA to inspect newspaper office buildings and children’s hospitals to ascertain the latest developments in the field for Woods, Bagot, Laybourne Smith and Irwin, which had gained the commissions for the rebuilding of the Advertiser newspaper offices and the Adelaide Children’s Hospital. The Advertiser Building on King William Street utilised a new construction method for pouring concrete floors on lost formwork in multi-storey buildings.
Irwin became an Associate member of the South Australian Institute of Architects in 1930, a Fellow in 1941 and President from 1956 to 1958. He was President of the Royal Australian Institute of Architects (RAIA) from 1962 to 1963 and was honoured with Life Fellowship in 1970; the RAIA (SA Chapter) named its President’s Medal in his honour. He was also a Fellow of the Royal Australian Planning Institute and the Royal Society of Arts, London. From 1938 to 1940 and from 1947 to 1953 he served as Aide de Chief to the Governor of South Australia.
He was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire, Military Division in 1944 for services in New Guinea during World War Two. He later received the Efficiency Decoration and was a Colonel Commandant, Royal Australian Artillery from 1966 to 1971. He devoted much time to community work and, apart from his period of war service, was on the Adelaide City Council from 1936 to 1972 and was Lord Mayor between 1963 and 1966. He was presented with a Rotary Club of Adelaide Service Award in 1969 and was made an Honorary Fellow of St Mark’s College in 1973. In recognition of his services to Government and the community he was made a Knight Bachelor in the Queen’s Birthday Honours in 1971. |