NEVILL, John T. (1824-1909) of St. John's, Newfoundland held the position of Superintendent of Public Buildings for more than forty years, and his position was similar to that of a provincial Chief Architect. His responsibilities included the overseeing of the design and construction of court houses, lock-up buildings, lighthouses, jails, asylums, a customs house, and many other provincially funded architectural projects in the period from 1850 until after 1890. He was born in England in 1824, and arrived in the Colony of Newfoundland “....in the prime of life”, probably before 1850.
His first major commission came in 1852 when he was appointed to act as local supervising architect for the new Colonial Penitentiary, and he was dispatched to Boston, Mass. to oversee the preparation and selection of natural stone for the new building. A detailed report on his activity on this project was published in the Patriot & Terra Nova Herald [St. John's], 16 April 1853, p. 1 & 5, but the actual plans for the design of this building were said to have been prepared in England, likely by a prominent (but unnamed) architect in London, and it is unclear how Nevill contributed to, or modified, these plans obtained elsewhere.
Nevill also worked independently as a professional architect, accepting commissions for ecclesiastical and residential projects, including the Gothic design for the Wesleyan Methodist Church in St. John's (1856-57), a local landmark later destroyed in the Great Fire of St. John's on 8 July 1892. He also held the position of Light House Inspector in the Colony of Newfoundland for nearly 30 years, but retired in 1894 and took up residence at Rae Island Farm. He died there on 22 November 1909 (obituary in The Evening Telegram [St. John's], 23 Nov. 1909, 5). His successor as Government Architect was William H. Churchill..
(works in Newfoundland)
ST. JOHN'S, NFLD., Colonial Penitentiary, situated “....between the road leading to Quidi Vidi, and Lake Quidi Vidi, 1852 (Patriot & Terra Nova Herald [St. John's], 16 April 1853, 1 and 5; and 23 April 1853, 2 and 3)
ST. JOHN'S, NFLD., Colonial Lunatic Asylum, 1852 (original signed drawings at the Provincial Archives of Newfoundland, signed “J.T.N”, and “John Nevill, Architect”
ST. JOHN'S, NFLD., Wesleyan Methodist Church, Gower Street, 1856-57; burned 1892 (Patriot & Terra Nova Herald [St. John's] 10 March 1856, 3, t.c.; and 7 Dec. 1857, 2; J. Nichols, A Century of Methodism in St. John's, Nfld., 1915, 21)
FOGO, NFLD, Lock-Up and Court Room, 1866 (M. Carter, Early Canadian Court House, 1983, 27)
CHANNEL, NFLD, Lock-Up and Court Room, 1872 (M. Carter, Early Canadian Court House, 1983, 27)
HARBOUR GRACE, NFLD., Customs House, 1872 (The Star & Conception Bay Advertiser [Harbour Grace], 9 July 1872, 2, descrip; M. Carter, Early Canadian Court House, 1983, 27)
GRAND FALLS, NFLD., Lock-Up and Court Room, 1873-74 (M. Carter, Early Canadian Court House, 1983, 27)
CARBONEAR, NFLD., Court House, 1873, demol. 1962 Lock-Up and Court Room, 1866 (M. Carter, Early Canadian Court House, 1983, 27)
ROSE BLANCHE, NFLD., light house, 1873; additions, 1880 (Canadian Illustrated News, viii, 9 Aug. 1873, 84, 87, illus.; Newfoundland, Minute Books of the Board of Works, entry for 30 Aug. 1880)
CROW HEAD, NFLD., Long Point Light Station, at the entry to Notre Dame Bay, 1876 (Parks Canada, Canada's Historic Places, designation statement 25 March 2004 [online])
BRIGUS, NFLD, Court House, 1883-84 (M. Carter, Early Canadian Court House, 1983, 27, 201, illus.)
ST. JOHN'S, NFLD., new railings and fence around the site of the Colonial Building, 1886 (Evening Telegram [St. John's], 12 June 1886, 4, letter to the Editor by Samuel Waugh)
ST. JOHN'S, NFLD, Examining & Bonded Store House, Queen's Wharf, 1886 (Evening Telegram [St. John's], 30 Sept. 1886, 4)
ST. JOHN'S, NFLD., alterations and improvements to the Court House, 1892 (Evening Telegram [St. John's], 3 Feb. 1892, 1, descrip.)