Name

(Sir) James Grey West

Designation
Chief Architect - Ministry of Works
Born
1885
Place of Birth
Cardiff
Location
London
Died
1951

  • Birth date            1885 at Cardiff
  • Married (I)          1911, Margaret, daughter of Thomas Wathen - one son two daughters
  • Married (II)         1934, Ivy, daughter of Farrant Good
  • Death date          15 June 1951
  • Cremation           18 June 1951 at Weymouth

James Grey West was born in Cardiff in 1885 the son of William Henry West and was educated at Cardiff High School before being articled to Edgar Down in Cardiff about 1900. He entered the Office of Works in 1904 as a temporary draughtsman and was appointed assistant architect in 1911. By 1933 he had been promoted through the ranks to become one of the senior architects in the Architects’ Division and in October of that year was appointed Chief Architect in succession to Sir Richard Allison CBE FRIBA who was due to retire on January 7 1934, on attaining the age limit. During the Second World War he held the post of Director of Post War Planning. He retired in 1945, aged 60, having been awarded an OBE in 1930 and knighthood in 1936. He was elected Fellow of the RIBA in 1934 and served on several committees

Among his works in an official capacity were the RAF College, Cranwell; Royal Courts of Justice, Belfast; Ministry of Pensions Offices, Acton; Consulate General, Alexandria; the Catafalque at Westminster Hall for the lying-in state of King George V.; the annexe to Westminster Abbey for the Coronation of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, etc. He was a member British Building Mission to USA, 1943

Sir James Grey West died on 15 June 1951 at his residence, "Rosewarne,"Beer, Seaton, Devon. His cremation took place at Weymouth on 18 June 1951.

Death Notice    The Times, Tuesday, 19 June 19, 1951; page 1
Obituary        Sir James West. The Times, Tuesday, 19 June 19, 1951; page 6; Issue 52031

Reference    The Times, Wednesday, 11 October 1933; page 12 - appointment
Reference    Who Was Who, 1920–2008; online edition, Oxford University Press, Dec 2007
Reference    Dictionary of Scottish Architects
Image        National Portrait Gallery