Dictionary of Irish Architects 1720 - 1940

Architect with the Ministry of Finance, Northern Ireland, from 1922 until 1956 or 1957. Details of Thomas Rippingham's early life are not recorded.(1)  He may have been articled to Alfred Hill Parker of Worcester, who was one of his three proposers for associateship of the RIBA.(1) He seems to have served in the First World War as he sat the Special War Examination of the RIBA 'for Students whose studies had been interrupted by the war' in December 1921.(2) By this time he was apparently working for the the Office of Works in London, as indicated by his London address and by the fact that Richard John Allison of the Office of Works was another of his proposers.(3)

In 1922 Rippingham was moved to Belfast as an assistant architect in the new Government of Northern Ireland Works Division.(4) He served at first under ROLAND INGLEBY SMITH ROLAND INGLEBY SMITH , who regularly signed the office's drawings, with the result that some of Rippingham's designs have been wrongly attributed to Smith.(5) Rippingham remained in the Works Division for the rest of his career, succeeding CHARLES STEWART AGNEW  CHARLES STEWART AGNEW as chief architect in the mid 1940s. Among other works, he was responsible for the standard design for RUC barracks throughout Ulster. He retired in 1956, when his place was taken by Charles Munro.(6) He died intestate on 17th December 1964 at his home in Bangor, Co. Down, leaving as estate worth £3070.3s.(7)   He was survived by his widow, Hilda Fairbanks Rippingham.(8)

RIBA: elected associate, 1922, proposed by A. Hill Parker, R.J. Allison and W. Bevan.(9)

Addresses: 42 Upper Manor Street, Chelsea, 1922;(10) Works Division, Ministry of Finance, Government of Northern Ireland, Grand Central Hotel, Belfast, 1923;(11) 32 Osborne Drive, Belfast, 1957;(12) 6 Fifth Avenue, Bangor, Co. Down, at time of death.(13)

See WORKS.



References



(1) Perhaps the same person as Thomas Joseph F. Rippingham who was born in Birmingham in 1896 and was the son of Thomas Rippingham, a commercial traveller in cheese, and his wife Annie, who were living at 227 Frederick Road, Aston Manor, Warwickshire, at the time of the 1901 census.
(2) RIBAJ 29 (1921-22), 227.
(3) RIBAJ 29 (1921-22), 160.
(4) See note 1, above.
(5) Who's Who in Architecture (1923), 207.
(6) C.E.B. Brett, Buildings of North County Down (UAHS, 2002), 196.
(7) Information from Charles Munro (B of I).
(8) PRONI, Register of Wills (information from Ian McQuiston, Bangor, Feb 2010).
(9) See note 8, above.
(9) See note 2, above.
(10) See note 2, above.
(11) See note 5, above.
(12) RIBA Kalendar 1957-1958, 453.
(13) See note 8, above.


21 work entries listed in chronological order for RIPPINGHAM, THOMAS FRANCIS O.


Sort by date | Sort alphabetically


Building: CO. ANTRIM, BELFAST, INNISFAYLE ROAD, HOUSE
Date: 1924
Nature: New villa.
Refs: IB 66, 19 Apr 1924, 350

Building: CO. ANTRIM, BELFAST, STRANMILLIS ROAD, STRANMILLIS COLLEGE
Date: 1928-1930
Nature: 'The architect was...Ingleby Smith, although the design may have been partly or even wholly the work of...T.F.O. Rippingham'. Neo-Goergian. Cornish brick with Portland stone dressings. Mansard roof.
Refs: Hugh Dixon, An Introduction to Ulster Architecture (UAHS, 1975), 79(illus.); Paul Larmour, The Architectural Heritage of Malone & Stranmillis (UAHS, 1991), 164(illus.),165

Building: CO. DOWN, SEAFORDE, NEWCASTLE ROAD, POLICE STATION
Date: 1930
Nature: Neo-Georgian, the 'most outstanding in the series of Royal Ulster Constabulary stations which were built in the decade following partition...Their basic design, the work of T.F.O. Rippingham...'
Refs: Hugh Dixon, An Introduction to Ulster Architecture (UAHS, 1975), 80(illus.)

Building: CO. ANTRIM, BELFAST, CROMAC STREET (& MAY STREET), NO. 001-15 (TELEPHONE HOUSE)
Date: 1931-34
Nature: 6 storey. Grey brick over grey Mourne granite. Zig-zag fanlight over main door and coat of arms carved by Morris Harding. Designed by TFOR under Roland Ingleby Smith.  Contractor: Stewart & Partners Ltd (Belfast).
Refs: Ulster Parliament Building (commemorative booklet issued by Stewart & Partners, Ltd, 1932), 33 (illus.); Roland Ingleby Smith, 'New Telephone Buildings, Belfast', Irish Architect and Builder I, No. 1 (Apr 1934), 17-18 (illus.); Paul Larmour, Belfast: an illustrated architectural guide (1987), 88, no. 204(illus.); Marcus Patton, Central Belfast: an historical gazetteer (UAHS, 1993), 91

Building: CO. ANTRIM, BELFAST, STRANMILLIS ROAD, STRANMILLIS COLLEGE
Date: 1933ca;1949ca
Nature: Main entrance and lodge, 1933c; side entrance and lodge, 1949c. Probably by TFOR.
Refs: J.A.K. Dean, The Gate lodges of Ulster (UAHS, 1994), 2(illus.)9

Building: CO. ANTRIM, BELFAST, STRANMILLIS ROAD, STRANMILLIS COLLEGE, PRINCIPAL'S HOUSE
Date: 1934
Nature: 'architect Ingleby Smith, officially, but the design could have been by T.F.O. Rippingham'.
Refs: Paul Larmour, The Architectural Heritage of Malone & Stranmillis (UAHS, 1991), 166,169(illus.)

Building: CO. DOWN, BANGOR, POST OFFICE
Date: 1936
Nature: 2-storey, 7 bay, rustic brick over stone plinth. Opened 1936.
Refs: Marcus Patton, Bangor: an historical gazetteer (UAHS, 1999), 126,127(illus.)

Building: CO. ANTRIM, BELFAST, ROYAL AVENUE, NO. 030-32 (GENERAL POST OFFICE)
Date: 1937
Nature: Smithfield extension.
Refs: David Evans, An Introduction to Modern Ulster Architecture (1977), 2(illus.); Marcus Patton, Central Belfast: an historical gazetteer (UAHS, 1993), 301

Building: CO. DOWN, BANBRIDGE, SCARVA STREET, POST OFFICE
Date: 1938
Nature: Neo-classical, 3-storey.
Refs: C.E.B. Brett & D. Dunleath, Historic Buildings…in Banbridge (UAHS, 1969), 16 (no. 60)

Building: CO. ANTRIM, BELFAST, STRANMILLIS ROAD, STRANMILLIS COLLEGE, HENRY GARRETT BUILDING
Date: 1943
Nature: -
Refs: Paul Larmour, Belfast: an illustrated architectural guide (1987), 93 (no. 219, illus.); Paul Larmour, The Architectural Heritage of Malone & Stranmillis (UAHS, 1991), 166,170(illus.)

Building: CO. ARMAGH, LAURELVALE (TANDRAGEE), ESSEX RIDGE
Date: 1944
Nature: Terrace of semi-detached 2-storey red brick weavers' houses, for Sinton's Mills.
Refs: Kevin V. Mulligan, The Buildings of Ireland: South Ulster (2013), 547, Pl..112.

Building: CO. ANTRIM, ANTRIM (NEAR), ADMIRALTY HOUSES
Date: 1945
Nature: New houses with single-pitched roofs.
Refs: R. McKinstry, ‘Contemporary Architecture’, in Michael Longley, ed., Causeway: the Arts in Ulster (Arts Council, 1971), 28

Building: CO. ANTRIM, BELFAST, CREGAGH ROAD (& MOUNT MERRION AVENUE), CREGAGH ESTATE
Date: 1945-1950
Nature: Housing scheme for NI Housing Trust.
Refs: RIBAJ 57 (1949-50), 13(illus.); IB 93, 26 May,21 Jul 1951, 556,748; David Evans, An Introduction to Modern Ulster Architecture (1977), 2(illus.), 6(illus.); Paul Larmour, Belfast: an illustrated architectural guide (1987), 94 (no. 220, illus.)

Building: CO. ANTRIM, BELFAST, DONEGALL SQUARE, CITY HALL, AMERICAN FORCES MONUMENT
Date: 1946ca
Nature: American Forces Monument, commemorating landing of US Expeditionary Force, 1942, in centre of main gateway (in form of a short Portland stone column).
Refs: Paul Larmour, Belfast: an illustrated architectural guide (1987), 60 (no. 139); Marcus Patton, Central Belfast: an historical gazetteer (UAHS, 1993), 114

Building: CO. ANTRIM, BELFAST, CREGAGH ROAD (& MOUNT MERRION AVENUE), CREGAGH ESTATE, PRIMARY SCHOOL
Date: 1949
Nature: New school. Contractor: P.J. Walls, Bros., Belfast. Provision for later additions to form U-shaped structure.
Refs: IB 91, 20 Aug 1949, 766; R. McKinstry, ‘Contemporary Architecture’, in Michael Longley, ed., Causeway: the Arts in Ulster (Arts Council, 1971),, 28

Building: CO. ARMAGH, ARMAGH, RAILWAY STREET, BAIRNSWEAR LTD.
Date: 1950
Nature: Built as office and hostel block for Bairnswear Ltd. (Later Armagh Business Centre)
Refs: R. McKinstry, R. Oram, R. Weatherup, P. Wilson, The Buildings of Armagh (UAHS, 1992), 179-80;  Kevin V. Mulligan, The Buildings of Ireland: South Ulster (2013), 128, Pl.111..

Building: CO. ANTRIM, BELFAST, ELMWOOD AVENUE, QUEEN'S UNIVERSITY AGRICULTURE BUILDING
Date: 1952
Nature: Addition of planned-for third storey to building designed by R. Ingleby Smith
Refs: Paul Larmour, Belfast: an illustrated architectural guide (1987), 81 (no. 185)

Building: CO. DERRY, LIMAVADY, MAIN STREET, POST OFFICE
Date: 1952
Nature: New. Orange brick with stepped gables.
Refs: W.D. Girvan, Historic Buildings in North Derry (UAHS, 1975), 13(no.39); Alistair Rowan, The Buildings of Ireland: North West Ulster (1979), 352

Building: CO. ANTRIM, BELFAST, BEERSBRIDGE ROAD, POSTAL DELIVERY OFFICE
Date: 1957
Nature: New postal delivery office for East Belfast, Cost: £50,000. Contractor: W. Scott & Co., Belfast.
Refs: IB 99, 16 Nov,28 Dec 1957, 919,1041(illus.)

Building: CO. DOWN, CULTRA, SEAMOUNT
Date: ?
Nature: Dutch gabled stucco house.
Refs: C.E.B. Brett, Buildings of North County Down (UAHS, 2002), 196-7(illus.)

Building: CO. FERMANAGH, BELLEEK, POLICE STATION
Date: ?
Nature: 7-bay building with red-tiled roof and dormers.
Refs: Alistair Rowan, The Buildings of Ireland: North West Ulster (1979), 142