John Andrew Pearson was an early 20th Century Canadian architect and partner to the Toronto

Toronto

Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...

-based firm of Pearson and Darling

Pearson and Darling

Pearson and Darling was an architectural firm based in Toronto from 1897 through 1923, a key player in shaping the urban look of the city and the rest of Canada in the first half of the 20th century.-Formation:...

.

Pearson emigrated to Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

 in 1888. Most of his architectural output is associated with a series of partnerships: he worked for Henry Sproatt

Henry Sproatt

Henry Sproatt was a Canadian architect in the early 20th Century.Born in Toronto, he trained in Europe and in New York. He formed a partnership with another celebrated architect, John A. Pearson in 1890 and with Frank Darling in 1893...

 beginning in 1890, joined Darling, Curry, Sproatt, & Pearson in 1892, with fellow partners Frank Darling

Frank Darling (architect)

Frank Darling was a Canadian architect and key player in buildings built in Toronto during the early 20th century and promoter of the Beaux-Arts style.-Life and career:...

 and S. George Curry

S. George Curry

Samuel George Curry was a Canadian architect who practiced in Toronto as the junior partner of several of Toronto’s leading architects, among them Frank Darling and from 1892 Darling's partner John A. Pearson, Henry Sproatt, Francis S. Baker, Ernest Rolph and W. F...

. Curry departed, and from 1893 through 1896 that office was known as Darling, Sproatt & Pearson, then finally stabilised into the successful and long-lasting Pearson and Darling from 1897 through Pearson's death in 1940.

Pearson's most significant project apart from this partnership is undoubtedly the Centre Block

Centre Block

The Centre Block is the main building of the Canadian parliamentary complex on Parliament Hill, in Ottawa, Ontario, containing the Commons and Senate chambers, as well as the offices of a number of Members of Parliament and Senators, as well as senior administration for both legislative houses...

 on Parliament Hill

Parliament Hill

Parliament Hill , colloquially known as The Hill, is an area of Crown land on the southern banks of the Ottawa River in downtown Ottawa, Ontario. Its Gothic revival suite of buildingsthe parliament buildings serves as the home of the Parliament of Canada and contains a number of architectural...

 in Ottawa, a complex that contains the Canadian House of Commons

Canadian House of Commons

The House of Commons of Canada is a component of the Parliament of Canada, along with the Sovereign and the Senate. The House of Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 308 members known as Members of Parliament...

 and Senate of Canada, and the adjoining Peace Tower

Peace Tower

The Peace Tower is a focal bell and clock tower, sitting on the central axis of the Centre Block of the Canadian parliament buildings in Ottawa, Ontario. The present incarnation replaced the Victoria Tower after the latter burned down in 1916, along with most of the Centre Block...

.

The previous Centre Block burned in 1916, entirely destroyed except for the Library of Parliament

Library of Parliament

The Library of Parliament is the main information repository and research resource for the Parliament of Canada...

. By 1920 the Centre Block was rebuilt with a design by Pearson and collaborator Jean Omer Marchand from Montreal. The Peace Tower commemorating the end of the First World War

World War I

World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

 was completed in 1927.

Pearson was the first Vice-President of Ontario Association of Architects (1902).

Works

Building	Year Completed	Builder	Style	Source	Location	Image
University of Toronto Faculty of Law University of Toronto Faculty of Law Established in 1887, the University of Toronto Faculty of Law is one of the oldest professional faculties at the University of Toronto. The Faculty of Law is particularly renowned in the areas of corporate law, international law, law and economics, and legal theory.The law school has been...  Flavelle House	1901	John A. Pearson John A. Pearson John Andrew Pearson was an early 20th Century Canadian architect and partner to the Toronto-based firm of Pearson and Darling.Pearson emigrated to Canada in 1888...  & Frank Darling Frank Darling (architect) Frank Darling was a Canadian architect and key player in buildings built in Toronto during the early 20th century and promoter of the Beaux-Arts style.-Life and career:...	Romanesque Revival architecture Romanesque Revival architecture Romanesque Revival is a style of building employed beginning in the mid 19th century inspired by the 11th and 12th century Romanesque architecture...		University of Toronto University of Toronto The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...  St. George campus, Toronto, Ontario
Convocation Hall Convocation Hall (University of Toronto) Convocation Hall is a domed rotunda on the grounds of the University of Toronto in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Designed by Pearson and Darling and completed in 1907, it was inspired by the grand theatre of the Sorbonne and the Sheldonian Theatre at Oxford...	1906	John A. Pearson John A. Pearson John Andrew Pearson was an early 20th Century Canadian architect and partner to the Toronto-based firm of Pearson and Darling.Pearson emigrated to Canada in 1888...  & Frank Darling Frank Darling (architect) Frank Darling was a Canadian architect and key player in buildings built in Toronto during the early 20th century and promoter of the Beaux-Arts style.-Life and career:...	Romanesque Revival architecture Romanesque Revival architecture Romanesque Revival is a style of building employed beginning in the mid 19th century inspired by the 11th and 12th century Romanesque architecture...		University of Toronto University of Toronto The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...  St. George campus, Toronto, Ontario
University of Toronto University of Toronto The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...  Sanford Fleming Building University of Toronto Faculty of Applied Science and Engineering The Faculty of Applied Science and Engineering is an academic division of the University of Toronto devoted to study and research in engineering. Founded in 1873 as the School of Practical Science, it is still known today by the longtime nickname of Skule...	1907	John A. Pearson John A. Pearson John Andrew Pearson was an early 20th Century Canadian architect and partner to the Toronto-based firm of Pearson and Darling.Pearson emigrated to Canada in 1888...  & Frank Darling Frank Darling (architect) Frank Darling was a Canadian architect and key player in buildings built in Toronto during the early 20th century and promoter of the Beaux-Arts style.-Life and career:...	Romanesque Revival architecture Romanesque Revival architecture Romanesque Revival is a style of building employed beginning in the mid 19th century inspired by the 11th and 12th century Romanesque architecture...		10 King's College Circle, Toronto, Ontario
University of Toronto University of Toronto The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...  Sigmund Samuel Building	1907	John A. Pearson John A. Pearson John Andrew Pearson was an early 20th Century Canadian architect and partner to the Toronto-based firm of Pearson and Darling.Pearson emigrated to Canada in 1888...  & Frank Darling Frank Darling (architect) Frank Darling was a Canadian architect and key player in buildings built in Toronto during the early 20th century and promoter of the Beaux-Arts style.-Life and career:...	Romanesque Revival architecture Romanesque Revival architecture Romanesque Revival is a style of building employed beginning in the mid 19th century inspired by the 11th and 12th century Romanesque architecture...		10 King's College Circle, Toronto, Ontario
University of Toronto University of Toronto The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...  Sigmund Samuel Building additions	1912	John A. Pearson John A. Pearson John Andrew Pearson was an early 20th Century Canadian architect and partner to the Toronto-based firm of Pearson and Darling.Pearson emigrated to Canada in 1888...  & Frank Darling Frank Darling (architect) Frank Darling was a Canadian architect and key player in buildings built in Toronto during the early 20th century and promoter of the Beaux-Arts style.-Life and career:...	Romanesque Revival architecture Romanesque Revival architecture Romanesque Revival is a style of building employed beginning in the mid 19th century inspired by the 11th and 12th century Romanesque architecture...		7 King's College Circle, Toronto, Ontario
Toronto General Hospital Toronto General Hospital The Toronto General Hospital , is a part of the University Health Network, and a major teaching hospital in downtown Toronto, Ontario. It is located in the Discovery District, directly north of the Hospital for Sick Children, across Gerrard Street West, and east of Princess Margaret Hospital and... - College Wing	1913	John A. Pearson John A. Pearson John Andrew Pearson was an early 20th Century Canadian architect and partner to the Toronto-based firm of Pearson and Darling.Pearson emigrated to Canada in 1888...  & Frank Darling Frank Darling (architect) Frank Darling was a Canadian architect and key player in buildings built in Toronto during the early 20th century and promoter of the Beaux-Arts style.-Life and career:...	Romanesque Revival architecture Romanesque Revival architecture Romanesque Revival is a style of building employed beginning in the mid 19th century inspired by the 11th and 12th century Romanesque architecture...		101 College Street, Toronto, Ontario
Centre Block Centre Block The Centre Block is the main building of the Canadian parliamentary complex on Parliament Hill, in Ottawa, Ontario, containing the Commons and Senate chambers, as well as the offices of a number of Members of Parliament and Senators, as well as senior administration for both legislative houses...  containing Canadian House of Commons Canadian House of Commons The House of Commons of Canada is a component of the Parliament of Canada, along with the Sovereign and the Senate. The House of Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 308 members known as Members of Parliament... , Senate of Canada, Peace Tower Peace Tower The Peace Tower is a focal bell and clock tower, sitting on the central axis of the Centre Block of the Canadian parliament buildings in Ottawa, Ontario. The present incarnation replaced the Victoria Tower after the latter burned down in 1916, along with most of the Centre Block... ,	1920	John A. Pearson John A. Pearson John Andrew Pearson was an early 20th Century Canadian architect and partner to the Toronto-based firm of Pearson and Darling.Pearson emigrated to Canada in 1888...  & Jean Omer Marchand	Romanesque Revival architecture Romanesque Revival architecture Romanesque Revival is a style of building employed beginning in the mid 19th century inspired by the 11th and 12th century Romanesque architecture...		Parliament Hill Parliament Hill Parliament Hill , colloquially known as The Hill, is an area of Crown land on the southern banks of the Ottawa River in downtown Ottawa, Ontario. Its Gothic revival suite of buildingsthe parliament buildings serves as the home of the Parliament of Canada and contains a number of architectural... , Ottawa, Ontario

External links

• JA Pearson
• John A Pearson at The Canadian Encyclopedia
  The Canadian Encyclopedia
  The Canadian Encyclopedia is a source of information on Canada. It is available online, at no cost. The Canadian Encyclopedia is available in both English and French and includes some 14,000 articles in each language on a wide variety of subjects including history, popular culture, events, people,...
  
  
• Pearson and Darling