Arthur Townend | |
Birth Date: | March 2, 1924 |
Birth Place: | Cuba |
Death Date: | July 9, 2005 |
Death Place: | Sudbury, Ontario |
Sydney Arthur Townend, (March 2, 1924 – July 9, 2005) was a Cuban-born Canadian architect.[1] Based in Sudbury, Ontario, he designed a number of Sudbury buildings, such as Fielding Memorial Chapel of St. Mark, the Sudbury Civic Square and the Laurentian Hospital (now known as the north tower of Health Sciences North).
Townend was born in Cuba in 1924. He spent his early childhood in Jamaica where he studied at Munro College. In 1942 he arrived to Montreal, Canada, and was sent to the Prairies to contribute to the war effort of World War II. The same year, he was infected by polio and received treatments at the Montreal General Hospital. He attended McGill University School of Architecture in 1943 where he graduated in 1948.[2] He then moved to Sudbury where he married Mary Evelyn Sheahan in 1950.[3] He practiced architecture in Sudbury until his retirement in 1988. He was a member of many social clubs around Sudbury, including the Sudbury Yacht Club and the Idylwylde Golf Club.
Arthur Townend died on July 9, 2005 in Sudbury, Ontario.
Arthur Townend practiced architecture from 1948 until his retirement in 1988. In 1948 he started his career as a draftsman for Louis Fabbro where he worked on the Sudbury St. Joseph's Health Centre. In 1955, Townend became partner at Fabbro's firm, which became Fabbro & Townend.[4] He left the firm in 1964 and shortly after partnered with John Stefura to form the firm Townend and Stefura (now known as Bélanger Salach architecture).[5] He is recognized as the architect partner in charge of many buildings in Sudbury ranging from civic to cultural public buildings, and 17 private residences. He was a member of the governing council of the Ontario Association of Architects.