Henry Bingham Towner (1909–1997) was an English architect. He is best known for designing churches in Southern England.
He was born and raised in Uckfield, Sussex.[1] [2] [3] After giving up on becoming a Roman Catholic priest, he studied architecture.[1] [2] [3]
He started his architectural firm in Uckfield in 1938.[1] [2] [3]
He is best known for designing many churches in Sussex, Kent and Surrey in South-East England, starting in the 1950s.[1] [2] [3] For example, he designed St Wilfrid's Church in Hailsham in 1954.[2] [3] In 1957, he designed the Church of Our Lady of Lourdes, Queen of Peace located at Whiteway Lane in Rottingdean and the Church of St Thomas of Canterbury in Mayfield.[2] [3] In 1959, he designed St John Vianney Roman Catholic Church in Bexleyheath and the Church of St Teresa of Avila in Chiddingfold.[2] [3]
Two years later, in 1961, he designed St Gabriel's Church, Billingshurst and started work on St Michael and All Angels Church in Locksbottom, Farnborough, Kent (completed in 1964).[2] [3] [4] In 1962, he designed St Charles Borromeo Catholic Church in East Worthing, Sussex, and a year later in 1963, St Thomas More's Church in Patcham, a suburb of Brighton.[2] [3] He designed the Chapel of the Holy Rood in Pevensey Bay in 1964.[2] [3] In 1969, he designed an extension to the Church of St Thomas More in Seaford, Sussex and to the St Francis of Assisi Roman Catholic Church in Moulsecoomb, a suburb of Brighton.[2] [3] The same year, he designed St Joseph's Roman Catholic Church in Milford, Surrey.[2] [3] A year later, in 1970, he designed both Christ the King Catholic Church in Langney near Eastbourne and the Holy Family Church in Lancing, West Sussex.[2] [3]