William John Prouse

1879 - 1956

William John Prouse (1879 – 1956) was born in Patea. His family were timber merchants and were involved in the building industry. William Prouse is said to have had no formal architectural training before he joined in partnership with Jack Hoggard in 1907 to form Hoggard & Prouse. This influential Wellington practice became Hoggard, Prouse and Gummer in 1913 when William Henry Gummer joined as a partner and opened an Auckland branch office. The three-way partnership was dissolved by 1921, although Gummer and Prouse collaborated on work until c.1923. William Gummer went on to form Gummer & Ford, a pre-eminent New Zealand practice of the mid-20th century.

William Prouse formed a partnership with an employee of Gummer & Prouse in the early 1930s. Norman Wilson (1901 - 1973) was a London-born architect who moved to New Zealand in 1923. The partnership of Prouse & Wilson continued until 1956 when William Prouse died. Wilson remained in practice in Wellington until his retirement in 1964.

Image: Portrait of William John Prouse. S P Andrew Ltd :Portrait negatives. Ref: 1/1-014614-G. Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington, New Zealand. http://natlib.govt.nz/records/22697740

Sources:
Mew, Geoff & Adrian Humphris. “Raupo to Deco: Wellington Styles and Architects 1840 – 1940” (Wellington: Steel Roberts Aotearoa, 2014)
NZHPT Glossary
WCC Heritage Inventory 2001

Last updated: 11/9/2016 12:42:02 AM