Edward Ashworth

Edward Ashworth (1814 – 1896) was an English artist and architect from Devon, England, considered to be the West Country's leading ecclesiastical architect. He was elected a member of the Exeter Diocesan Architectural Society in 1847.

Origins

He was born in 1814 at Colleton Barton, in the parish of Chulmleigh in Devon.

Career He left Colleton in 1822 and later moved to London where he became a pupil of the architect Charles Fowler Following his return to England in 1846 he set up an architectural practice in Exeter, Devon.

Rebuilding works Cullompton, Devon (1849) Dulverton, Somerset (1852–55) Bideford, Devon (1859) Lympstone, Devon (1862) St Mary's, Bideford, Devon (1862–65) Withycombe Raleigh, Exmouth, Devon (1863–64) St Mary Major, Exeter, Devon (1865), now demolished St Margaret's Church, Topsham (1874) Milton Combe (1878) St Nicholas Church, Exeter (opposite St Nicholas Priory) (design of) at the Devon and Exeter Institution and Devon Record Office.

Death and burial He died on 8 March 1896 and left a substantial estate valued at £26,814, mainly invested in Railway stocks. He was buried in the newly created Higher Cemetery, Exeter, for which he had designed two lodges and one chapel. His ornate stone cross, made of pink stone, survives and was restored circa 2010.