Papers of Cecil Howitt and Partners of Nottingham, architects

Thomas Cecil Howitt (1889 - 1968) was one of the leading provincial architects of his day. From 1919 to 1928 he was principally engaged in the design of Nottingham's housing schemes, gaining for the City a high reputation for the quality, quantity and cost effectiveness of its municipal housing. His most important work however was the new City Council House and Exchange Building, opened by the Prince of Wales in 1929, and described in The Times as ‘probably still the finest municipal building outside London’. By 1930 he had also established an extensive private practice and gained a deserved reputation for fine public and commercial buildings, which included some Odeon cinemas, banks, churches, almshouses and a brewery. He remained active locally, designing Nottingham University's Portland Building, the City's YMCA and the Raleigh Cycle Company's Head Office. His papers comprise cash books and ledgers, 1929-1979, contract ledgers, 1920s-60s, specifications and bills of quantities, and photographs.