Eugenie Dorothy Hughes, MBE,FRIBA (26 June 1910 – 16 August 1987) was a Kenyan architect, politician, social reformer and disability activist. She founded the Kenyan Council of Social Services and served as the head of the Sports Association for the Disabled. As the first East African female architect, she owned her own firm and is best known for her design of the Cathedral of the Holy Family in Nairobi.
Eugenie Dorothy[1] Ullman[2] was born on 26 June 1910[3] in London. Her parents moved to the Rift Valley town of Eldoret in Uasin Gishu County, in 1913, constructing the second building in that town. She grew up in Kenya but returned to London for schooling,[2] attending the Architectural Association School of Architecture.[4] She returned to Kenya and married the Kenyan Ford agent, John Hughes, who later founded Hughes Motors. Subsequently, the couple had 6 children.[5]
Hughes became a Fellow of the Royal Institute of British Architects in 1946.[6] She opened an architectural firm, Hughes and Polkinghorne, designing such structures as the Golden Beach Hotel,[7] Murangi House, the Princess Elizabeth Hospital, the Rift Valley Sports Club,[8] and St. Mary's School, Nairobi, among many others.[9] In 1950, she was awarded Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (MBE) for her design work on the hospitals in Kenya, like the Nakuru War Memorial Hospital. Between 1950 and 1951 Hughes served as vice president of the East Africa Women's League, which was formed to promote an initiative and collect funds to address the hospital shortage in Nairobi; she subsequently served as president for the 1951-1952 term.[6]
In 1955 Hughes was elected to serve on the Nairobi City Council[10] and was elected by the mostly Afrikaner constituency in 1956 to represent the Uasin Gishu settlers on the Legislative Council. In 1959, she was selected as the delegate to the 1960 Lancaster House Conference in London to secure Kenyan independence. Hughes lost her seat in the 1961 elections primarily because of her Catholicism and membership in the New Kenya Party. The primary was only open to white settlers, the constituency which had previously elected her was mostly non-white, and the New Kenya Party was the first multi-racial party in Kenya. After the loss of the election, Hughes turned her sights to community social welfare projects such as the Cheshire Homes for the disabled.[5] Hughes served as vice chair of the organizing committee for the International Conference on Social Welfare held in Nairobi in July, 1974 and was a founding member of the Kenyan Council of Social Services. She also served as chair of the Kenya Sports Association for the Disabled.[11]
Hughes' most noted design work was of the Cathedral of the Holy Family which she designed in 1960. Known for its modernist style and non-figurative stained glass, the building also featured carrara marble[4] and seating for 4,000. In addition to the main altar, there are two side altars, two halls and eight chapels. It currently serves as the headquarters of the Archdiocese of Nairobi.[12] In the late 1960s, she designed an annex to the Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA) which held a popular flying saucer-shaped nightclub known for its local benga music, as well as Afro-Caribbean calypso and soukous rhythms.[4] The club, located in the red-light district of Nairobi on Koinange Street,[13] went through various name changes[4] but was locally known as the F1, Madhouse, or Maddi, until its 2014 demolition.[13] Both of these buildings were listed by the Daily Nation in the list of top buildings in Kenya.[12][14]
Late in life, Hughes donated her home in Mũthangari, in the Lavington area of Nairobi to the organization Opus Dei as the permanent home of Kibondeni College. She had worked with the members of Opus Dei for many years to establish educational opportunities for girls in Nairobi.[15] She died on 16 August 1987 in Tunbridge Wells, Kent, England[16] and was buried in St. Austin's Cemetery, Mũthangari, Nairobi, Kenya.[3]
^"How the Africans help themselves—and how Australia can learn". Sydney, Australia: The Sydney Morning Herald. 7 February 1974. p. 3. Retrieved 20 October 2015.
^ ab"Top 20 Buildings in Kenya". Nairobi, Kenya: Daily Kenya. 17 September 2012. Retrieved 21 October 2015.
^ abMulei, Tracy (27 August 2014). "End of an era as Nairobi's Mad House is demolished". Nairobi, Kenya: Nairobi Digest. Retrieved 20 October 2015.
^Gisesa, Nyambega (7 September 2012). "Named: Kenya's top 15 buildings". Nairobi, Kenya: Daily Nation. Retrieved 24 October 2015.
Gichure, Christine (2011). "The Beginnings of Kibondeni College, Nairobi. A Historical and Sociological Overview" (PDF). (Studia et Documenta) SetD. 5. Pamplona, Spain: Universidad de Navarra. ISSN 1970-4879. Retrieved 20 October 2015.[permanent dead link]
Kenya Gazette (22 February 1955). General Notice 451: City Council of Nairobi. Nairobi, Kenya.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
Kenya Gazette (5 September 1958). Electoral Area No. 1—Nairobi North.
Kenya Gazette (11 December 1987). Cause #955 of 1987. Nairobi, Kenya.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
January 01, 1970
dorothy, hughes, architect, eugenie, dorothy, hughes, friba, june, 1910, august, 1987, kenyan, architect, politician, social, reformer, disability, activist, founded, kenyan, council, social, services, served, head, sports, association, disabled, first, east, . Eugenie Dorothy Hughes MBE FRIBA 26 June 1910 16 August 1987 was a Kenyan architect politician social reformer and disability activist She founded the Kenyan Council of Social Services and served as the head of the Sports Association for the Disabled As the first East African female architect she owned her own firm and is best known for her design of the Cathedral of the Holy Family in Nairobi Dorothy HughesBornEugenie Dorothy Ullman 1910 06 26 26 June 1910London EnglandDied16 August 1987 1987 08 16 aged 77 Tunbridge Wells County Kent England Buried at Muthangari Nairobi Kenya Nationality legal KenyanOccupation s Architect politicianBiography editEugenie Dorothy 1 Ullman 2 was born on 26 June 1910 3 in London Her parents moved to the Rift Valley town of Eldoret in Uasin Gishu County in 1913 constructing the second building in that town She grew up in Kenya but returned to London for schooling 2 attending the Architectural Association School of Architecture 4 She returned to Kenya and married the Kenyan Ford agent John Hughes who later founded Hughes Motors Subsequently the couple had 6 children 5 Hughes became a Fellow of the Royal Institute of British Architects in 1946 6 She opened an architectural firm Hughes and Polkinghorne designing such structures as the Golden Beach Hotel 7 Murangi House the Princess Elizabeth Hospital the Rift Valley Sports Club 8 and St Mary s School Nairobi among many others 9 In 1950 she was awarded Most Excellent Order of the British Empire MBE for her design work on the hospitals in Kenya like the Nakuru War Memorial Hospital Between 1950 and 1951 Hughes served as vice president of the East Africa Women s League which was formed to promote an initiative and collect funds to address the hospital shortage in Nairobi she subsequently served as president for the 1951 1952 term 6 nbsp Her noted design for Nairobi s Cathedral of the Holy Family In 1955 Hughes was elected to serve on the Nairobi City Council 10 and was elected by the mostly Afrikaner constituency in 1956 to represent the Uasin Gishu settlers on the Legislative Council In 1959 she was selected as the delegate to the 1960 Lancaster House Conference in London to secure Kenyan independence Hughes lost her seat in the 1961 elections primarily because of her Catholicism and membership in the New Kenya Party The primary was only open to white settlers the constituency which had previously elected her was mostly non white and the New Kenya Party was the first multi racial party in Kenya After the loss of the election Hughes turned her sights to community social welfare projects such as the Cheshire Homes for the disabled 5 Hughes served as vice chair of the organizing committee for the International Conference on Social Welfare held in Nairobi in July 1974 and was a founding member of the Kenyan Council of Social Services She also served as chair of the Kenya Sports Association for the Disabled 11 Hughes most noted design work was of the Cathedral of the Holy Family which she designed in 1960 Known for its modernist style and non figurative stained glass the building also featured carrara marble 4 and seating for 4 000 In addition to the main altar there are two side altars two halls and eight chapels It currently serves as the headquarters of the Archdiocese of Nairobi 12 In the late 1960s she designed an annex to the Kenya Tea Development Agency KTDA which held a popular flying saucer shaped nightclub known for its local benga music as well as Afro Caribbean calypso and soukous rhythms 4 The club located in the red light district of Nairobi on Koinange Street 13 went through various name changes 4 but was locally known as the F1 Madhouse or Maddi until its 2014 demolition 13 Both of these buildings were listed by the Daily Nation in the list of top buildings in Kenya 12 14 Late in life Hughes donated her home in Mũthangari in the Lavington area of Nairobi to the organization Opus Dei as the permanent home of Kibondeni College She had worked with the members of Opus Dei for many years to establish educational opportunities for girls in Nairobi 15 She died on 16 August 1987 in Tunbridge Wells Kent England 16 and was buried in St Austin s Cemetery Mũthangari Nairobi Kenya 3 References edit Kenya Gazette 1958 p 919 a b Gichure 2011 p 98 a b Barnes Bob 2007 St Austin s Cemetery HUGHES Dorothy Nairobi Kenya EA Memorials Retrieved 21 October 2015 a b c d O Toole Sean 23 April 2015 International Style London England Frieze Magazine Archived from the original on 20 October 2015 Retrieved 20 October 2015 a b Gichure 2011 p 99 a b Mrs E D Hughes MBE HSC FRIBA President 1951 1952 Nairobi Kenya East Africa Women s League Retrieved 21 October 2015 Golden beach Nairobi Kenya London England Latis Network Retrieved 21 October 2015 Into The Wilds Of Karen And Rest For The Weary Nairobi Kenya Happening Travel Chatter 28 March 2012 Retrieved 21 October 2015 Safari Rally winner Kenya vehicle assembly pioneer passes on at 77 Nairobi Kenya Business Daily 20 September 2012 Retrieved 21 October 2015 Kenya Gazette 1955 p 155 How the Africans help themselves and how Australia can learn Sydney Australia The Sydney Morning Herald 7 February 1974 p 3 Retrieved 20 October 2015 a b Top 20 Buildings in Kenya Nairobi Kenya Daily Kenya 17 September 2012 Retrieved 21 October 2015 a b Mulei Tracy 27 August 2014 End of an era as Nairobi s Mad House is demolished Nairobi Kenya Nairobi Digest Retrieved 20 October 2015 Gisesa Nyambega 7 September 2012 Named Kenya s top 15 buildings Nairobi Kenya Daily Nation Retrieved 24 October 2015 Gichure 2011 pp 98 99 Kenya Gazette 1987 p 1766 Sources editGichure Christine 2011 The Beginnings of Kibondeni College Nairobi A Historical and Sociological Overview PDF Studia et Documenta SetD 5 Pamplona Spain Universidad de Navarra ISSN 1970 4879 Retrieved 20 October 2015 permanent dead link Kenya Gazette 22 February 1955 General Notice 451 City Council of Nairobi Nairobi Kenya a href Template Cite book html title Template Cite book cite book a CS1 maint location missing publisher link Kenya Gazette 5 September 1958 Electoral Area No 1 Nairobi North Kenya Gazette 11 December 1987 Cause 955 of 1987 Nairobi Kenya a href Template Cite book html title Template Cite book cite book a CS1 maint location missing publisher link Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Dorothy Hughes architect amp oldid 1197657704, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
