Joseph Paxton Biography

Joseph Paxton was an English gardener and architect who is chiefly remembered for designing one of most famous buildings of Victoria's reign ‘The Crystal Palace’. Born in England to a farming family, he held a number of gardening jobs until he began working at Chiswick Gardens of the Horticultural Society, adjacent to the gardens of the Duke of Devonshire. Impressed with his abilities, the Duke appointed Paxton head gardener at Chatsworth House, the Devonshire family's large country house in Derbyshire, where Paxton successfully went on to design gardens, fountains, a model village and an arboretum. He also married the Chatsworth housekeeper's niece, Sarah Bown. His moment of glory arrived with the 1851 Great Exhibition where he delivered a splendid design for the main hall in Hyde Park named as ‘The Crystal Palace’. The novelty of his extraordinary plan was its revolutionary, modular, prefabricated design and the extensive use of glass. Built within six months by 2000 men, the hall was a huge success and subsequently, Paxton was knighted by Queen Victoria. Thereafter, while retaining his post as the head gardener at Chatsworth, Paxton also took up a number of other projects such as working on the layout of public parks and helped in creating various country houses. Subsequently, he became wealthy through successful speculation in the booming railway industry and served as a Member of Parliament until his death.