Michael Francis Cavanagh was an Australian architect, primarily known for his work in Western Australia from 1895 to the late 1930s.
Early life and education
Cavanagh was born in August 1860 near Beechworth, Victoria, the second son of an Irish born builder and contractor, John Cavanagh. In 1881 his family moved to Adelaide, South Australia, where his father took on a position as supervisor of public buildings in the Government Architect's Department. Cavanagh in his early teens first studied at the South Australian School of Art before entering the Government Architecture's Department, where he received architectural training. In 1887 he left to study architecture in London, in the studio-offices of John Slater, and then with Frank Baggallay and Walter Millard, before entering the National Art Training School. In 1888 Cavanagh passed examinations obtaining an associateship with the Royal Institute of British Architects. He was also elected a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society for his studies in ancient and modern architecture and art. He returned to South Australia and rejoined the Government Architect's Department, eventually reaching the position of Chief Draughtsman. In 1891 he established his own private practice, where he designed a number of buildings in Adelaide, Peterborough and Port Pirie, including the Barrier Hotel in Port Pirie. Cavanagh served on the board of the Art Gallery, Museum and Library and was a member of the South Australian Society of Arts. He was also a councillor at the Adelaide City Council, the president of the South Australia Institute of Architects and a founding member of the South Australian branch of the Australian Natives' Association and the Wattle Day League.
Western Australia works
In 1895 he moved to Western Australia, with the objective of establishing a branch of his firm in Perth. In 1896 he designed the Great Western Hotel, a three storey brick, stucco and iron roof hotel, on the corner of James and William Streets, Northbridge. Cavanagh designed the hotel in the Federation Filigree architectural style and it was one of the most lavish hotels constructed in Perth during the Western Australian gold boom. On 11 May 1897 he married Dorothy Le Poer Trench, the third daughter of Hon. Judge Robert Le Poer Trench, Q.C., a County Court Judge of Ballarat, at St Mary's Cathedral, Perth. In 1898 the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate commissioned Cavanagh to design a new church on the site of a former Benedictine church in Fremantle. The church is an imposing limestone building in the Federation Gothic style with decorated Gothic detailing. St. Patrick's Basilica was consecrated in June 1900, with numerous dignitaries, including Sir John Forrest, in attendance. It is one of five churches in Australia with minor basilica status. In 1900 he was joined by his younger brother, James Charles, who became a partner in the architectural practice, Cavanagh and Cavanagh. The firm had a long association with the Catholic Church, designing a number of hospitals, schools and churches. In 1924 the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Perth, Patrick Clune, commenced an appeal to fund the construction of a larger cathedral, to replace the original 1865 building, in his own words "building a Cathedral worthy of Almighty God, of the Archdiocese and of the City of Perth". Cavanagh was appointed architect for the project and he produced plans for a completely new limestone Academic Gothic Cathedral. Due to financial constraints, associated with the onset of the Great Depression, it was decided to utilise the existing building, which subsequently became the nave, and add only new transepts and a sanctuary. The expanded, but incomplete, St Mary's Cathedral opened on 4 May 1930. Cavanagh died at a private hospital in Subiaco on 29 May 1941, following a two-month illness, and was buried in the Roman Catholic portion of Karrakatta Cemetery.
