Roy Wilton Lascelles

Roy Wilton Lascelles (1918 - 2019)

Roy Wilton Lascelles was born on 20th April 1918 at Manly, NSW. From 1924 to 1932 he attended private schools in Manly to Intermediate Certificate, and in 1934 did 4th year at North Sydney Boys' High, but in March 1935 he left school for a depression era job, without obtaining his Leaving Certificate, as a draughtsman with structural engineering firm of RS Morris & Co.

In February 1939 he joined the Militia in the Royal Australian Engineers and in May 1940 he enlisted in the AIF 7 Division, also with the RAE.

During 1940 and 1941 Lascelles served in the Middle East – the Western Desert and Syria, and in1942 was serving in Java when he was captured and made a prisoner of war of the Japanese.

Between 1942 and 1945 he worked in Burma and Thailand on railways and aerodromes.

For a fuller appreciation of the wartime experiences of Roy Wilton Lascelles please follow this link:

https://rsllifecare.org.au/latest-news/lifestyle/hidden-treasures-roy-lascelles/

With the end of the war Lascelles returned to Sydney and from 1946 to 1950 attended the University of Sydney under the Commonwealth Reconstruction Training Scheme, graduating with a Bachelor of Engineering.

In January 1950 he was briefly an Engineer Draughtsman with Crooks & Michell (now CMPS), and in February 1950 he joined HR Smith as an engineer. This led, in January 1954, to him being made a junior partner in HR Smith & Lascelles, Consulting Structural Engineers.

This continued until April 1972 when the partnership was dissolved. Lascelles continued the business in the city until he transferred it to his home in November 1990 until finally retiring in September 1993, and closing down the firm of HR Smith and Lascelles.

Lascelles was a member of the Institution of Engineers Australia from 1938 becoming an Associate Member from 1953; a member of the American Society of Civil Engineers from 1950; a member of the American Society of Civil Engineers from 1955 and a member of Association of Consulting Engineers Australia from 1957.

Some projects with which he was involved included:

1939 - 1941 - Sydney Morning Herald building, Pitt, Hunter and O'Connell Streets, where the 194ft high, 13-storey structure was underpinned and excavations 34ft deep below in sandstone were made for basement printing presses. There were stanchion extension shafts up to 36ft long weighing 11 tons. Lascelles worked at this time with Stuart Bros, builders.

1953 - 1965 – GJ Coles main store at Pitt, King and George Streets, and variety and department stores in various suburban and country centres.

1954 - 1996 - Sydney Morning Herald printing house at Jones Street, Broadway for John Fairfax & Sons. Havens & Kirkwood, architects and Stuart Bros, builders.

1958 - 1971 - SMH Paper Store, Blackwattle Bay for John Fairfax & Sons (later Fish Markets). Havens & Kirkwood, architects, and Stuart Bros, builders.

1956 - 1995 - Television studios & associated buildings, Epping, for Channel 7. Havens & Kirkwood, architects and Stuart Bros, builders.

1958 - 1995 - Warehouse & Process buildings at Villawood for Colgate-Palmolive and work at Balmain plant. Havens & Kirkwood, architects and Stuart Bros., builders.

Roy Lascelles never married. He lived to the age of 101 years, dying on 17 June 2019.

To access an oral history interview with Roy Wilton Lascelles please use this link:

https://heritage.engineersaustralia.org.au/wiki/Oral_Histories_Sydney