Edward John Tarver [also known as Edward J. Tarver] was born in Eton Buckinghamshire England in 27 November 1841 and was the son of the lexicographer John Charles Tarver (1790-1851). He was articled to Benjamin Ferrey (1810-1880) from 1858 to 1862 and attended the Architectural Association Schools in London. He subsequently commenced practice as an architect in London in the 1860s. He was elected an Associate of the Royal Institute of British Architects (ARIBA) in 1865.
Tarver served as its President of the Architectural Association in 1874 and in 1881 was appointed the first paid lecturer on the History of Architecture at the AA, a position he held until 1887. In 1888 he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Institute of British Architects (FRIBA). He was at one time District Surveyor for South St. Marylebone, London.
With Henry William Brewer (1803-1903), Tarver illustrated Hints on Household Taste in Furniture, Upholstery and other details (1868) by Charles Locke. He died in Hampstead, London on 7 June 1891.
Notable Tarver's his commissions were a mansion in Wadhurst Park in Wadhurst, East Sussex (1875); the Rossmore Memorial in Monaghan, Co. Ireland (1876); and the Church of All Souls in Harlesden, London (1877).
Directory of British Architects 1834-1914. Compiled by Antonia Brodie, et al. Volume 2: L-Z. London; New York: British Architectural Library, Royal Institute of British Architects/Continuum, 2001
'Obituary'. The Builder vol. 60, 13 June 1891 pp. 470, 476
'Obituary'. Building News vol. 60, 12 June 1891 p. 828
'Obituary'. Royal Institute of British Architects Journal vol. 7, 1890-91 p. 360