William Charles Tuke was born in Bolton, near Bradford, Yorkshire on 12 January and was articled to his father, William Tuke, a land agent, surveyor and architect, in Bradford from 1857 to 1861. In order to gain practical experience in construction, he then worked for a building firm in Chester, Cheshire following which he worked as an assistant to George Bidlake (1829?-1892) in Wolverhampton, and Alexander William Mills (1814-1905) and John Murgatroyd (1830-1894) in Manchester. In 1865 he joined the office of James Maxwell (1838–1893) and in 1868 formed a partnership with him as Maxwell & Tuke.
In 1876 Maxwell and Tuke formed a separate architectural partnership with Samuel Hurst (1849-1890) as Maxwell, Tuke & Hurst in Southport, Lancashire. This practice, which specialised in the design of Nonconformist chapels and schools, appears to have operated independently of Maxwell & Tuke. The Maxwell, Tuke & Hurst partnership was dissolved in 1885.
Tuke was elected a Fellow of the Royal Institute of British Architects (FRIBA) in 1888 and was a member of the Manchester Society of Architects. He died in St Anne's on the Sea, Lancashire on 28 March 1893
See: Maxwell & Tuke
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’. Journal of the Royal Institute of British Architects vol. 1. 1893-94 p. 116