He was born in Kingston-upon-Hull and came to Canada in 1903. Blanchard trained as an architect's assistant in Regina and then worked as a draftsman for the Saskatchewan Department of Public Works. From 1912 to 1915, he was chief assistant to Walter William LaChance in Saskatoon. Blanchard next worked for C. D. Howe & Company and came to Port Arthur in 1917 to supervise the construction of several grain elevators; in 1920, he took over William Hood's architectural business. He designed a number of prominent public and commercial buildings in the area. From 1952 to 1961, he was resident architect in Northwestern Ontario for the Ontario government.
