connecticut architecture

Jesse Lee Memorial Church // 1965

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Believe it or not, this church in Ridgefield Center was built in 1965! To know its full history, we have to go back to 1787, when the Methodist Episcopal Church had its beginnings in Ridgefield, the third in New England. Its first meeting was held – just 21 years after Methodism had been introduced into the U.S. from England. In 1789 Jesse Lee, a native of Virginia, was sent north as a circuit rider. His third sermon in Connecticut was preached at the Independent Schoolhouse on Main Street in Ridgefield. In the 1840s, a second meetinghouse in town was built, and the congregation grew. A third church and rectory were built on Main Street in 1884. When a large Main Street estate was available for a new, stately building, the congregation jumped at the opportunity, and hired ecclesiastical architect Harold Wagoner to design a refined, Colonial Revival style church, which was built in 1965. Executed in brick, the church has great verticality, created by the colossal columns supporting its pedimented portico and the spire that rises over an open belfry to a height of 149 feet. Set back from the street, the church still has a commanding presence.

Ridgefield Train Depot // 1870

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In 1870, the Ridgefield Branch branch line of the Danbury and Norwalk Railroad and later the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad was built connecting the sleepy village of Ridgefield to Branchville train station via the main line. The line was an early risk, built to offer service to the wealthy New Yorkers who began arriving to spend their summers in Ridgefield. Many of these “summer people” had their own private railroad cars, with chauffeurs meeting them as they arrived, driving horse and buggies to bring them and their luggage to their estates located throughout the town. As travel shifted to personal automobile, ridership dropped in the early 20th century, and the branch was replaced by bus service in 1925. Freight service was scarce, and lasted longer, to 1964. The depot was sold to the Ridgefield Supply Company, who used the 1870 building as storage for decades until it was disassembled, moved and rebuilt by the Ridgefield Supply Company in 2015, as part of their expansion. The historic station today provides an important link to Ridgefield’s past.

Ridgefield Public Library // 1901

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The Ridgefield Public Library is an intriguing Beaux Arts style building from the turn of the 20th century. Built in 1901, the brick structure replaced the Smith Tavern, a 1798 frame structure built by Amos Smith right on Main Street. In 1900 the Smith Family sold the property to James N. Morris who had this library built in memory of his wife, Elizabeth, donating it to the town. Architect Raleigh G. Gildersleeve is credited with the design which is comprised of a one-story building constructed of brick with cast stone trim details and ironwork at the door. The library was given later additions, which are recessive in location and detailing to let the original building shine, as it should!

Ridgefield Town Hall // 1896

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Ridgefield, Connecticut was settled in 1708 when 24 families from Long Island purchased land from Chief Catoonah of the Ramapo tribe. The Fundamental Orders adopted by Connecticut in 1639 directed would-be settlers, able to support a minister, to establish a settlement, build a Congregational church and farm the land. This is exactly what was done in Ridgefield, beginning in 1708. The original 24 proprietors received 7½-acre home lots drawn by lottery, with a 25th reserved for the minister. The lots were located up and down Main Street from a Common where a Meeting House was built. The town grew and for much of its three centuries, was primarily comprised of old farms. By the late 19th century, spurred by the connection of the railroad, Ridgefield was “discovered” by wealthy New York residents, who assembled large estates in town, a trend that has only picked up in the 21st century! Population growth and a large fire on the town’s Main Street in 1895 necessitated a new Town Hall building. The present Town Hall building was constructed in 1896 from plans by architect Philip Sunderland. Colonial Revival and Romanesque in style, the two-story brick building features a pedimented central bay also containing the entrance with fan light transom, round arched windows, brownstone trim, and narrow pilasters of brick. The building houses town offices today.

Yale University – Warner House // 1887

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Originally known as Cloister Hall, this ornate building on Hillhouse Avenue in New Haven, Connecticut is one of the most interesting I have seen. The building was constructed in 1887-8 as a residence hall for members of the Book and Snake, a secret society at Yale University. Architect H. Edwards Ficken designed the ornate brownstone Cloister which was completed in 1888. At the time, it was considered “one of the most picturesque buildings on the Yale campus.” The society added a matching rear addition in 1915, which is a heavier mass, but compliments the original structure. Yale University would eventually acquire the building after the society no longer needed a separate lodging house for members. Today, the building is called Warner House, and Yale does a great job at maintaining this beauty.

Yale University – Alpha Delta Phi Hall // 1895

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Completed in 1895 for the Alpha Delta Phi fraternity at Yale, this stunning example of the Richardsonian Romanesque style on Hillhouse Avenue was such a treat to see in person. This building was designed by local architect William H. Allen who designed the building to provide student members dining and socialization space, but no dormitories. The group was active as a Junior Society, but disbanded by 1930, and the building was sold to Yale University. Yale has since occupied the building with the Morris Steinert Collection of Musical Instruments and it recently underwent a restoration. The longer I look at the building, the more amazing details I can find. The proportion of the Syrian arch with squat engaged columns is really remarkable.

Yale University – Kirtland Hall // 1902

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Yale has such great architecture. Walking around the campus, you can find examples of buildings of every time period and architectural style, it is like a living museum of architecture in that sense. Located on Hillhouse Avenue, Kirtland Hall is arguably Yale’s best example of Beaux Arts/Neo-Classical architecture, but it stands out for its use of local East Haven and Longmeadow sandstone. The building was the first laboratory to be built at Yale in the 20th century and was named after Jared Potter Kirtland (1793-1877), the first medical student enrolled at Yale. After graduation, Dr. Kirtland practiced medicine throughout Connecticut until 1823, when his wife died and he moved to Ohio. During his life, Dr. Kirtland also developed an interest in natural history and assisted in the first geographical survey of Ohio. In the early 20th century, Lucy Hall Boardman, a philanthropist and niece of Dr. Kirtland, not only donated funds for scholarships at Yale, but also donated a building, Kirtland Hall. As part of her gift, Ms. Boardman stipulated that her nephew, architect Kirtland Cutter, would be commissioned to design the building, and of course, Yale obliged. The building originally housed the Geology Department and became an integral part of the Sheffield Scientific School.

St. Elmo Hall – Rosenfeld Hall // 1912

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St. Elmo Society at Yale was founded in 1889 as a chapter of the national fraternity Delta Phi, and it is today one of the “ancient eight consortium” of secret societies at the university. The society’s original building was erected in 1895 and provided housing, meeting spaces, a library, smoking room, and other recreational spaces for the members. Just over a decade later, the group’s increasing wealth and membership necessitated a larger building. This building, named St. Elmo Hall was designed by architect Kenneth MacKenzie Murchison in an Elizabethan style and built in 1912 for the society, replacing its former residence hall. The society saw dwindling funding and during World War II, St. Elmo Hall became a convalescent hospital for soldiers who were out of the hospital but still need observation. After WWII, the group began leasing some rooms out to Yale University, who eventually purchased the building in 1962, renaming it Rosenfeld Hall after Richard Rosenfeld ’63. The L-shaped building is sited opening up to the corner lot and is Neo-Gothic in style, likely drawing inspiration from Yale’s established Gothic stylistic influence.

Berzelius Tomb // 1910

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Yale, like other Ivy League colleges, has a long and complex history of secret societies. The secret societies all are headquartered at their own buildings, called “tombs”. These are massive, very impressive structures without windows or signage and all share an unmistakable message with their architecture: “Private; keep out.” One of the lesser-known tombs at Yale is the Berzelius Tomb, completed by 1910 from plans by architect Donn Barber. The Berzelius was established in 1848 as a secret society and formerly was located in Berzelius Hall, a Romanesque style building. The tomb is sited on an difficult lot at the convergence of three main roads but holds its own architecturally as a highly ornamented box. This austere tomb is built of limestone, with a balustrade and detailed cornice at the roof, but the main attraction is the entrance, which is a double brass door with floral panels, all surrounded by a Classical surround. Above the entrance, a limestone panel showcases the Society’s insignia with fruit and flower swags.

New Haven Museum // 1929

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New Haven, Connecticut is known for its Gothic and Modernist architecture, but as it is located in New England, some good Colonial Revival architecture is not hard to find! The New Haven Museum building on Whitney Avenue was built for the New Haven Colony Historical Society, which was established in 1862 to collect, preserve, and publish historical matter related to the history of the greater New Haven community. The Society was housed in various locations around the city throughout the 19th century until 1929 when it relocated to its present building designed by J. Frederick Kelly, a noted colonial revival architect. The symmetrical building with its eleven-bay facade is notable for its arched recessed portico and rooftop cupola. The building remains occupied by the New Haven Museum to this day.