Early Female Architects

Union Chapel, Twilight Park // 1897

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The Union Chapel in the summer colony of Twilight Park in the Catskill Mountains of New York, is one of the finest late Victorian chapels in the region. The edifice was built in 1897, a year following the erection of the All Angels Episcopal Church, in Twilight Park, and was designed to complement the rustic character of the surrounding cottages. The chapel was built as a non-denominational, or Union church, for summer residents of the colony who preferred an alternative to Episcopal sermons down the dirt road. The church was designed by Alice Hands, of the New York firm Gannon & Hands, the first all-female architectural firm in the United States. The chapel was eventually closed in 1970 and converted to a private residence, with some stained glass windows donated to the Episcopal Church in Twilight Park.

“Highfield” // 1914

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The Highfield house is a historic building located in Middlebury, Connecticut. The House, surrounded by over 600 acres of land, was the former summer estate of Columbia University law professor Joseph and his wife, Elizabeth Chamberlain. They commissioned Theodate Pope Riddle, one of the first licensed female architects in America to build this comfortable English Arts and Crafts style cottage on a hill above a lake. It is likely that after the Westover School was completed in town, the Chamberlains were excited to see how Theodate could design them a summer house in the similar Arts and Crafts style. The estate was completed in 1914 and stands two-stories with the second floor concealed within the steeply pitched gable roof. Like Westover, the building was stuccoed. In the 1950s, the estate was purchased by a group of individuals who dedicated the complex as a family and country club with golf, tennis courts, and pool. It is known as the Highfield Club today.

Sweezy Summer House // 1916

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Wilton, New Hampshire has a hidden enclave of high-style summer “cottages” built for wealthy residents in the early 20th century. The last of these examples I will feature is the Sweezy House, located in Wilton Center. The Federal Revival style mansion was built for Everett and Caroline Sweezy, summer residents who split their time between New Hampshire and New York. Mr. Sweezy was a banker for the Riverhead Savings Bank which was located on Long Island, which too was a summer destination. The couple hired the firm of Howe and Manning, led by female architects Lois Lilley Howe and Eleanor Manning, to design the home. The house is set back far from the street behind a rustic stone wall. The property remained in the Sweezy Family for four generations.