Italianate Architecture

William Hunt Double-House // c.1858

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The William Hunt Double House, located at 10-12 Lynde Street in Salem, is a 2 ½ story wood-frame Italianate building that showcases the emerging presence of the Victorian style on residential buildings in the mid-19th century, even in cities with strong support for Colonial and Federal period styles. The two-family house was built by William Hunt, a prominent Salem merchant, as a rental property with occupants of the building in 1859 including: John W. Lefavour, a cashier, and Benjamin F. Faber, a merchant. The property remained in the Hunt Family for three generations, and was converted to a boarding house in the 1930s. In November 2018, a fire gutted much of the building, displacing the residents, and concerned neighbors as to the future of this great property. Luckily for us, the owners hired  Seger Architects, Epsilon Associates and Groom Construction to fully restore the building to its former glory. The resulting project won a Salem Preservation Award and received Federal and State Tax Credits to offset restoration costs. What a great success story!

Norton Mansion – Steinbach Hall // 1849

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John Pitkin Norton (1822-1852) was a successful educator, chemist, and author, who at just 27-years-old, built this stately mansion on Hillhouse Avenue in New Haven, Connecticut, for his young family. John P. Norton studied chemistry under Benjamin Silliman at Yale College, and was eventually appointed Professor of Agricultural Chemistry at Yale in 1846. He helped to found the Department of Philosophy and the Arts at Yale College and authored many scientific papers, dealing with the chemistry of crops. Coming from an established family and beginning a successful career himself, John hired New Haven-based architect, Henry Austin, to design this large, Italianate villa. The window surrounds, canopies, and flamboyant Moorish entryway are typical of Austin, with the general form and detailing taking cues from architect Alexander Jackson Davis‘ work. The Norton Mansion was purchased by Yale University in 1923 and was long the home to the Yale School of Management and is now occupied by the Jackson School of Global Affairs.

Perit House – Horchow Hall // 1859

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This Italianate Villa style mansion on Hillhouse Avenue in New Haven, Connecticut, was built in 1859 for Pelatiah Webster Perit (1785-1864), a successful New York City shipping merchant and president of the New York Chamber of Commerce. Perit split his time between New York and New Haven and would hire architect, Sidney Mason Stone, to design this home on Hillhouse Avenue in New Haven. The brownstone residence is notable for its elaborate scroll brackets supporting the window pediments and front entry portico with arched doorway with rope moldings. The mansion was occupied by Perit for just four years until his death in 1864, and it was later owned by Henry Lucius Hotchkiss, a businessman. Like nearly all buildings on Hillhouse Avenue, the building was acquired by Yale University and is now known as Horchow Hall, and is part of the Yale School of Management.

Graves-Dwight House // c.1862

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Hillhouse Avenue in New Haven, Connecticut is lined with stunning 19th- and 20th- century mansions showcasing the evolution of styles and architectural taste for the wealthiest residents. This is the Graves-Dwight House, a high-style Italianate mansion built around 1862. The residence was built for John Samuel Graves (1807-1892), a local businessman and politician who was a founder of the New Haven Gas Light Company. The architect is not known, but the house is the work of a skilled designer with immense attention to detail. The highly ornamented exterior features a symmetrical facade, bracketed cornice and window hoods, a recessed third-floor balconette with segmental arch pediment above, and bold, period-appropriate paint scheme. The residence was later owned by James McLaren Breed Dwight, a lawyer, and his wife, Cora Tallmadge Dwight. Since the 20th century, the property has been owned and preserved by Yale University, and is now home to the Archaeology Department.

Old Boston Public Library // 1855-1898

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Courtesy of BPL collections.

Established in 1848, the Boston Public Library was the first large, free municipal library in the United States. The Boston Public Library’s first building of its own was a converted former schoolhouse located on Mason Street that opened to the public in 1854. As soon as the library occupied the building, it was apparent that the amount of visitors and collections could not effectively be held in the cramped quarters. Planning began almost immediately for it’s first purpose-built library. Less than a year later, in December 1854, library commissioners were authorized to purchase a lot and fund the construction of the new library. A desirable building lot on Boylston Street, opposite the Boston Common, was purchased and a public invitation for proposals from architects was held. The requirements for the building included: a library hall with alcoves capable of containing on fixed shelves at least 200,000 volumes, a general reading room with ample accommodations at tables for at least 150 readers, a ladies reading room, an adjacent library room for the arrangement of 20,000 books “most constantly demanded for circulation,” and quarters for the Trustees and Librarian. The facade was to be of brick, with stone dressing”. The selected design by architect, Charles Kirk Kirby, was for this handsome Italianate style building which took nearly three years to build, opening in September 1858. Twenty years later, as the library outgrew that space, the Trustees asked the state legislature for a plot in the newly filled Back Bay, and planning began on the McKim Building, built in 1895 down Boylston Street. This building, the first purpose-built Boston Public Library building, was demolished in 1898, and replaced by the ten-story Colonial Theater Building. It stood just 40 years.

John T. Andrew Carriage House – Cornwall Historical Society Building // c.1865

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This ornate carriage house on Pine Street in Cornwall, Connecticut was built by John T. Andrew around 1865 adjacent to his late 18th century home in the village. Andrews was born in Bethany, Connecticut in 1811, graduated from Yale College in 1839, becoming a minister and later a teacher. For health reasons he left both professions and turned to farming and stonework. After Andrews’s death the property was purchased in 1890 by Charles Marsh, a local undertaker, and his wife Inez. In 1954 the barn was converted to a home by their daughter, the town librarian Emily Elizabeth Marsh, a charter member of the Cornwall Historical Society. In 1966, the Society raised funds to buy the building from her estate, but could do little to adapt it for their specific exhibit and storage needs. The Society restored the exterior to its original appearance, down to the brackets, round arched windows and cupola.

General John Sedgwick House // 1860

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The Major General John Sedgwick House is located in Cornwall Hollow, Connecticut, and stands out as one of the finest residences in this part of the state in a rural setting. The house was built by 1860 for General John Sedgwick (1813-1864), who was born in a house standing on this site, which had been built by his grandfather, a veteran of the Revolutionary War. In 1859, the Sedgwick family homestead burned to the ground. Sedgwick, then already well established in his military career, took leave to oversee construction of its replacement. This house was built, apparently on the foundation of the old house, in 1859–60. The work was done by Cyrus Marsh, a local builder, in the Italianate style with decorative brackets, window mouldings, hoods, and a large columned entry portico. Major General Sedgwick was active in many campaigns, and during the American Civil War, he was killed by a sharpshooter at the 1864 Battle of Spotsylvania Court House, he was the Union Army’s highest-ranking casualty of the war and never got to reside in his Cornwall home.

Foster Mansion // c.1860

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This large, Italianate style mansion is located at 417 Sharon-Goshen Turnpike, the main street through West Cornwall Village, Connecticut. The house was built around 1860 for Stephen Foster (c.1816-1863) a merchant and railroad contractor who had constructed a portion of the Housatonic Line railroad near West Cornwall. He and his wife, Helen, previously lived in a Greek Revival style house across the road until they moved into this stately residence. Mr. Foster would not get to enjoy his mansion long as he died in 1863. Helen Foster remained at the home until her death in 1875. The high-style Italianate residence was likely built by master-carpenter C. W. Marsh, and features all the hallmarks of the style: overhanging eaves with decorative brackets, elaborate window and door moulding, two-over-two windows, and a shallow hipped roof with dormer.

Amos Beckwith Mansion // 1861

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To conclude this series on Stimson Avenue houses in Providence, I will showcase the grand dame of Stimson Avenue, the Amos Beckwith Mansion. Built in 1861, the large estate was essentially a country villa when built, as this section of Providence was sparsely developed before the Civil War. Amos Beckwith (1822-1890) was the son of Truman Beckwith and, like his father, was a wealthy cotton broker. He hired architect Alpheus C. Morse to design the house, which is an Italianate Villa, with prominent four-story tower. thick moulded trim, projecting eaves and balconies supported by large brackets and corbels, and the rounded arch windows. In 1882, Beckwith subdivided his land in the area to make half the building lots on Stimson Avenue. Amos Beckwith lived in the home with his wife, Clara, until her death in 1879. Unknown to many, Amos would secretly remarry his housekeeper, a fact that came out after his death when discussions about the estate were raised. Maria Sherman, the 35-year-old housekeeper, stated she was in the will. It is not clear if the family fought this claim and who inherited the property, but what an interesting story!

Custom House Block // 1853

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This stately commercial block is found on Main Street in Rockland, Maine. The block originally housed the local custom house (before a larger, purpose-built custom house was erected nearby in 1873) with other retail and commercial spaces at the ground floor with offices and meeting space above. The block is a great example of the Italianate style with an intricate brick corbeled cornice and cast iron and marble storefronts. The commercial space occupied by the First National Bank also exhibits a stone medallion with deer set within a wreath over the entrance. The detail that stood out to me most was the cast iron lintels over the windows, with the second floor lintels including a man’s face! The building is well preserved and is today occupied by local businesses.