Newport Rhode Island Architecture

Calvert-Marin House // c.1845

Buildings of New EnglandLeave a comment

In 1843, George Henry Calvert (1803-1889) and his wife Elizabeth Steuart moved to Newport, Rhode Island from Maryland, not long after built or purchased this home. George was the son of George Sr. a plantation and slave-owner in late eighteenth- and early nineteenth-century Maryland. His plantation house, Riversdale plantation, also known as the Calvert Mansion, built between 1801 and 1807, was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1997. From his wealthy upbringing by unsavory means, George was able to attend Harvard and spent time travelling to Europe. There, he met poets Goethe and William Wordsworth. He lived in Baltimore and served as editor for the Baltimore American, the largest local paper in the city. He worked on poetry and eventually moved to Newport, RI, possibly seasonally. This home was built in the Gothic Revival style for Calvert and his family. Years later, he was elected Mayor of Newport. Calvert hired Fannie Jackson Coppin as a servant for the household. Coppin was born a enslaved in Washington D.C., but gained her freedom when her aunt was able to purchase her at the age of twelve. She went on to become an advocate and leader in Black education. Historic maps show two properties owned by the Calvert’s. A nearby building, presently 38 Kay Street was possibly built as a barn or stable for the Calverts. This home was purchased in the 1880s by Captain Mathias Candelaris Marin, a sea captain who fought in the Mexican and American Civil wars. Marin likely modernized the Gothic House, adding the shingle siding and large Queen Anne additions to the rear. The Marin Street at the side of the house is named after him.

Old Mill – Newport Tower // c.1670

Buildings of New England3 Comments

No structure in Newport is as hotly debated than the “Newport Tower” located in Touro Park. The old stone, cylindrical tower stands like an ancient relic of ancient Europe, just dropped in downtown Newport. For centuries, people have debated the structure’s history and use. Some say this structure was built by Viking masons who visited North America 1,000 years ago, while other theories (more rooted in fact) share another story. The tower was located at the upper end of the plot behind the now-demolished mansion built by Benedict Arnold, the first colonial governor of Rhode Island (his grandson was the infamous Benedict Arnold, the traitor who switched sides to fight with the British. In 1677, Arnold mentions “my stone built Wind Mill” in his will is evidence that the tower was once used as a windmill. However, some state that there is no reference to Arnold ever having the structure built, with some stating that he simply repurposed the building to be used as the base of a windmill. In 1837, Danish archaeologist Carl Christian Rafn proposed a Viking origin for the tower in his book Antiquitates Americanæ. This hypothesis is predicated on the uncertainty of the southward extent of the early Norse explorations of North America, particularly in regard to the actual location of Vinland, where Leif Erikson is believed to have first landed around 1000 CE, nearly five centuries before the voyages of Christopher Columbus and John Cabot.. Rafn’s popularization of the theory led to a flurry of interest and “proofs” of Norse settlement in the area. Mortar tests completed in the 20th century basically prove this theory to be false, and date the structure to the middle of the 1600s, but it is fun to imagine it is much older!

Bird’s Nest Cottage // 1872

Buildings of New EnglandLeave a comment

One of the more unique and relatively modest summer cottages in Newport, Rhode Island is Bird’s Nest Cottage on Bellevue Avenue. The cottage was built in 1871-2 for Samuel Freeman Pratt, who lived his early life in Boston. The son of a carpenter, Pratt was was working as a carver in Boston, where he saw success as an inventor with several patents to his credit. From the success of one of his inventions, a device for sewing machines, the invention gave him the financial freedom to explore other interests, namely architecture. In Boston, he likely learned his craft from partner John Stevens, before setting out on his own. He designed buildings in Oak Bluffs on Martha’s Vineyard, but decided to reside in Newport. While many state that this cottage for Pratt was designed by the Newport resident and star-chitect Richard Morris Hunt, the design and the fact that it was his own cottage lead me to believe it was designed by Pratt himself. The eclectic cottage features complex gable shapes, fancy stickwork under the eaves, projecting corner bays, and a wall covering of multicolored slate roof shingles. It is now a professional office.

Cotton House // c.1720

Buildings of New EnglandLeave a comment

One of the oldest houses in Newport, the Charles Cotton House stands on Church Street, and has a similar story to its neighbor, the Langley House (featured previously). The home was built around 1720 and is named for Dr. Charles Cotton who owned it in the early nineteenth century. Cotton was born in Plymouth, MA, and was a direct-descendant of ministers John and Josiah and worked as a surgeon aboard the USS Constitution during the War of 1812. From Newport Restoration Foundation: “The original structure was probably a small, single-chimney house of one-and-a-half or perhaps two stories. The house as seen today was obviously enlarged in the Georgian style in the mid-eighteenth century and received further improvements in the early nineteenth century.” The likelihood of the building’s incremental growth is evident from the two chimneys are not of the same size above the roofline, nor are they in line with each other. Had the house been built new in the later Georgian style, elements on the exterior probably would have been more symmetrical and balanced. This building, like the Langley House was moved by Newport Restoration in the 1970s to save it from the wrecking-ball. In its original place, a parking lot.

Langley House // 1807

Buildings of New England1 Comment

Smack-dab in the middle of Newport, Rhode Island’s dense network of downtown streets, you’ll find Queen Anne Square, a rare bit of open space in a web of alleys and ways. Did you know that this park is only 50 years old? It’s true! In the late 1960s and early 1970s, Newport (and many cities all over New England) were grappling with suburbanization and dwindling tax revenue with people and businesses moving out. Their solution was “urban renewal”, which entailed the razing of buildings and sometimes, neighborhoods which were deemed “blight”. Historic buildings and communities were destroyed with modern planning (high capacity roads and high-rises connected by open space) to take its place. In Newport, this saw the form of America’s Cup Avenue and Memorial Boulevard, which cut through the city to allow for more cars and less-congested side-streets. Years later, planners realized that Newport was without a traditional town common like many New England towns, so they cleared buildings in front of Trinity Church to provide that traditional feeling. At the time, preservationists were trying to save significant buildings, with the Langley House being one of them. This house was set for the wrecking-ball, from Memorial Boulevard’s construction but moved and restored by Newport Restoration in the last hour to the south side of Church Street. Seven years later when Queen Anne Square was built, this house was moved to the north side, saving it once again. This house is a survivor!

William Bottomore House // c.1750

Buildings of New EnglandLeave a comment

This well-kept Federal home in Newport was apparently built pre-Revolution, but it was likely significantly altered in the early 1800s for its namesake, William “Billy” Bottomore. “Billy” was born in Bologna, Italy, and moved to Salem, MA, where he possibly met Michele Felice Cornè, a prolific painter and who is credited in making tomatoes mainstream… seriously. In early 19th century New England tomatoes were thought to be deadly poison. Cornè was accustomed to eating tomatoes in his native land of Italy and would regularly eat them without ill effect and, thus, allayed the fears of the residents of his adopted country. Cornè became friends with Bottomore and they both moved to Newport. Bottomore likely modernized this house with help from his friend and ran a confectionery store in the home.

John Bush House // c.1845

Buildings of New EnglandLeave a comment

Here is another of my favorite non-Gilded Age houses in Newport, the John Bush House on Mann Street! John T. Bush (1817-1881) was listed in directories as a “wool-puller” which clearly was a lucrative job, as he could afford to build this high-style Gothic Revival home. This house is heavily influenced by the publications of Andrew Jackson Downing first published in 1842, so the house is probably built within a couple years of that date. Hallmark features of the Gothic Revival style include: lancet windows, bargeboards, windows with drip molds, and steeply pitched roofs; this house has all of the above!

Levi Gale Mansion // 1835

Buildings of New EnglandLeave a comment

One of my favorite houses in Newport, Rhode Island is this amazing high-style Greek Revival mansion across from the Touro Synagogue. The house was built in 1835 for Levi Gale, and designed by esteemed Rhode Island architect Russell Warren. Gale was born in New Orleans and moved to Newport and is listed as a merchant. It is possible that Levi Gale was involved in the Triangular Trade, the trading of enslaved people, sugar (often in its liquid form, molasses), and rum between West Africa, the West Indies and Rhode Island. Many do not realize, but Rhode Island was heavily involved in the slave trade. The house follows the more traditional Federal form, but with two-story composite pilasters and flush siding, scored and painted white to resemble ashlar marble. The home is elegantly sited, but it is actually not on its original lot. It was actually built adjacent to Washington Square, in the place of the present Newport County Courthouse, and was moved to its present site in 1925. The mansion was cut in half, moved a block away, and re-assembled on a new foundation. It is now used as a Jewish community center, owned by the congregation that owns Touro Synagogue.

Peckham Houses // c.1855

Buildings of New England1 Comment

On a little stretch of Kay Street in Newport, you can find four strikingly similar Italianate style houses, all neighbors. Upon further research, it turns out they were designed by the same man, Job Peckham. Job Almy Peckham (1807-1885) was a descendant of one of nearby Middletown’s “founding” families. He ran a lumberyard and began working as a housewright, building homes. He was a believer of the philosophy “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”, so he built many of his houses in a sort of cookie-cutter way, but each showcasing slight design changes. One of the most impressive features of these homes is the massive overhanging eaves with scrolled brackets. Peckham’s own house (bottom right) is included in the bunch. What do you think of these homes?

Townsend Industrial School // 1894

Buildings of New EnglandLeave a comment

Located next to and predating Newport City Hall (a previous post), the Townsend Industrial School building is a great, eclectic Victorian-era building in Newport, that is often overlooked. The school itself evolved from a vocational school for women, that Katherine Prescott Wormeley began in town in 1872. The school taught pupils “not destined for classic education” but taught them skills that they would be able to use in the “real world”. The school was located next to the Rogers High School (demolished in 1957), which provided a more traditional education. The building was designed by Newport architect James C. Fludder and has maintained its stately presence to this day. The building has been acquired by the City of Newport, who added a Post-Modern addition, and it is now known as the Frank E. Thompson Middle School.