James Renwick Jr. (born November 11, 1818, Bloomingdale in Upper Manhattan in New York City – June 23, 1895, in New York City) was an American architect in the 19th century, noted especially for designing churches and museums. The Encyclopedia of American Architecture calls him "one of the most successful American architects of his time".[1]
Early life and education
Renwick was born in Upper Manhattan on November 11, 1818, to a wealthy and well-educated family. His mother, Margaret Brevoort, was from a wealthy and socially prominent New York City family. His father, James Renwick, was an engineer, architect, and professor of natural philosophy at Columbia College, which is now Columbia University. His two brothers went on to become engineers.
Renwick was not formally trained as an architect, but his ability and interest in building design were nurtured through his cultivated upbringing, which granted him early exposure to travel, and through a broad cultural education that included architectural history. He learned most of his skills from his father, and then studied engineering at Columbia College, now Columbia University, in Manhattan. He entered Columbia at age twelve and graduated in 1836.[2] He received a M.A. three years later.
After graduating from Columbia College, Renwick took a position as a structural engineer with Erie Railroad and subsequently served as supervisor on Croton Reservoir, serving as an assistant engineer on the Croton Aqueduct in New York City.[citation needed]
Renwick received his first major commission at the age of twenty-five in 1843, in which he won a competitive bidding process to design Grace Church, an Episcopal Church in New York City, which was built in English Gothic style. In 1846, Renwick won a competition to design of the Smithsonian Institution Building in Washington, D.C. Built between 1847 and 1855, the Smithsonian's many-turreted building, often referred to as "the Castle," was designed in Romanesque style, as requested by the Smithsonian's Board of Regents, and was built with red sandstone quarried at Seneca Quarry in Seneca, Maryland.[3] The Smithsonian Institution Building proved influential in inspiring the Gothic revival in the United States.[citation needed]
In 1849, Renwick designed the Free Academy Building at present-day City College of New York at Lexington Avenue and 23rd Street in New York City. It was one of the first Gothic Revival college buildings on the U.S. East Coast.[4]
Renwick went on to design St. Patrick's Cathedral, on the corner of Fifth Avenue and 51st Street, which is considered his most notable architectural achievement. He was chosen as architect for the Roman Catholic cathedral in 1853; construction began in 1858, and the cathedral opened in May 1879.[5] The cathedral is the most ambitious Gothic-style structure, and includes a mixture of German, French, and English Gothic influences.
Another of the prominent buildings Renwick designed was Corcoran Gallery of Art, now home to the Renwick Gallery in Washington, D.C., which was designed in Second Empire style. Other works by Renwick include the first major buildings on the campus of Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, New York (1861–1865), including the Main Hall (1860), Saint Bartholomew's Church (1871–1872) at Madison Avenue and 44th Street in New York City (since demolished), the All Saints' Roman Catholic Church (1882–1893) in Harlem in the Victorian Gothic style, and many mansions for the wealthy of the area, including the Peter Aims-Aimes house, known as "Martinstow", in West Haven, Connecticut. Renwick was the architect of Ascension Memorial Church in Ipswich, Massachusetts, whose cornerstone was laid in October 1869.
Renwick also designed the St. Anthony Hall, the first chapter house for Delta Psi, the secret fraternal college society founded at Columbia University in 1847. Even though the 1879 structure at 29 East 28th Street is marred now by a street level storefront, Christopher Gray wrote in The New York Times in 1990 that, "Old photographs show a high stoop arrangement with the figure of an owl on the peaked roof and a plaque with the Greek letters Delta Psi over the windowless chapter room. In 1879, The New York Tribune called it French Renaissance, but the stumpy pilasters and blocky detailing suggest the Neo-Grec style then near the end of its popularity." In 1899, the fraternity moved to a new chapter house on Riverside Drive and for a few years the original building was kept as a clubhouse for graduate members. At that time a newspaper account described it as a "perfect Bijou of tasteful decoration".[6]
Renwick was also the designer of the bell tower of the Cathedral Basilica of St. Augustine in Florida, which was commissioned by Standard Oil partner Henry M. Flagler who was building luxury hotels in the historic city at the time. Renwick and his wife Anna Aspinwall lived and owned property in the lighthouse area on Anastasia Island in Florida.
In Spring 1890, Renwick listened to Franklin W. Smith deliver a speech to garner support for his Design and Prospectus for a National Gallery of History of Art at Washington. Renwick endorsed the idea and offered to provide drawings, plans, and illustrations for the project. Smith gratefully accepted, and the firm of Renwick, Aspinwall & Russell spent six months completing their contribution.[7]
Firm history
In the late 1850s, already well-established, Renwick temporarily partnered with Richard T. Auchmoty.[8] In the 1860s and 1870s, a few of Renwick's commissions are credited as Renwick & Sands. These indicate Renwick's short-lived partnership with architect Joseph Sands (? – 1879), and include Church of the Holy Sepulchre in New York City in 1869, and the former New York City Public Charities Building (since razed) at 66 Third Avenue (1868–1871).[9]
One constant in the firm was J. Lawrence Aspinwall (1854–1936),[10] who started to work for Renwick in 1875, practiced in the firm more than 60 years, was a firm partner from 1880 to 1925, and became an AIA Fellow in 1914.[11] Aspinwall was the cousin of Renwick's wife Anna.
From 1878 to 1894, the firm was known as Renwick, Aspinwall & Russell, with the partnership of William Hamilton Russell (1856–1907), Renwick's grand nephew. Upon his graduation, Russell became a protégé of his great uncle, who designed the chapter house of Russell's fraternity, St. Anthony Hall, at 25 East 28th Street, New York in 1878, the same year Renwick completed St. Patrick's Cathedral, New York. It is likely Russell contributed work to both his fraternity's first chapter house as well as the cathedral during his apprenticeship with Renwick.[6] Russell departed in 1894 to co-found Clinton & Russell.
Death and legacy
After Renwick's death in 1895, the immediate successor organization was called Renwick, Aspinwall & Renwick, then Renwick, Aspinwall & Owen, with the addition of Walter Tallent Owen (1864-1902).[12] In 1904, it became known as Renwick, Aspinwall & Tucker, then Renwick, Aspinwall & Guard by the late 1920s.[13]
^Lafort, Remigius, S.T.D., Censor (1914). The Catholic Church in the United States of America: Undertaken to Celebrate the Golden Jubilee of His Holiness, Pope Pius X. V. 1-3 ... Catholic editing Company. p. 305.((cite book)): CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
^White, Norval; Willensky, Elliot; Leadon, Fran (June 9, 2010). AIA Guide to NYC. Oxford University Press, USA. p. 1012. ISBN9780195383867. Retrieved August 1, 2018.
^"About Us". First Presbyterian Church of Hartford. Hartford, Connecticut. Retrieved October 13, 2020. In 1870, the current church sanctuary was built. Designed by Renwick and Sands of New York City
Art and the empire city: New York, 1825-1861, an exhibition catalog from The Metropolitan Museum of Art (fully available online as PDF), which contains material on Renwick Jr. (see index)
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