William Rutherford Mead was born in Brattleboro, Vt., in 1846, and graduated from Amherst College in 1867. For some years he studied in an architect's office in New York, and then went to Paris, studying there and elsewhere in Europe.
Stanford White was born in New York City in 1853. He grew up in the office of Gambrill & Richardson, and between 1878 and 1880 studied in Europe. The present firm of McKim, Mead & White was formed in 1880.
Trinity Church, Boston, Henry Hobson Richardson, architect, was completed in 1877. It is in the shape of a Latin Cross with a semi-circular apse added to the eastern arm. A central tower, 211 feet high, rises from piers at the crossing of the nave and transepts. The chapel is connected with the main structure by an open cloister. The extreme width of the church is 121 feet; the extreme length, 160. The material employed in the body of the structure is Dedham granite, with brown freestone trimmings, and it is roofed with red tiles. The porch, shown in the small view on page 9, was contemplated in Mr. Richardson's original design, and was added in 1897-8 from his sketches, by his successors, Messrs. Shepley, Rutan & Coolidge of Boston.
Henry Hobson Richardson was born in Louisiana in 1838. He was educated at Harvard, and matriculated in 1859, and immediately after his graduation went to Paris to study architecture. A year later he was admitted to the Ecole des Beaux-Arts, studying in the atelier of André. During the war his father lost his property, and Richardson was forced to support himself by working as a draughtsman in the offices of French architects; and it was only in 1865 that he returned, and chose New York as the place in which to try his fortunes. His first commission, won in competition for the design of a church in Springfield, Mass., came to him only after he had been a year at home, but this brought other work; and by 1866 he was fairly launched in professional life. In 1867 he entered partnership with Charles Gambrill in New York. After the dissolution of this partnership in 1878, he removed to Brookline, Mass., and there he remained until his death in 1886.
| ST. PATRICK'S CATHEDRAL, FACADE | NEW YORK CITY |
The Congressional Library, Washington. In 1873 Congress passed a bill inviting plans in competition for the proposed building, and those of Messrs. John L. Smithmeyer and Paul J. Peltz, both of Washington, were selected. But between the years 1874, when they were officially recognized as architects of the building, and 1886, when Congress finally appropriated money to begin it, they had to endure great political pressure, and their plans underwent many modifications and improvements. Finally in 1886, after a bitter fight, they were installed as architects of the new building. Before the structure had risen above the foundations, however, a new act of Congress repealed all that had previously been legislated about the building, and put its construction under the sole control of the chief engineer of the army, General Casey. Mr. Smithmeyer was discharged as architect, but his partner, the artistic member of the firm, Mr. Peltz, was retained. In the spring of 1892, when the structure had reached little more than half its intended height, Mr. Peltz's connection with the work ceased; and he was succeeded by Mr. Edward P. Casey of New York, who continued as architect of the building until its completion in February, 1897. The library is 470 feet long and 340 deep, and occupies, exclusive of approaches, three and three-fourths acres.
Columbia University Library was completed in 1898. The architects are Messrs. McKim, Mead & White, who have been referred to above.