Arthur Delevan Gilman (November 5, 1821,
Newburyport, Massachusetts
Newburyport is a coastal city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States, northeast of Boston. The population was 18,289 at the 2020 census. A historic seaport with vibrant tourism industry, Newburyport includes part of Plum Island. The m ...
– July 11, 1882,
Syracuse, New York) was an American
architect
An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...
, designer of many
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the capital city, state capital and List of municipalities in Massachusetts, most populous city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financ ...
neighborhoods, and member of the
American Institute of Architects
The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is a professional organization for architects in the United States. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach to ...
.
Life and career
Gilman was a descendant of Edward Gilman, Sr., one of the first settlers of
Exeter, New Hampshire
Exeter is a town in Rockingham County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 16,049 at the 2020 census, up from 14,306 at the 2010 census. Exeter was the county seat until 1997, when county offices were moved to neighboring Brentwood. ...
. Gilman was educated at
Trinity College in
Hartford, Connecticut. In 1844 he published a paper on "American Architecture" in the ''
North American Review'', which was translated into several foreign languages. He was then invited to deliver twelve lectures before the
Lowell Institute,
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the capital city, state capital and List of municipalities in Massachusetts, most populous city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financ ...
, after which he went to
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located enti ...
on a tour of professional observation.
On his return to Boston, he advocated filling in the
Back Bay district, urging this plan for years before his views were carried out by the state. Here
Gridley James Fox Bryant was his colleague.
Commonwealth Avenue, now one of the finest streets in the world, is due almost entirely to his persistent efforts, along with
Frederick Law Olmsted
Frederick Law Olmsted (April 26, 1822August 28, 1903) was an American landscape architect, journalist, social critic, and public administrator. He is considered to be the father of landscape architecture in the USA. Olmsted was famous for co-d ...
. Gilman designed the
H. H. Hunnewell house (1851) in
Wellesley (then West Needham) and, with Bryant, the
Old City Hall Old City Hall may refer to:
Asia
In Hong Kong
* Old City Hall (Hong Kong)
Europe
In Croatia
*Old City Hall (Zagreb)
In Denmark
* Old City Hall (1479–1728), in Copenhagen
* Old City Hall (1728–1795), in Copenhagen
* Old City Hall (Aalborg)
...
in Boston (1862–65).
In 1865 he moved to
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...
, where he designed the original
Equitable Insurance Company's building, the Bennett Building for ''
The New York Herald
The ''New York Herald'' was a large-distribution newspaper based in New York City that existed between 1835 and 1924. At that point it was acquired by its smaller rival the ''New-York Tribune'' to form the ''New York Herald Tribune''.
Hist ...
'', and St. John's Church and parsonage circa 1869 in
Clifton, Staten Island.
Works
In addition to the projects mentioned above, he also designed:
*
St. Paul's Church (1858),
Dedham, Massachusetts
Dedham ( ) is a town in and the county seat of Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 25,364 at the 2020 census. It is located on Boston's southwest border. On the northwest it is bordered by Needham, on the southwest b ...
* Christ Church (1860),
Brookline, Massachusetts
Brookline is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, in the United States, and part of the Boston metropolitan area. Brookline borders six of Boston's neighborhoods: Brighton, Allston, Fenway–Kenmore, Mission Hill, Jamaica Plain, and ...
*
Horticultural Hall (1865), Tremont St.,
Boston, Massachusetts, with Bryant
References
Notes
Sources
*
External links
*
Benjamin J. Stark residence (New London, Conn.) : architectural drawings, 1866
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gilman, Arthur
1821 births
1882 deaths
Gilman family of New Hampshire
Architects from Boston
19th-century American architects