Edward Tuckerman Potter (September 25, 1831 – December 21, 1904) 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 ...

best known for designing the 1871 Mark Twain House in

Hartford, Connecticut Hartford is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The city, located in Hartford County, Connecticut, Hartford County, had a population of 121,054 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 ce ...

. With his half-brother

William Appleton Potter William Appleton Potter (December 10, 1842 – February 19, 1909) was an American architect who designed numerous buildings for Princeton University, as well as municipal offices and churches. He served as a Office of the Supervising Architect, ...

, he also designed Nott Memorial Hall (1858–79) at his alma mater,

Union College Union College is a Private university, private liberal arts college in Schenectady, New York, United States. Founded in 1795, it was the first institution of higher learning chartered by the New York State Board of Regents, and second in the s ...

Schenectady, New York Schenectady ( ) is a City (New York), city in Schenectady County, New York, United States, of which it is the county seat. As of the United States Census 2020, 2020 census, the city's population of 67,047 made it the state's ninth-most populo ...

. Both the Mark Twain House and Nott Memorial Hall are

National Historic Landmarks A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a National Register of Historic Places property types, building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the Federal government of the United States, United States government f ...

Early life

Mark Twain House Hartford Connecticut 2009

Potter was born in

on September 25, 1831. He was the son of Bishop Alonzo Potter and, his first wife, Sarah (

née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...

Nott) Potter. He graduated from

in 1853 and studied architecture under prominent architect Richard M. Upjohn.

Career

Buildings designed by Potter that are listed on the U.S.

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

include: * Nott Memorial Hall,

, 1858-1879 * Library at

Armsmear Armsmear ("meadow of arms"), also known as the Samuel Colt Home, is a historic house located at 80 Wethersfield Avenue in Hartford, Connecticut. It was the family home of firearm manufacturer Samuel Colt. Armsmear was listed as a National Histo ...

, 1861-1862 * Additions to the Christ Episcopal Church,

Reading, Pennsylvania Reading ( ; ) is a city in Berks County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. The city had a population of 95,112 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, fourth-most populous ...

, early 1860s * St. James Episcopal Church, NE corner of MacArthur and Broadway,

Lewistown, Illinois Lewistown is a city and the county seat of Fulton County, Illinois, United States. It was named by its founder, Ossian M. Ross, after his oldest son, Lewis Winans Ross. The population was 2,041 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Loca ...

, 1863-1865 * Cathedral Church of the Nativity,

Bethlehem, Pennsylvania Bethlehem is a city in Northampton County, Pennsylvania, Northampton and Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, Lehigh counties in the Lehigh Valley region of eastern Pennsylvania, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, Bethle ...

, 1864 * St. Paul's Memorial Episcopalian Church and Rectory, 225 St. Paul Avenue,

Staten Island Staten Island ( ) is the southernmost of the boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Richmond County and situated at the southernmost point of New York (state), New York. The borough is separated from the ad ...

, New York, 1866 * Church of the Good Shepherd and Parish House, 155 Wyllys Street,

, 1867 * St. John's Episcopal Church (East Hartford, Connecticut), 1160 Main Street,

East Hartford, Connecticut East Hartford is a New England town, town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 51,045 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. The town is located on the east bank of the Connecticut River, directly across from ...

, 1867 * All Saints Memorial Church, 674 Westminster Street,

Providence, Rhode Island Providence () is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Rhode Island, most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. The county seat of Providence County, Rhode Island, Providence County, it is o ...

, 1869–1872 * Mark Twain House, 351 Farmington Avenue, Hartford, Connecticut, 1871 * Church of the Holy Innocents Willow Avenue and 6th Street,

Hoboken, New Jersey Hoboken ( ; ) is a City (New Jersey), city in Hudson County, New Jersey, Hudson County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Hoboken is part of the New York metropolitan area and is the site of Hoboken Terminal, a major transportation hub. As of the ...

, 1872 * Trinity Episcopal Cathedral, 121 West 12th Street,

Davenport, Iowa Davenport ( ) is a city in Scott County, Iowa, United States, and its county seat. It is situated along the Mississippi River on the eastern border of the state. Davenport had a population of 101,724 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 cen ...

, 1873 * St. John's Protestant Episcopal Church, One Hudson Street,

Yonkers, New York Yonkers () is the List of municipalities in New York, third-most populous city in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York and the most-populous City (New York), city in Westchester County, New York, Westchester County. A centrally locate ...

, 1874. Additions to the façade. * One or more buildings in Downtown Main Street Historic District, East Hartford, Connecticut. Roughly bounded by Main Street, Governor Street, Chapman Place, and Burnside Avenue.

Gallery

File:NottMemorialInterior.jpg, Nott Memorial interior,

(1858-1879) File:Image St. James.jpg, St. James Episcopal Church,

(1863-1865) File:Nativity Episcopal Cathedral, Fountain Hill HD 01.JPG, Cathedral Church of the Nativity,

(1864) File:Church of the Good Shepherd Hartford CT.JPG, Church of the Good Shepherd,

(1867) File:St Johns Episcopal Church East Hartford CT.JPG, St. John's Episcopal Church, East Hartford, Connecticut (1867) File:All Saints Providence.jpg, All Saints Memorial Church,

(1869-1872) File:Church of the Holy Innocents (Hoboken, New Jersey).jpg, Church of the Holy Innocents,

(1872) File:2015 Trinity Cathedral - Davenport 01.JPG, Trinity Episcopal Cathedral,

(1873) File:Trinity Cathedral Davenport interior.JPG, Trinity Cathedral interior, Davenport, Iowa (1873) File:St. John's Episcopal bells in Getty Square jeh.jpg, St. John's Protestant Episcopal Church,

(1874)

Personal life

Among Potter's sibling and half-siblings were Howard Potter, a New York City banker; Robert Brown Potter, a General in the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

; Democratic U.S. Representative Clarkson Nott Potter; Henry Codman Potter, the bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of New York; Eliphalet Nott Potter, who served as President of Union College and Hobart College; and

, also an

who designed the Church of the Presidents in Elberon, New Jersey. His paternal grandparents were Anna and Joseph Potter, a farmer. His uncle, Horatio Potter, served as bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of New York. His maternal grandfather was Eliphalet Nott, the longest serving college president in the United States. Potter was married to Julia Maria Blatchford (1834–1922), the daughter of U.S. Minister to the State of the Church Richard Milford Blatchford and Julian Ann (née Mumford) Blatchford. Together, they lived much of their married life abroad in London and Paris and after his retirement, they spent most of their time in

Newport, Rhode Island Newport is a seaside city on Aquidneck Island in Rhode Island, United States. It is located in Narragansett Bay, approximately southeast of Providence, Rhode Island, Providence, south of Fall River, Massachusetts, south of Boston, and nort ...

. Julia and Edward were the parents of: * Julian Potter (1858–1913), who married actress Alice Berenice Pixley, the sister of fellow actress Annie Pixley. * Ethelinda Potter (1860–1949) * Edward Clarkson Potter (1862–1950), who married Emily Blanche Havemeyer (b. 1865), a daughter of Theodore Havemeyer. * Robert Francis Potter (1864–1930) * Richard Milford Blatchford Potter (1869–1901) * Louisa Millicent Potter (b. 1872), who married Earl Sheffield in 1902. She later married architect

William Adams Delano William Adams Delano (January 21, 1874 – January 12, 1960) 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 wi ...

(1874–1960) in 1907. * Julia Selden Potter (b. 1875) Potter died at his home, 67 West 52nd Street in

New York, New York New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on New York Harbor, one of the world's largest natural harb ...

on December 21, 1904.

References

Works cited

* *

External links

Edward Tuckerman Potter papers, 1864-1965
held in th

Avery Architectural and Fine Arts Library
Edward T. Potter Architectural Drawings - UF Special and Area Studies Collections
at web.uflib.ufl.edu {{DEFAULTSORT:Potter, Edward Tuckerman 1831 births 1904 deaths 19th-century American architects Edward Tuckerman Potter buildings Union College (New York) alumni