John Notman (July 22, 1803 March 3, 1865) was a Scottish-born 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 ...

and

landscape architect A landscape architect is a person who is educated in the field of landscape architecture. The practice of landscape architecture includes: site analysis, site inventory, site planning, land planning, planting design, grading, storm water manage ...

based in

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

. He designed buildings, cemeteries, churches and country estates in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States and helped popularize

Italianate architecture The Italianate style was a distinct 19th-century phase in the history of Classical architecture. Like Palladianism and Neoclassicism, the Italianate style combined its inspiration from the models and architectural vocabulary of 16th-century ...

in the United States.

Early life and education

Notman was born on July 22, 1810, in The Canongate district of

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

, Scotland, to David and Mary (Christie) Notman. He spent much of his childhood in Lasswade, south of Edinburgh. He was educated at the Watt Institution in Edinburgh. He apprenticed for four years as a carpenter and built country houses in the Scottish highlands and Northern Ireland.

Career

Sometime around 1824, Notman joined his older cousin, William Notman to train as an architect in the office of

William Henry Playfair William Henry Playfair Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, FRSE (15 July 1790 – 19 March 1857) was a prominent Scottish architect in the 19th century who designed the Eastern, or Third, New Town, Edinburgh, New Town and many of Edinb ...

prior to emigrating to the United States in 1831. He settled in

and first appears in the city directory as a carpenter then as an architect. He returned to Scotland in 1833 to move his mother and siblings to America. He met John Jay Smith who helped him obtain a contract to construct a building for the

Library Company of Philadelphia The Library Company of Philadelphia (LCP) is a non-profit organization based on Locust Street in Center City, Philadelphia, Center City Philadelphia. Founded as a library in 1731 by Benjamin Franklin, the Library Company of Philadelphia has a ...

in 1835. He was selected to design and build the Roman Doric gatehouse, landscaping, cottage and chapel at

Laurel Hill Cemetery Laurel Hill Cemetery, also called Laurel Hill East to distinguish it from the affiliated West Laurel Hill Cemetery in Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania, Bala Cynwyd, is a historic rural cemetery in the East Falls, Philadelphia, East Falls neighborhood ...

. Notman's design for Laurel Hill was selected over more experienced architects including William Strickland and Thomas Ustick Walter. In the late 1830s, he was hired for landscape design at several country estates. His work at Nathan Dunn's estate, known as "The Cottage", in Mount Holly, New Jersey, drew acclaim from

Andrew Jackson Downing Andrew Jackson Downing (October 31, 1815 – July 28, 1852) was an American landscape designer, horticulturist, writer, prominent advocate of the Gothic Revival in the United States, and editor of ''The Horticulturist'' magazine (1846–1852). ...

. Other notable landscape design projects were completed for the estates of Richard Stockton Field, Joshua Francis Fisher, George Washington Doane and

Jay Cooke Jay Cooke (August 10, 1821 – February 16, 1905) was an American financier who helped finance the Union war effort during the American Civil War and the postwar development of railroads in the northwestern United States. He is generally acknowle ...

. He opened and operated a successful firm and was a founding member of the

American Institute of Architects The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is a professional organization for architects in the United States. It is headquartered in Washington, D.C. AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach progr ...

. Notman is credited with introducing the Italianate style to America. His design for "Riverside," the house built in

Burlington, New Jersey Burlington is a City (New Jersey), city situated on the banks of the Delaware River in Burlington County, New Jersey, Burlington County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is a suburb of Philadelphia. As of the 2020 United States census, the c ...

in 1839, for Bishop Doane, was the first Italianate villa built in the United States overlooking the Delaware River. The 1845 Athenaeum of Philadelphia was the first Italianate building in the city. Many of his designs for churches were dictated by the ideas of the Cambridge Camden Society who suggested that

Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

churches of the

Low church In Anglican Christianity, the term ''low church'' refers to those who give little emphasis to ritual, often having an emphasis on preaching, individual salvation, and personal conversion. The term is most often used in a liturgical sense, denot ...

variety should be built in the Romanesque style, while those of the

High church A ''high church'' is a Christian Church whose beliefs and practices of Christian ecclesiology, Christian liturgy, liturgy, and Christian theology, theology emphasize "ritual, priestly authority, ndsacraments," and a standard liturgy. Although ...

variety be built in the Gothic style. He was also briefly employed by the

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

Diocese of Philadelphia during construction of the Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul until an argument over the terms of his contract resulted in his dismissal. In 1845, Notman designed a three-stepped office wing addition to the north side of the New Jersey State House. Notman was also the architect of the highly influential New Jersey State Lunatic Asylum in Trenton, New Jersey of 1847. This building was the first example of the

Kirkbride Plan The Kirkbride Plan was a system of mental asylum design advocated by American psychiatrist Thomas Story Kirkbride (1809–1883) in the mid-19th century. The asylums built in the Kirkbride design, often referred to as Kirkbride Buildings (or simp ...

in asylum design. In 1848, Notman was selected to design the Hollywood Cemetery in Richmond, Virginia. The success of this project led to additional projects in Virginia including improvements to Richmond's Capitol Square. In 1851, Notman designed the Prospect House and the Walter Lowrie House on the campus of

Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial ...

. He also designed and built Ivy Hall for Princeton University in 1847. In 1857, one of his last projects was the Italianate gatehouse at Mount Vernon Cemetery in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. John Notman Tombstone

Notman died on October 3, 1865 and was interred at

. His early death was reportedly accelerated by alcoholism. After his death, his architectural firm continued for several years under his protege George Hewitt. A plaque was added near his gravestone in 1998 when Laurel Hill was designated a

National Historic Landmark 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 ...

. It reads:

Personal life

He became a member of

Saint Andrew's Society Saint Andrew's Society refers to one of many independent organizations celebrating Scottish heritage which can be found all over the world. Some Saint Andrew's Societies limit membership to people born in Scotland or their descendants. Some st ...

of Philadelphia in 1837. He was married to Martha (Pullen) Anners in 1841.

Notable works

Buildings * Athenaeum of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (1845) *Office wing addition to the New Jersey State House, Trenton, New Jersey (1845) *Huguenot Springs Hotel Resort and Spa, Huguenot Springs, Virginia (1847) * Ivy Hall, Princeton, New Jersey (1847) * New Jersey State Lunatic Asylum, Trenton, New Jersey (1847) *

Nassau Hall Nassau Hall, colloquially known as Old Nassau, is the oldest building at Princeton University in Princeton, New Jersey, Princeton, Mercer County, New Jersey, United States. In 1783 it served as the United States Capitol building for four months. ...

, Princeton, New Jersey (1855) Cemeteries *

, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (1836) * Hollywood Cemetery, Richmond, Virginia (1849) * Mount Vernon Cemetery gatehouse, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (1858) Churches * St. Thomas Episcopal Church,

Glassboro, New Jersey Glassboro is a Borough (New Jersey), borough within Gloucester County, New Jersey, Gloucester County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, within the Philadelphia metropolitan area. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 2 ...

(1846) * Church of the Messiah, Richmond,

, Pennsylvania (1848) * St. Mark's Church, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (1849) * Emmanuel Church,

Cumberland, Maryland Cumberland is a city in Allegany County, Maryland, United States, and its county seat. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 19,075. Located on the Potomac River, Cumberland is a regional business and comm ...

(1851) * St. Peter's Church,

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, second-most populous city in Pennsylvania (after Philadelphia) and the List of Un ...

(1851) *First Presbyterian Church of Chestnut Hill, Germantown Ave. and Rex Ave., Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (1852) *The dome and facade of the Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (1857) * St. Clement's Church, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (1855–59) * Church of the Holy Trinity, Rittenhouse Square, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (1856–59) Houses * Mansion House, Trenton, New Jersey (1848) * Whitney Mansion, Glassboro, New Jersey (1849) * Prospect House, Princeton, New Jersey (1851) * Walter Lowrie House, Princeton, New Jersey (1851)

Gallery

File:LaurelHillCemeteryGatehouse(cropped) HABS314296cv.jpg, Laurel Hill Cemetery Gatehouse, 3822 Ridge Ave.,

(1835) File:The Athenaeum.jpg, The Athenaeum of Philadelphia (1845) was the first Italianate Architecture style building built in Philadelphia File:New Jersey state lunatic asylum, Trenton - Engraving.jpg, New Jersey State Lunatic Asylum,

Trenton, New Jersey Trenton is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of New Jersey and the county seat of Mercer County, New Jersey, Mercer County. It was the federal capital, capital of the United States from November 1 until D ...

(1847) File:St. Mark's Church (Episcopal), 1625 Locust Street, Philadelphia (Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania).jpg, St. Mark's Church, 1625

Locust Street Locust Street is a major historic street in Center City Philadelphia. The street is the location of several prominent Philadelphia-based buildings, historic sights, and high-rise residential locations. It is an east–west street throughout Ce ...

, Philadelphia (1849) File:Saint Clement's Church in Philadelphia by John Moran.jpg, Saint Clement's Church in Philadelphia (1855-1859) File:WTP2 Thewinners IMG 0953.JPG, Church of the Holy Trinity, Rittenhouse Square, Philadelphia (1856–59).

References

Citations Sources *

External links

Catalogue of Notman's works and biography
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Notman, John 1810 births 1865 deaths 19th-century American architects 19th-century American businesspeople 19th-century Scottish people Alumni of Heriot-Watt University American ecclesiastical architects American carpenters American company founders American landscape architects American residential architects Architects from Edinburgh Architects from Philadelphia Architects of Anglican churches Architects of cathedrals Architects of Presbyterian churches Architects of Roman Catholic churches Burials at Laurel Hill Cemetery (Philadelphia) Founder of American Institute of Architects Scottish carpenters Scottish emigrants to the United States