Van Brunt and Howe, Boston, Massachusetts
Van Brunt and Howe, Boston, Massachusetts
Henry Van Brunt: (Born 1832, Boston, Massachusetts; died 1903, Boston, Massachusetts)
Frank M. Howe (Born 1849; died 1909)
After graduating from Harvard College in 1854, Henry Van Brunt worked for Boston architect George Snell.1 Between 1857 and 1860 he studied in New York under Richard Morris Hunt.2 After serving in the Civil War he formed, with William Ware, the firm of Ware and Van Brunt. In 1868 Frank Howe joined the firm. In the mid-1880s, commissions with the Union Pacific Railroad led the firm to send Howe to Kansas City to open an office. In 1887, Henry Van Brunt relocated to Kansas City and the firm was renamed Van Brunt and Howe.3
Henry Van Brunt wrote extensively about contemporary architectural issues. Wayne Andrews states “... Henry Van Brunt was not only an architect of importance but also an arresting theorist.”4 An admirer of Henry Hobson Richardson and his work, he published several articles about his buildings. As the Hoyt Public Library building demonstrates, Richardson’s theories and designs had a profound influence on Van Brunt’s architectural work. William A. Coles states “It is in following Richardson’s principles that Van Brunt sees hope for the development of American style in architecture.”5
Representative Work:
Saginaw, Michigan:
Hoyt Library, 505 Janes. Dedicated 1890
Ann Arbor, Michigan:
University of Michigan Library 1886 -1887(partially demolished)
Cambridge, Massachusetts:
Rindge Public Library 1888 - 1889
Portland, Oregon:
Union Station 1893 6
Sources:
1William A. Coles. “Henry Van Brunt.” Macmillan Encyclopedia of Architects. Ed. Adolf K. Placzek. New York: The Free Press. 1982. Vol 2, 269-271.
2Paul R. Baker. Richard Morris Hunt. Cambridge, Massachusetts: MIT Press. 1986. 100.
3Coles. Macmillan Encyclopedia. 269-271.
4Wayne Andrews. Architecture in Michiganrev. ed. Detroit: Wayne State UP. 1982. 62.
5William A. Coles. Introduction. Architecture and Society: Selected Essays of Henry Van Brunt. Cambridge, Massachusetts: The Belknap Press of Harvard UP. 1969. 60.
6Coles. Macmillan Encyclopedia. 269-271.
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