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Home : Quarterly Archives : Volume 25 |
Tredyffrin Easttown Historical Society |
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Source: January 1987 Volume 25 Number 1, Pages 9–16 Benjamin Henry Latrobe Benjamin Henry Latrobe was my great-great-grandfather. The Latrobe family were Hugenots, a part of the group that was expelled or escaped from France and went to England. They were members of the Moravian faith, and Benjamin Latrobe's father, also named Benjamin, was educated in Moravia in Germany. Benjamin Henry Latrobe was born in Yorkshire in England in 1764. He too was educated in Germany, and spent three years at the University of Leipsic. He then traveled extensively and took in all the sights -- all the public buildings in Rome and Paris and the other cities in Europe -- studying them thoroughly. He was supremely well educated. He spoke six languages. He was a musician. During the Seven Years War against the French, he joined the Prussian army and was wounded. He returned to London and served his apprenticeship as an architect and engineer, and passed the examinations. He has a successful marriage with two children, but then his wife died in childbirth. He had been offered a post in London, as supervisor of public works for the Crown, but he wanted to start a new life after his wife died. So he came to America. (His mother, Anna Margaret Antes, before her marriage had been born in Pennsylvania; she was a member of the Antes family that lived over by Collegeville.) It was a sea journey of four months coming over to Virginia. A story my father used to tell me was that the captain of the ship liked to drink, and was drunk much of the trip, and so Latrobe had to take over and bring the ship into port!
Benjamin Henry Latrobe He landed at Norfolk. Since he had letters of introduction with him, he was able to get jobs right away -- and they really needed somebody like him, so he was lucky in that way. While in Virginia he visited George Washington at Mount Vernon, and talked with him about iron and coal lands, and about the Dismal Swamp. Then he came to Philadelphia. He married Mary Hazlehurst, whose father was in business with Robert Morris, the financier of the Revolution. He get to know Dolley Madison and a number of civic and socially prominent people. Their daughter married Nicholas Roosevelt; he was a great uncle of Teddy Roosevelt. Latrobe had three sons by his second wife. His oldest son, Henry Sellen Boneval Latrobe, also became an engineer and lived down in New Orleans, He started the waterworks there, but while working on it he died of yellow fever. Latrobe then went down to New Orleans to work on the project, and ironically he also died of yellow fever, exactly three years to the day after his son died. He died in 1820 at the age of 56. During the time that Latrobe lived in Philadelphia he traveled throughout this area, and drew a number of pictures of places in Chester County and the surrounding area. I'm going to break my presentation about Latrobe into three parts, to cover three aspects of his career -- first, as an architect, then as an engineer, and finally as a traveler; and I am also going to cover his work as a naturalist. In architecture, as you may know, Latrobe was the architect for the Capitol of the United States, for the Bank of Pennsylvania, and also for the waterworks on the Schuylkill, among other projects. (They are now restoring the waterworks. In fact, Latrobe is being "rediscovered" and getting to be pretty well known. In a recent issue of Pennsylvania Heritage, for example, it was noted that he was both the nation's first architect and its first engineer.) "His contribution to American architecture was vast. His buildings set a wholly unprecedented standard for accomplishment because he comprehended the future of good architecture as the union of fitness of purpose, construction, and decoration. By personal example and through the agency of his students, Latrobe hastened the acceptance by American professionals of standards such as precise architectural rendering and fireproof, vaulted masonry construction. Not only his pupils and associates, but at least three generations of architects of every persuasion studied Latrobe's works, making his influence felt down to the Civil War. In time, his favorite creation, the Bank of Pennsylvania, proved to be the greatest conduit of Latrobe's influence: the building was studied and imitated across the land. [Edward C. Carter II in Latrobe's View of America, 1795-1820, p. 9] When they were looking for someone to commission to do the Bank of Pennsylvania, its president visited Latrobe down in Virginia. After dinner Latrobe drew a sketch on the table cloth -- it took him about ten minutes to draw the sketch -- and asked, "Is this what you want?" "Exactly, "was the reply, and he won the commission! After he had finished the Bank of Pennsylvania he overheard two French visitors looking at it who said, "C'est magnifigue. C'est beau. C'est simple!" Talbot Hamlin, Latrobe's biographer, observed that "in the new country, this was the first building to be erected in which the structural concepts, the plan conceived as a functional agent, and the effect both inside and out, were completely integrated, completely harmonious." The building was executed in fireproof masonry, Latrobe's great contribution to American structural engineering. He introduced the Greek Ionic order in the porticoes. Latrobe considered this his greatest work. It was located on 2d Street in Philadelphia, but was razed after the Civil War, in 1867, to make room for another building. In March 1803 Latrobe was named surveyor of the public buildings of the United States. He served as architect of the Capitol for two terms -- from 1803 to 1811, and from 1815 to 1817. "His work was faced with formidable obstacles: an immense, imposed plan [inherited from his predecessor]; the lack of a resident, trained labor force, and of the material resources necessary to build monumental architecture; the lateness and uncertainty of Congressional appropriations; and the aggressive hostility of Dr. William Thornton." [Carter, p. 7] This added up to a lot of troubles, particularly getting the money. Dr. Thornton had originally been appointed by President Washington to build the Capitol, but President Jefferson appointed Latrobe to be the supervisor of public works and architect of the Capitol. Dr. Thornton, however, was apparently a disagreeable man, and would not give in to him. Dr. Thornton had already established the South Wing, which Latrobe considered to be shoddy work. The foundations were rotting; the light was not coming in properly; and the air circulation was not very good. "Latrobe constructed an improved version of the South (House) Wing, including the chamber for that body, and successfully rebuilt the North (Senate) Wing's western side (including vaulted ceilings). For the columns, he thought up new designs -- the corn order, and the tobacco order -- as a national alternative to the Greek orders." [Carter, p. 7] They have become much noted and admired. After the 1814 fire he created an entirely new Hall of Representatives, and constructed much of the North Wing as an enhanced version of the pre-fire design. While he was working on the North Wing he had some trouble with President Monroe. He was accused of being very extravagant, and also doing other jobs at the same time. (He had three or four projects going on simultaneously.) As a result, he was dismissed, and the Capitol was completed by Charles Bullfinch, who carried out Latrobe's plans. During the Civil War the big dome was added by Thomas U. Walter. While he was the surveyor of public works in Washington, Latrobe also designed the porticoes for the President's House, the White House, but they were not built until after his death. "Latrobe fortunately was allowed to demonstrate fully his mature artistry in another great commission undertaken almost simultaneously with the Capitol -- the Roman Catholic Cathedral of Baltimore. The cathedral has long been recognized not only as Latrobe's masterpiece, but also as one of the chefs d'oeuvres of American architecture. At the outset, Latrobe exposed the Baltimore congregation to the great tradition of Western ecclesiastical design, but even as he developed his conceptions for the building with the counsel of Archbishop John Carroll, his own understanding developed. In the end, out of solid, uncomprorrised masonry he created a brilliant fusion of a rotunda and a Latin cross. The original masterful lighting of the cathedral demonstrated how he had profited from his years at the Capitol: mysterious illumination filtered into the rotunda through the crown of an outer, skylit dome. "Latrobe's other work included almost every kind of building. Some of these, such as houses and modest churches, were familiar to Americans. Others, such as government offices, arsenals, banks, exchanges, academic buildings, and public monuments, represented the newest needs of the emerging society. Buildings designed by him were constructed as far west as Kentucky, Ohio, and Louisiana. Latrobe consistently donated his services to non-profit institutions, asking only to be reimbursed for his expenses." [Carter, p. 8] Among these other works are the Main Hall at Dickinson College, in Carlisle; the porticoes of the University of Virginia in Charlottesville; the restoration of Nassau Hall at Princeton Univeristy; the Ringgold Mansion at St. James in Maryland, where I was born and brought up; the Norfolk Penitentiary; St. John's Church on Lafayette Square in Washington; and the Exchange in Baltimore. Most of these buildings are still around. His designs helped spark both the Neo-Classical and Gothic revival styles of architecture in this country. In engineering, Latrobe was the nation's first major steam engineer, "he prepared the ground for Philadelphia to become the early center of that mode of industrial power. He brought to the American scene the latest architectural and engineering principles, an unusual organizational capacity, an ability to locate trained personnel at all levels of expertise, and a natural educator's inclination for nurturing the creative impulses of young technologists. He not only helped produce the first generation of native-born engineers, but also eased the way for future generations of engineers by establishing professional engineering standards and continually informing entrepreneurs and politicians alike of the heavy costs, technical complexity, and economic and social benefits of sophisticated, large-scale public works." [Carter, pp. 8-9] "He directed the erection of the Philadelphia Waterworks in 1799 to 1801. The water works was a technologically sophisticated project, employing two steam engines and requiring heavy capital investment. Several years of yellow fever epidemics, thought traceable to impure water, forced the financing of a public water utility to replace the polluted backyard wells." (Carter, p. 7] "The first comprehensive American steam-powered water works demonstrated that innovative European technology and organization could provide a solution for one of the major health problems facing Americans." [Carter, p. 7] (As I mentioned earlier, today they are restoring the waterworks, with the temple that originally went over it.) L' Enfant, the French architect and engineer who made all the plans for the streets in Washington, was also in Philadelphia at this time, but he wasn't doing too well on the Assembly houses he was constructing, and so he left. Since he hadn't done too respected a job, when Latrobe came along, with his French name, he was in trouble. Now they had originally planned to bring water down to the city, or from an aqueduct from the Norristown Canal, but Latrobe had a different idea. He chose to build the waterworks on the banks of the Schuylkill, and pump water from the river up to a reservoir on the hill where the Art Museum is now, and then run it through conduits down into the hydrants and people's homes. But he was concerned about his reputation since L'Enfant had never finished his job. So in the middle of the night one night, he started up the boilers to get the pumps going, and ran the water up to the reservoir -- and in the morning when the people woke up there was pure water coming out for them! So he stood in pretty good stead after that, in spite of L'Enfant. Latrobe was appointed engineer of the U. S. Navy in 1804, and supervised the construction of the Washington Navy Yard. His use of steam engines at the waterworks in Philadelphia and New Orleans, at the Navy Yard, and his promotion of steam power for industrial use mark him as America's first great steam engineer. After he left Washington in 1812 he went to Pittsburgh to work on a project with Robert Fulton, developing the steam ship. But there were poor communications and he never was paid, and the project failed. "Latrobe executed a brilliant survey of the Susquehanna River from Columbia, Pa. to the Tidewater, the purpose of which was to improve navigation and facilitate the movement of the state's agricultural produce to Europe. The 17-foot long survey map, and the sketches and watercolors he created during this work -done in 1801 and 1802 - reveal Latrobe as the modern technological man enraptured by the Acadian yet settled landscape of this majestic river valley. His vision encompassed what had been, and what was yet to be." [Carter, p. 15] As an engineer, he also surveyed the Delaware and Chesapeake Canal, and started the work on it. He was unable to finish it because he ran out of money. He also surveyed the Appomattox, James, and York Rivers in Virginia, and surveyed the Dismal Swamp. As a traveler and naturalist, it has been said that Latrobe's journal and sketch books, "the product of his eye, hand, and mind, today constitute, perhaps, the most important contribution to that vast corpus of literal and visual commentary on America that appeared between 1740 and 1820, a period known as the golden age of foreign and native travelers' accounts". [Carter, p. 9] Many talents "enabled him to observe with the scientific accuracy of an engineer, to explain with the literary skill of an enlightened European, and to draw with the artistic precision of an architect". [Carter, p. 10] As a traveler for over 25 years, "he assumed an important, active role in changing the character of the America he viewed" -- as a participant as much as an observer. Unknown until the past two decades because they had not been published, only now have his journals, sketch books and correspondence "been studied adequately and recognized as a national treasure". [Carter, p. 10] "His sketchbooks are remarkable for the breadth of interest they represent. His subjects range from people and their social customs, institutions, habits, clothing, work, and play to public buildings, rivers and harbors, roads and bridges, towns and cities, fauna and flora. "These careful and precise renderings by a trained artist who had mastered many of the subjects -- architecture, engineering, geology, botany, and zoology -- when combined with the written word document aspects of early America previously little known or understood." [Carter, p. 9]
Bridge at Downingtown He was the consummate traveler. Few persons of his day traveled as extensively or as intensively as he did: in Virginia, the Susquehanna and Delaware River Valleys, and the Chesapeake Bay. His travels also brought him into our area and Chester County, and he made a number of exquisite sketches and watercolors of this region. (Several of them are included in a recent book that came out in 1985, Latrobe's View of America, 1795-1820, which includes 161 sketches and drawings. Among those included are drawings of the Conestoga Bridge; a view of the Susquehanna from the foot of the falls above Columbia; the Schuylkill River at the Wissahickon: the Schuylkill River below the falls: a view of the Schuylkill and the unfinished canal at Norristown: the bridge over the Brandywine at Downingtown: the Perkiomen Bridge: and others.) He resided in Norfolk, Philadelphia, New Castle, Washington, Pittsburgh, Baltimore, and New Orleans. In Philadelphia he became an active member of the city's scientific community and of the nation's oldest learned society, the American Philosophical Society. "Latrobe considered himself an expert naturalist; he recorded matters as broadly ecological as the conservation of wildlife and stages of plant succession on abandoned fields, and matters as detailed as the presence of secondary parasites of the parasites of fish." [Carter, p. 12] He was the first to classify a new species of fish and parasites. "His scientific publications consist largely of his careful observations of things and processes." [Carter, p. 13] He was the universal man! Benjamin Latrobe, Junior, a son of Benjamin Henry Latrobe and my great grandfather, was a civil engineer. He built a number of bridges, and worked for the railroad. I think he's the one for whom Latrobe, Pennsylvania -- the home of Rolling Rock beer and Arnie Palmer -- was named. My grandfather, his son-in-law, was a school teacher in New York City and in Baltimore. He later became the headmaster of the St. James School that was established in the old Ringgold mansion designed by his grandfather. My father was later headmaster there too. And, finally, my middle name is Latrobe, as is my son Adriaan's. TopNotes The quotations are from Latrobe's View of America, 1795- 1820, Selections from the "Watercolors and Sketches Edward C. Carter II, John C. VanHorne and Charles E. Brownell, Editors Published for the Maryland Historical Society by Yale University Press, New Haven and London, 1985
This is Series III of The Papers of Benjamin Henry Latrobe, Edward C. Carter II, Editor in Chief
Series I The Virginia Journals (2 vols., 1977)
Series II Engineering Drawings (1980) Series IV will comprise three volumes of selected correspondence and miscellaneous papers. Vol. I (1784-1804) was published in1984 Latrobe kept polygraph copies of all his correspondence and papers. |
