Furnesque: the Designs of Frank Furness

Exploring the Designs, Life, and Legacy of Architect Frank Furness (1839 - 1912)

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Hi - are you still looking for pics? The owner of the Rudolf Ellis house opened up the 1920s ceilings and found a lot of the original FF detail - and sent me pics. Best, George Thomas

Hi George, yes! Thank you. I’m currently moving this blog to its own website and hopefully firing it up again. I would love some pics of the Ellis house

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“The Villa”/“The Cottages”, Department for Women, Pennsylvania Hospital for the Insane Philadelphia, PA 1887

(earlier post here)

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Hotel Breslin Mount Arlington, NJ / Lake Hopatcong 1886

Hotel Breslin was designed by Furness, Evans & Co. in 1886. Firm partner, Louis C. Baker Jr., supervised the construction which was completed in 1887. The general contractor was John J. Miller of Elizabeth, with Cyrus E. Cook as supervisor and D.O. Reeves as foreman. The plumbing and heating systems were installed by Howarth Bros. of Newark. Designed to “accommodate 300 persons; it is 312 feet long and 100 feet in width. It contains 175 rooms and will cost $70,000.00″(Philadelphia Real Estate Record and Builders' Guide, v. 1, 2/15/1886)

The hotel was altered and expanded in 1894 and 1910 at which point it was renamed “The New Breslin Hotel”. It was renamed again in 1918 as “Alamac Hotel” and again in the late 1920s as “Alamac in the Mountains”. After years of disuse, on 21 February 1948 while under renovations it caught fire and was destroyed. The boathouse, some paths, and stone walls from the hotel exist today on different private lots.

from (anonymous history of Breslin Park):

“Morris Phillips of the Home Journal wrote that within two years the hand of magic had transformed an area of trees and rocks, as wild as when the Indians were the lone inhabitants, into a fairy-tale scene in which the Hotel Breslin was situated in a cultivated park of five acres. A four-story frame structure facing due north and 185 feet above the lake water, The Hotel Breslin was painted a pale yellow with its trim a darker shade and had a red roof. A series of landscaped terraces interrupted the descent to the lake, and the highest terrace with decorative flower beds, as well as the walks and lawns, were laid out by James Purcell of Succasunna. The yellow building was in marked contrast with the natural green background of Mount Arlington, an imposing sight from many points at Lake Hopatcong...

...The Hotel Breslin had about 300 rooms, and each front room held a magnificent view to Lake Hotatcong. A rustic ambiance was created by a massive stone fireplace for guests entering the building, but elevators saved them the exertion of step-walking to their rooms. Each bedroom floor had a central reception area for reading and small gatherings. A bar room was in the basement with the billiards room, with billiards from Brunswick, Balke & Co. The main floor dining room accommodated 200 persons, and sunlight streamed in by day through its stained glass windows, while at night electricity made the room brilliant.”

from The Central Railroad of New Jersey by Gustave Kobbé:

“The Hotel Breslin gave to Hopatcong its first decided ‘boom,’ for it brought to the lake the element of wealth and fashion, in the wake of which everything else follows. It is a spaciously built house, offering the accommodations of a first-class hotel. Its piazzas are large, and, while strolling up and down them, one can enjoy a lovely view, The lake is reached by a series of terraces, the highest of which is laid out in large flower-beds. To the right, looking from the hotel piazza, is the actress Lotta's cottage(ed.- also designed by Furness, Evans & Co.), and in the park to the left are many other attractive summer residences.”

from Abroad and at Home: Practical Hints for Tourists by Morris Phillips:

“In the Brookland Mountains, fifty miles from New York, two and one-half miles from Drakesville, on the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad, or accessible by boat from Hopatcong station; time from NewYork, one hour and fifty minutes; lake twelve miles long and one to three miles wide, of irregular outline, dotted with islands and bordered in places by bold mountain declivities; elevation one thousand two hundred feet; a new and large hotel in the centre of Mount Arlington Park, one hundred and fifty-five feet above the lake, offering from its verandas, eight hundred feet in length,varied and beautiful views; elevator, electric bells, steam heat, open fireplaces, bath-rooms on every floor; children's play-room and dining-room; boats and steam launches; tennis lawns; livery and boarding stables.”

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Manayunk Station, Philadelphia & Reading Railroad Philadelphia, PA 1883

Photo and detail from the George D. McDowell Philadelphia Evening Bulletin Photographs Collection of Furness’s Manayunk Station in 1928. Shortly afterwards the station was demolished and replaced for the elevation of the Reading Railroad tracks.

(earlier post here and here)

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Manayunk Station, Philadelphia & Reading Railroad Philadelphia, PA 1883

Photo from the George D. McDowell Philadelphia Evening Bulletin Photographs Collection of Furness’s Manayunk Station in 1927. Shortly afterwards the station was demolished and replaced for the elevation of the Reading Railroad tracks. 

(earlier post here)

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Frank Heyling Furness (1839 - 1912) designed more than 600 buildings, most in the Philadelphia area. Toward the end of his life, his bold, eclectic, idiosyncratic buildings fell out of fashion and ...

Nether Providence Historical Society

Frank Heyling Furness (1839 – 1912) designed more than 600 buildings, most in the Philadelphia area. Toward the end of his life, his bold, eclectic, idiosyncratic buildings fell out of fashion and many of his most significant works were demolished.

Join us for a lecture about the magnificent buildings designed by Furness. Our lecturer, James Tevebaugh, is President of Tevebaugh Associates architects and a member of the executive committee of Friends of Furness Railroad District, a group dedicated to preserving the Wilmington train station and its associated buildings.

Wednesday, October 21st at 7:30 pm The Helen Kate Furness Free Library 100 N. Providence Road in Wallingford

How are Helen Kate and Frank related?  The son of prominent Unitarian minister William Henry Furness, Frank Furness was the brother of Horace Howard Furness, a Shakespeare scholar, for whom our Library was originally named. Dr. Furness made a large donation to the Library with the stipulation that the name be changed to honor his late wife, Helen Kate Rogers, who also studied the works of William Shakespeare. The Library sits on ground that was originally part of Dr. and Mrs. Furness’ estate, Lindenshade. Dr. Furness’ brother, Frank Furness designed his brother’s summer house and nearby Idlewild, the house at the intersection of Gayley Street and Idlewild Lane in Upper Providence where Frank Furness spent summers with his family.

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Philadelphia Merchant Isaiah Williamson Betrayed his Stingy Reputation The 19th-century investor funded the Williamson College of Trades, among other philanthropic endeavors.

An article about the founding of the Williamson Free School of Mechanical Trades(now the Williamson College of the Trades) which has a large complex of Frank Furness designed buildings

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A post a long time in coming and slightly different from the usual.  Benjamin Farnum House Andover, MA 1858

The Farnum house was designed by John Fraser. A rendering of it was exhibited at PAFA while a young Frank Furness trained in his office, but long before Furness would become a partner in Fraser’s firm. This painting probably isn’t the Fraser rendering but offers a glimpse into the work that Furness would see and help with while learning the trade.

(Thanks to Michael J. Lewis for the image and information)

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Furness Buildings at Williamson

On Wednesday, March 11 at 8 a.m. the Middletown Business and Professional Association will meet for breakfast at the Williamson Free School of Mechanical Trades in Media, PA.  Williamson has one of the largest collections for Furness Buildings. Architect James Tevebaugh will be the guest speaker presenting an overview of the Furness buildings at Williamson.  RSVPs are recommended [email protected]

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Evangelical Church of the Holy Communion Philadelphia, PA 1871-1875

The Evangelical Lutheran Church of the Holy Communion was designed in 1871 by Furness and Hewitt while working as partners in the firm Fraser, Furness & Hewitt. The cornerstone was laid on November 28, 1871, the building enclosed in the autumn of 1873, and dedicated on February 17th, 1875. The Congregation, in order to escape a balloon debt and following the changing city further west, in 1903 bought a new church and over the following 5 years arranged the sale and demolition of this building. The altar and other furniture survive today at the Church's current location at 2110 Chestnut St.

From The Official Guide Book to Philadelphia by Thompson Westcott:

Holy Communion, English Lutheran, south-west corner of Broad and Arch streets, will be, when completed, one of the finest churches in the city. The prevailing material is greenstone variegated with light sandstone and stone of other colors. The style is castellated rather than ecclesiological. The design of the building carries out the idea of Luther, "Ein feste Bourg ist unser Gott"— "Our Lord is a strong castle." The square tower at the north-east corner rises from the pavement in the castellated style to the height of 92 feet. At the corners are to be circular turrets with pinnacles. Above all will rise a slated Mansard roof with louvre windows, making the total height 147 feet. There is to be an ornamental railing on the peak. The main audience-room is 112 by 70 feet. The building is 75 feet on Arch street by 139 feet deep. The style will remind the traveller of the castellated structures on the Rhine and throughout Germany. It is Florid German-Gothic. On the Arch street front the main building is relieved by a covered arcade, the arches being supported on polished stone pillars. The interior is richly fitted up, and the cost of the building was over $200,000. This church was dedicated in 1875.

From The Philadelphia Inquirer, February 17, 1875:

The new church, which is now nearly completed and ready for dedication, has a front on Arch Street of 75 feet and on Broad Street of 189 Feet. The material of the exterior is green serpentine marble, with dressings, arches, and string courses of light colored Ohio stone, and coping of brown stone. The architecture is mainly ornate German Gothic, and cruciform in shape.The tower, which is to be a marked feature in Philadelphia church architecture, will be at corner of Broad and Arch Streets, and will be 26 feet square at the base, rising to a height of 92 feet. There are two principal entrances on Arch Street and a third entrance at the southern end of the building. The interior contains on first floor a lecture, infant school, library, Bible class, trustees rooms, and pastor's study. The main audience-room is on the second floor, and is 112 feet long by 70 feet width of transepts. The entire building cost, including the lot, about $200,000.

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Frank Furness, Provident Life & Trust Company, 1876-79, Philadelphia

demolished, 1959-60

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The Church of the Atonement, designed by the office of Furness, Evans and Company in 1900, and threatened with immediate demolition, will be saved, according to Hidden City sources. A buyer has come forth for the building at 4700 Kingsessing Avenue, which an engineer has deemed structurally sound. The new owner will have to prove the title is free and clear.

According to a June report in these pages, the situation at the church, listed on our “10 most vulnerable churches,” has been dire, necessitating the Department of Licenses and Inspections to slate the building for demolition, which seemed imminent in June. In a June 10 article, Hidden City co-editor Bradley Maule wrote, “In early 2013, a Celtic cross crashed to the sidewalk on 47th Street overnight, fortunately injuring no one. Several support columns inside the church had severe cracks, and entire portions of the floor had caved in. St. Peter’s Church of Christ’s congregation still meets in the parish house next door.”

Sources say that this morning a crew has been working to patch holes in the roof, board up windows, and pull out trees whose roots threaten further deterioration.

Hidden City will have further details as they become available.

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Out of the attic: Delaware College adds major building -- 1892

This week’s Out of the Attic item is an 1890s view of newly built Recitation Hall on the Delaware College campus in Newark. Dr. John A. Munroe, author of the “History of the University of Delaware,” wrote about the history of the building:

Built in 1891-92 to the east of Old College, Recitation Hall was three stories high with an electrical laboratory in the basement and a large auditorium on the third floor. The building had offices and classrooms and in a few years, the college library was moved here, first in 1896 to a room on the second floor, and then to a larger space on the third floor. Commencement exercises and student dances were also held on the third floor. The new building soon rivaled Old College as a center of activities.

With a direct appropriation from state tax funds of $25,000 and a later $6,000 supplement, the school trustees turned to the Furness, Evans Company of Philadelphia, headed by Frank Furness, the leading architect of the day, for plans for the new classroom building. The builder was Joseph T. Willis. In addition to Recitation Hall, Willis built a woodworking shop and a machine shop to go with the already existing greenhouse east and northeast of Old College and made extensive alterations to the chemical laboratory in Old College.

In 1821, the Delaware General Assembly had passed an act authorizing establishing a college at Newark. In 1833, land was purchased for New Ark College and the first building, “Old College,” was built. The school opened in 1834. Later it was re-chartered as Delaware College. It closed in 1859. In 1870 Delaware College reopened as a “land grant” college with programs in engineering and agriculture promoting “practical education” in addition to the traditional liberal arts program.

Learn more at the Newark History Museum located on South College Avenue beside the bridge. It is open Sundays from 2 to 5 now through November. Make appointments to visit at other times by calling 302-368-9845 to schedule. For more information go to the website www.NewarkDeHistoricalSociety.org. or contact their message phone at 302-224-2408, e-mail at [email protected], or postal mail to P. O. Box 711, Newark, DE 19715-0711.

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Sorry for the delay in posts of late. This has been a busy and hectic summer. More buildings are on the way. In the mean time here's:

Frank Furness partner George W. Hewitt taking a photo in the Wissahickon. Photo by John C. Browne c. late 1870s. (Library Company of Philadelphia)