Alexander Jackson Davis, or A. J. Davis (July 24, 1803 – January 14, 1892), was an American architect, known particularly for his association with the

Gothic Revival Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...

style.

Education

Davis was born in New York City and studied at the American Academy of Fine Arts, the New-York Drawing Association, and from the Antique casts of the

National Academy of Design The National Academy of Design is an honorary association of American artists, founded in New York City in 1825 by Samuel Morse, Asher Durand, Thomas Cole, Martin E. Thompson, Charles Cushing Wright, Ithiel Town, and others "to promote the fin ...

. Dropping out of school, he became a respectable

lithographer Lithography () is a planographic method of printing originally based on the immiscibility of oil and water. The printing is from a stone (lithographic limestone) or a metal plate with a smooth surface. It was invented in 1796 by the German a ...

and from 1826 he worked as a draftsman for Josiah R. Brady, a New York architect who was an early exponent of the

Gothic revival style Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...

: Brady's Gothic 1824 St. Luke's Episcopal Church is the oldest surviving structure in

Rochester, New York Rochester () is a City (New York), city in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, the county seat, seat of Monroe County, New York, Monroe County, and the fourth-most populous in the state after New York City, Buffalo, New York, Buffalo, ...

Career

Partnership with Ithiel Town

Davis made a first independent career as an architectural illustrator in the 1820s, but his friends, especially painter

John Trumbull John Trumbull (June 6, 1756November 10, 1843) was an American artist of the early independence period, notable for his historical paintings of the American Revolutionary War, of which he was a veteran. He has been called the "Painter of the Rev ...

, convinced him to turn his hand to designing buildings. Picturesque siting, massing and contrasts remained essential to his work, even when he was building in a Classical style. In 1826, Davis went to work in the office of Ithiel Town and Martin E. Thompson, the most prestigious architectural firm of the

Greek Revival The Greek Revival was an architectural movement which began in the middle of the 18th century but which particularly flourished in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in northern Europe and the United States and Canada, but ...

; in the office Davis had access to the best architectural library in the country, in a congenial atmosphere where he gained a thorough grounding. From 1829, in partnership with Town, Davis formed the first recognizably modern architectural office and designed many late Classical buildings, including some of public prominence. In Washington, Davis designed the Executive Department offices and with Robert Mills the first Patent Office building (1834–36). He also designed the Custom House of New York City (1833–42).

Bridgeport City Hall McLevy Hall is a historic municipal building at 202 State Street in downtown Bridgeport, Connecticut. The building was built in 1854 to house both the City Hall and the Fairfield County Courthouse, and served as Bridgeport City Hall into the 1930s ...

, constructed in 1853 and 1854, is a later government building Davis designed in the Classical style. A series of consultations over state capitols followed, none apparently built entirely as Davis planned: the

Indiana State House The Indiana Statehouse is the List of state capitols in the United States, state capitol building of the U.S. state of Indiana. It houses the Indiana General Assembly, the office of the Governor of Indiana, the Indiana Supreme Court, and other st ...

, Indianapolis (1831 – 35), elicited calls for his advice and designs in building other state capitols in the 1830s: North Carolina's (1833 – 40, with local architect David Paton), the

Illinois State Capitol The Illinois State Capitol, located in Springfield, Illinois, houses the legislative and executive branches of the government of the U.S. state of Illinois. The current building is the sixth to serve as the capitol building since Illinois was admi ...

, often attributed entirely to the Springfield, Illinois architect

John F. Rague John Francis Rague (1799–1877; pronounced ''ra-gu'') was a mid-19th century architect who designed and built numerous public buildings including the 1837 Illinois State Capitol#Former capitols, Old Capitol of Illinois and the 1840 Iowa Old ...

, who was at work on the Iowa State Capitol at the same time, and in 1839, the committee responsible for commissioning a design for the

Ohio Statehouse The Ohio Statehouse is the List of state and territorial capitols in the United States, state capitol building and seat of government for the U.S. state of Ohio. The Greek Revival building is located on Capitol Square in Downtown Columbus, Ohio, ...

asked his advice. The resulting capitol in Columbus, Ohio, often attributed to the Hudson River School painter Thomas Cole consulting with Davis and Ithiel Town, has a stark Greek

Doric order The Doric order was one of the three orders of ancient Greek and later Roman architecture; the other two canonical orders were the Ionic and the Corinthian. The Doric is most easily recognized by the simple circular capitals at the top of col ...

colonnade In classical architecture, a colonnade is a long sequence of columns joined by their entablature, often free-standing, or part of a building. Paired or multiple pairs of columns are normally employed in a colonnade which can be straight or curv ...

across a recessed entrance, flanked by recessed window bays that continue the rhythm of the central

portico A portico is a porch leading to the entrance of a building, or extended as a colonnade, with a roof structure over a walkway, supported by columns or enclosed by walls. This idea was widely used in ancient Greece and has influenced many cult ...

, all under a unique drum capped by a low saucer dome. With Town's partner James Dakin, he designed the noble colossal

Corinthian order The Corinthian order (Greek: Κορινθιακός ρυθμός, Latin: ''Ordo Corinthius'') is the last developed of the three principal classical orders of Ancient Greek architecture and Roman architecture. The other two are the Doric order ...

of the

" Colonnade Row" on New York's Lafayette Street, the very first apartments designed for the prosperous American middle class (1833, half still standing). Two years after its completion, Davis was hired to design the

Dutch Reformed Church The Dutch Reformed Church (, abbreviated NHK) was the largest Christian denomination in the Netherlands from the onset of the Protestant Reformation in the 16th century until 1930. It was the original denomination of the Dutch Royal Family and ...

upriver in Newburgh, inspired by the Temple of Poseidon, both positioned for the viewing of maritime travelers. He continued in partnership with Town until shortly before Town's death in 1844. In 1831, he was elected an associate member of the National Academy. From 1835, Davis began work on his only publication, ''Rural Residences'', the first pattern book for picturesque residences in a domesticated

taste, which could be executed in carpentry, and also containing the first of the Italianate style "Tuscan" villas, flat-roofed with wide overhanging eaves and picturesque corner towers. Unfortunately the

Panic of 1837 The Panic of 1837 was a financial crisis in the United States that touched off a major depression, which lasted until the mid-1840s. Profits, prices, and wages went down, westward expansion was stalled, unemployment went up, and pessimism abound ...

cut short his plans for a series of like volumes, but Davis soon formed a partnership with Andrew Jackson Downing, illustrating his widely read books. Additions to

Vesper Cliff Vesper Cliff ( also known as Tioga Terrace, Glenbetsy, and Robert C. John House) an architecturally distinguished Greek Revival-style residence located immediately outside of the Town of Owego in Tioga County, New York. The primary dwelling is ...

were built in 1834. ''See also:''

Country residences (1840 - 1860)

The 1840s and 1850s were Davis's two most fruitful decades as a designer of country houses. His villa "Lyndhurst" at

Tarrytown, New York Tarrytown is a village in the town of Greenburgh in Westchester County, New York. It is located on the eastern bank of the Hudson River, approximately north of Midtown Manhattan in New York City, and is served by a stop on the Metro-North ...

, is his single most famous house. Many of his villas were built in the scenic Hudson River Valley— where his style informed the vernacular ''Hudson River Bracketed'' that gave

Edith Wharton Edith Wharton (; born Edith Newbold Jones; January 24, 1862 – August 11, 1937) was an American novelist, short story writer, and interior designer. Wharton drew upon her insider's knowledge of the upper-class New York "aristocracy" to portray ...

a title for a novel—but Davis sent plans and specifications to clients as far afield as Indiana. He designed

Blandwood Blandwood Mansion is a historic house museum at 447 West Washington Street in Greensboro, North Carolina. Originally built as a four-room Federal style farmhouse in 1795, it was home to two-term North Carolina governor John Motley Morehead (1841 ...

, the 1846 home of Governor

John Motley Morehead John Motley Morehead (July 4, 1796 – August 27, 1866) was an American lawyer and politician who became the 29th governor of the U.S. state of North Carolina (1841 to 1845). He became known as "the Father of Modern North Carolina." Early and ...

that stands as America's earliest Italianate Tuscan Villa. Innovative interior features, including his designs for mantels and sideboards, were also widely imitated in the trade. Other influential interior details include pocket shutters at windows,

bay window A bay window is a window space projecting outward from the main walls of a building and forming a bay in a room. Types Bay window is a generic term for all protruding window constructions, regardless of whether they are curved or angular, or r ...

s, and mirrored surfaces to reflect natural light. The

style William Walsh House was built at

Albany, New York Albany ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of New York, also the seat and largest city of Albany County. Albany is on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River, and about north of New York City ...

, and

style Belmead was built near Powhatan, Virginia, in 1845. Two smaller but well known structures designed by Davis include one built for John Cox Stevens in 1845; Stevens was the first Commodore of New York Yacht Club and the small Carpenter Gothic building on his property near Hoboken was given to NYYC to be used as its first clubhouse. This building, fondly called "Station 10", still exists and can be found in Newport. Davis built a similar pavilion for his colleague and fellow NYYC founder,

John Clarkson Jay John Clarkson Jay (September 11, 1808 – November 15, 1891) was an American physician and notable conchologist as well as one of the original founders of New York Yacht Club. He was the grandson of Founding Father John Jay. Early life and edu ...

, on Jay's Long Island Sound waterfront property in Rye, New York, in 1849. Although this building was taken down in the 1950s, the original setting and garden where it was once located is part of a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...

site and open to the public. Inspired in part by friend Andrew Jackson Downing, Davis constructed several Gothic Revival cottage-style homes in Central New York, including the 1852-completed

Reuel E. Smith House The Reuel E. Smith House (also known as The Cove, The Gingerbread House, or Cobweb Cottage) located at 28 West Lake Street in Skaneateles, New York is a picturesque house designed by Alexander Jackson Davis, and later modified by Archimedes Ru ...

, which is included in the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

. In 1851, Davis completed

Winyah Park Winyah Park (later known as Lathers Hill) was the 300-acre country estate of Colonel Richard Lathers, located in the village of New Rochelle, Westchester County, New York, upon which a number of 19th-century Gothic villas and cottages designed by ...

, one of approximately eighteen or more Italianate houses he designed in the 1850s. Winyah was built for Richard Lathers, who had studied architecture with Davis in New York in the 1830s. It was situated on Lathers's estate in the town of New Rochelle in

Westchester County Westchester County is located in the U.S. state of New York. It is the seventh most populous county in the State of New York and the most populous north of New York City. According to the 2020 United States Census, the county had a population o ...

, New York. For this design Davis won the first architectural prize at the New York World's Fair of 1853–54. He used its most striking feature, two adjacent yet contrasting towers, in a much larger house named Grace Hill, built in Brooklyn between 1853 and 1854. In both Winyah and Grace Hill, broad octagonal towers serve as visual anchors for the taller square towers. Lathers later employed Davis to design four additional "investment houses" on his property which became known as "Lathers's Hill". The homes included two Gothic cottages and "Tudor Villa" constructed in 1858, and "Pointed Villa" constructed in 1859. In 1890, the artist

Frederic Remington Frederic Sackrider Remington (October 4, 1861 – December 26, 1909) was an American painter, illustrator, sculptor, and writer who specialized in the genre of Western American Art. His works are known for depicting the Western United State ...

purchased one of these cottages from which he created his estate "Endion", which served as the studio for most of his artistic career. The success of "Winyah Park" and "Lathers's Hill" generated other important commissions for Davis in New Rochelle, including two cottage-villas,

Wildcliff Wildcliff, also referred to as the Cyrus Lawton House, was a historic residence overlooking Long Island Sound in New Rochelle in Westchester County, New York. This 20-room cottage-villa, built in about 1852, was designed by prominent architect ...

and Sans Souci, which he designed for members of a prominent Davenport family. Both homes feature Davis's signature central

gable A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of intersecting roof pitches. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system used, which reflects climate, material availability, and aesth ...

. Another extant Gothic Revival commission is Whitby Castle, designed in 1852 for Davis' lifelong friend William Chapman. The building is part of the Boston Post Road Historic District (Rye, New York) and retains many original features. Today it is used as the clubhouse for the

Rye Golf Club The Rye Golf Club is a semi-private, municipally-owned country club in Rye, New York, and one of five constituent properties of the National Historic Landmark Boston Post Road Historic District. The centerpiece of the parcel is an 1854 Gothic Re ...

. Davis was invited to become a member of the

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

shortly after its founding in 1857. In the late 1850s, Davis worked with the entrepreneur Llewellyn S. Haskell to create

Llewellyn Park Llewellyn Park is a neighborhood in West Orange, New Jersey, West Orange in Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, New Jersey, United States. It is a gated residential community of 175 homes, west of New York City. History Llewellyn Park wa ...

in West Orange, New Jersey, a garden suburb that was one of the first planned residential communities in the United States. Davis designed buildings for the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

in 1838, and in the 1840s he designed buildings for the

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States ...

. At the

Virginia Military Institute la, Consilio et Animis (on seal) , mottoeng = "In peace a glorious asset, In war a tower of strength""By courage and wisdom" (on seal) , established = , type = Public senior military college , accreditation = SACS , endowment = $696.8 mill ...

, Jackson's designs from 1848 through the 1850s created the first entirely

Gothic revival Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...

college campus, built in brick and

stucco Stucco or render is a construction material made of aggregates, a binder, and water. Stucco is applied wet and hardens to a very dense solid. It is used as a decorative coating for walls and ceilings, exterior walls, and as a sculptural and a ...

ed to imitate stone. Davis's plan for the Barracks quadrangle was interrupted by the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

; it was sympathetically completed to designs of Bertram Goodhue in the early 20th century. Davis is credited with coining the term "

Collegiate Gothic Collegiate Gothic is an architectural style subgenre of Gothic Revival architecture, popular in the late-19th and early-20th centuries for college and high school buildings in the United States and Canada, and to a certain extent Europ ...

", documented in a handwritten description of his own "English Collegiate Gothic Mansion" of 1853 for the Harrals of Bridgeport, Connecticut. He married Margaret Beale in 1853 and had two children.

Declining patronage and retirement (1860 - 1892)

With the onset of

in 1861, patronage in house building dried up, and after the war, new styles unsympathetic to Davis's nature were in vogue. In 1867, he designed the

Hurst-Pierrepont Estate Hurst-Pierrepont Estate is a historic estate located at Garrison in Putnam County, New York. It was designed by architect Alexander Jackson Davis (1803-1892) for Edwards Pierrepont (1817-1892) and built in 1867. It is a two-story brick Gothi ...

. In 1878, Davis closed his office. He built little in the last thirty years of his life, but spent his easy retirement in West Orange drawing plans for grandiose schemes that he never expected to build, and selecting and ordering his designs and papers, by which he determined to be remembered. They are shared by four New York institutions: the

Avery Architectural and Fine Arts Library The Avery Architectural and Fine Arts Library is a library located in Avery Hall on the Morningside Heights campus of Columbia University in the New York City. It is the largest architecture library in the world. Serving Columbia's Graduate Schoo ...

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

, the

New York Public Library The New York Public Library (NYPL) is a public library system in New York City. With nearly 53 million items and 92 locations, the New York Public Library is the second largest public library in the United States (behind the Library of Congress ...

, the New-York Historical Society, and the

Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art of New York City, colloquially "the Met", is the largest art museum in the Americas. Its permanent collection contains over two million works, divided among 17 curatorial departments. The main building at 1000 ...

. A further collection of Davis material has been assembled at the Winterthur Museum, Garden and Library. Davis is interred in

Bloomfield Cemetery Bloomfield Cemetery, designated a New Jersey Historic Site, is located at 383 Belleville Avenue, Bloomfield in Essex County, New Jersey. Bloomfield Cemetery is one of New Jersey’s most significant rural cemeteries, and the only such landscap ...

in Bloomfield, New Jersey.NJ Historical Trust
/ref>

Selected works

* Lyndhurst, Tarrytown, New York (1838) * Wadsworth Atheneum, Hartford, Connecticut (1842) * "Station 10", originally located in Hoboken, New Jersey and now located in Newport, Rhode Island (1844) * Belmead, Powhatan, Virginia (1845) *

, Greensboro, North Carolina (1846) * Sharswood, Pittsylvania County, Virginia (1848) *

, New Rochelle, New York (1851) *

, Skaneateles, New York (1852) *

, New Rochelle, New York (1852) * Whitby Castle at

, Rye, New York (1852–54) *

, Bridgeport, Connecticut (1853–54) * Davenport House, New Rochelle, New York (1859)

References

External links

Alexander Jackson Davis architectural drawings and papers, circa 1804-1900
* ttp://libmma.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/compoundobject/collection/p15324coll10/id/56268/rec/16 Art and the empire city: New York, 1825-1861 an exhibition catalog from The Metropolitan Museum of Art (fully available online as PDF), which contains material on Davis (see index)
Peck, Amelia, “Alexander Jackson Davis (1803–1892).”
The Metropolitan Museum of Art "''Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History''."
John Thorn, "Alexander Jackson Davis : picturesque American"
plans and elevations at VMI

Town and Davis
Blandwood Mansion
Greensboro, NC
Driving map of Davis structures in the Hudson Valley
Overview of an archival collection on A.J. Davis.