Century Association Building 111 E 15th St

Charles D. Gambrill FAIA (1834–1880) was an American architect in practice in New York City from 1860 until his death in 1880.

Life and career

Charles Dexter Gambrill was born January 19, 1834, in Roxbury, Massachusetts, now part of Boston."The Late Charles Dexter Gambrill" in
American Architect and Building News
' 8, no. 247 (September 18, 1880): 1. He was educated at Harvard College, graduating in 1854. After a term at the Lawrence Scientific School, in 1855 he joined the studio of George Snell, an English-born architect known as a mentor to young architects. In Snell's studio Gambrill worked alongside several others, including his former classmate

Henry Van Brunt Henry Van Brunt FAIA (September 5, 1832 – April 8, 1903) was a 19th-century American architect and architectural writer. Life and work Van Brunt was born in Boston in 1832 to Gershom Jacques Van Brunt and Elizabeth Price Bradlee. Van Brunt ...

. In 1857 Gambrill and Van Brunt left Boston for New York City, where they joined the atelier of

Richard Morris Hunt Richard Morris Hunt (October 31, 1827 – July 31, 1895) was an American architect of the nineteenth century and an eminent figure in the history of American architecture. He helped shape New York City with his designs for the 1902 entrance fa� ...

, the first American architect to attend the

Beaux-Arts de Paris The Beaux-Arts de Paris is a French ''grande école'' whose primary mission is to provide high-level arts education and training. This is classical and historical School of Fine Arts in France. The art school, which is part of the Paris Sciences ...

. In 1858 Gambrill was admitted to the American Institute of Architects. In 1860 he and another of Hunt's students,

George B. Post George Browne Post (December 15, 1837 – November 28, 1913) was an American architect trained in the Beaux-Arts tradition. He was recognized as a master of modern American architecture as well as being instrumental in the birth of the skyscra ...

, left to open their own office. Gambrill and Post worked together until 1867, with the exception of the eight months Post spent serving in the American Civil War. In October of the same year Gambrill formed a new partnership with Henry Hobson Richardson, also a Harvard graduate and the second American architect to study in Paris. Gambrill's role in the partnership has been described as "business manager," though several of the partnership's works are credited to him. Their partnership lasted until 1878, though for the last four years Gambrill was alone in the New York office, Richardson having moved to

Brookline, Massachusetts Brookline is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, Norfolk County, Massachusetts, in the United States, and part of the Greater Boston, Boston metropolitan area. Brookline borders six of Boston's neighborhoods: Brighton, Boston, Brighton, A ...

in 1874.Jeffrey Karl Ochsner, ''H. H. Richardson: Complete Architectural Works'' (Cambridge: MIT Press, 1982) In 1878 Gambrill formed the last of his three partnerships, this time with H. Edwards Ficken, an English-born architect, which lasted until his death.

Personal life and death

Gambrill was married, but had no children. As a member and Fellow of the American Institute of Architects, he served four terms as secretary. He also held several leadership roles within the

Century Association The Century Association is a private social, arts, and dining club in New York City, founded in 1847. Its clubhouse is located at 7 West 43rd Street near Fifth Avenue in Midtown Manhattan. It is primarily a club for men and women with distinction ...

. Gambrill committed suicide with a revolver on September 13, 1880, in his New York City office. Though not in debt, Gambrill had suffered personal financial losses and had been in poor physical and mental health for some time, having threatened suicide in the past."An Architect's Suicide" in ''New York Times'', September 14, 1880, 8.

Architectural works

* New Church addition, 114 E 35th St, New York City (1866) *

remodeling, 111 E 15th St, New York City (1867 and 1869, NYCL 1993) * Edward Stimson house, 10 Old River Pl,

Dedham, Massachusetts Dedham ( ) is a town in and the county seat of Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 25,364 at the 2020 census. It is located on Boston's southwest border. On the northwest it is bordered by Needham, on the southwest b ...

(1868, demolished) *

Jonathan Sturges Jonathan Sturges (August 23, 1740 – October 4, 1819) was an American lawyer, jurist and politician from Fairfield, Connecticut. He represented Connecticut as a delegate to the Continental Congress and in the United States House of Repr ...

house, 38 Park Ave, New York City (1869, demolished 1954) * James H. Tinkham house, 60 Front St, Owego, New York (1874) * Iron Pier,

Coney Island, Brooklyn Coney Island is a peninsular neighborhood and entertainment area in the southwestern section of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The neighborhood is bounded by Brighton Beach and Manhattan Beach to its east, Lower New York Bay to the s ...

(1878–79, demolished)Charles MacDonald, "The Ocean Pier at Coney Island" in ''Transactions of the American Society of Civil Engineers'' (September, 1879)

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gambrill, Charles D. Architects from Boston Architects from New York City Harvard College alumni Fellows of the American Institute of Architects 19th-century American architects 1834 births 1880 deaths 1880s suicides