Frank Townsend Lent (1855–1919) was a residential

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

painter Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called the "matrix" or "support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush, but other implements, such as knives, sponges, and ai ...

and

author An author is the writer of a book, article, play, mostly written work. A broader definition of the word "author" states: "''An author is "the person who originated or gave existence to anything" and whose authorship determines responsibility f ...

. Lent designed many suburban and ''summer cottage'' homes in

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and north ...

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

, and

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

around the turn of the century in the Victorian and

Edwardian The Edwardian era or Edwardian period of British history spanned the reign of King Edward VII, 1901 to 1910 and is sometimes extended to the start of the First World War. The death of Queen Victoria in January 1901 marked the end of the Victori ...

architectural period. Several of these homes are protected by their town's

historical society A historical society (sometimes also preservation society) is an organization dedicated to preserving, collecting, researching, and interpreting historical information or items. Originally, these societies were created as a way to help future gen ...

. Lent lived in

Cranford, New Jersey Cranford is a township in Union County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, located southwest of Manhattan. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's population was 23,847, an increase of 1,222 (+5.4%) from the 2010 census count ...

with his wife and children in the 1890s. He published "A Souvenir of Cranford, NJ" in 1894 to showcase his architectural works including his personal home, the Cranford Opera House Block, the Peter Dumont House, Imhorst, Rodgers, Banker, Cochran Houses, Hampton Hall, and Country Club. It depicts the Cranford Opera House on its cover, later destroyed by fire. Lent wrote three books, still in print, about architecture during the 1890s. ''Sound Sense in Suburban Architecture: containing Hints, Suggestions, and Bits of Practical Information for the Building of Inexpensive Country Houses'' (Frank T. Lent,

, 1893); ''Sensible Suburban Architecture: containing Suggestions, Hints, and Practical Ideas, Sketches, Plans, etc., for the Building of Country Homes'' (Frank T. Lent, Tremont Building,

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

, 1894); ''Summer Homes and Camps: containing Suggestions, Hints, and Practical Ideas, Sketches, Plans, etc., for the Building of Summer Homes'' (Frank T. Lent, Tremont Building, Boston, 1899). Lent studied at the Poughkeepsie Military Institute and then attended

Rutgers University Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a Public university, public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's ...

, and graduated in 1878 with a master's degree in science. Lent apprenticed to architect

William Appleton Potter William Appleton Potter (December 10, 1842 – February 19, 1909) was an American architect who designed numerous buildings for Princeton University, as well as municipal offices and churches. He served as a Supervising Architect of the Treasur ...

(1842-1909),who designed several imposing buildings at

Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial Colleges, fourth-oldest ins ...

including the Chancellor Green Library completed in 1873 and Alexander Hall completed in 1894. Lent was also a landscape painter of the

plein-air ''En plein air'' (; French for 'outdoors'), or ''plein air'' painting, is the act of painting outdoors. This method contrasts with studio painting or academic rules that might create a predetermined look. The theory of 'En plein air' painting ...

school. Lent is thought to have possibly traveled up to Cranford to sketch the

Rahway River The Rahway River is a river in Essex, Middlesex, and Union Counties, New Jersey, United States, The Rahway, along with the Elizabeth River, Piles Creek, Passaic River, Morses Creek, the Fresh Kills River (in Staten Island), has its river m ...

while he was a student at

Rutgers Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's College, and was a ...

. In "Souvenir of Cranford" (1894), Lent discusses his experiences with other landscape artists depicting the

such as

Bruce Crane Robert Bruce Crane (1857 – October 30, 1937) was an American painter. He joined the Lyme Art Colony in the early 1900s. His most active period, though, came after 1920, when for more than a decade he did oil sketches of woods, meadows, ...

and Hugh Bolton Jones:

The first the writer ever heard of Cranford was back in 1880, when his artist friend
Bruce Crane Robert Bruce Crane (1857 – October 30, 1937) was an American painter. He joined the Lyme Art Colony in the early 1900s. His most active period, though, came after 1920, when for more than a decade he did oil sketches of woods, meadows, ...
(1857–1937) told him that he was packing up his sketching apparatus and impedimentia preparatory to going to sketch in the neighborhood of Cranford, which he considered one of the most delightfully picturesque sections of country anywhere around or near New York City. 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 ...
, as well as other metropolitan art exhibitions, have contained many charming landscapes by such men as
Bruce Crane Robert Bruce Crane (1857 – October 30, 1937) was an American painter. He joined the Lyme Art Colony in the early 1900s. His most active period, though, came after 1920, when for more than a decade he did oil sketches of woods, meadows, ...
and Hugh Bolton Jones, the material for which was gathered in Union County." J. T. White Company, 1909 - United States. The National Cyclopaedia of American Biography: Being the History of the United States as Illustrated in the Lives of the Founders, Builders, and Defenders of the Republic, and of the Men and Women who are Doing the Work and Moulding the Thought of the Present Time, Volume 11 (noting that
Bruce Crane Robert Bruce Crane (1857 – October 30, 1937) was an American painter. He joined the Lyme Art Colony in the early 1900s. His most active period, though, came after 1920, when for more than a decade he did oil sketches of woods, meadows, ...
was the descendant of the Crane family of
Cranford, New Jersey Cranford is a township in Union County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, located southwest of Manhattan. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's population was 23,847, an increase of 1,222 (+5.4%) from the 2010 census count ...
) American Paintings in the Metropolitan Museum of Art: A catalogue of works. Edited by Kathleen Luhrs (noting that Hugh Bolton Jones used the Rahway River as a subject)

References

External links

* https://archive.org/stream/soundsenseinsub00lentgoog#page/n7/mode/2up * https://books.google.com/books?id=etsDAAAAYAAJ& {{DEFAULTSORT:Lent, Frank Townsend 1855 births 1919 deaths 19th-century American architects