The R. and F. Cheney Building, also known as the Brown Thomson Building, is a commercial building designed by noted American architect
H. H. Richardson. It is located at 942 Main Street,
Hartford, Connecticut, and is now on 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 ...
.
History
The Cheney Building was constructed 1875–1876 for the Cheney Brothers
silk
Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. The protein fiber of silk is composed mainly of fibroin and is produced by certain insect larvae to form cocoons. The best-known silk is obtained from the ...
manufacturers in
Manchester, Connecticut
Manchester is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the town had a total population of 59,713. The urban center of the town is the Manchester (CDP), Connecticut, Manchester census- ...
. It was originally a multipurpose structure with five small shops on the ground floor, and offices and apartments above. For many years it housed Brown Thomson's department store, and later the
G. Fox and Company. As of 2007, it has been renamed the Richardson Building, and is now a Residence Inn by Marriott, offices, stores, restaurants, and rehearsal space for The Hartford Stage Company.
The building dominates its corner location and, with towers and attic, is various described as containing five, six, or seven stories. Its facade is organized into three heavy, horizontal tiers of roughly cut, reddish
brownstone punctuated with much lighter Berea
limestone
Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...
trim. The lowest tier is defined by a series of huge round arches in striking polychrome bands, a motif repeated in the stories above at an increasingly smaller scale. The ground-floor tier on the Main Street facade features five broad arches above shop windows and doors, the second a two-story arcade of 10 major openings, and the third a single-story arcade of 14 openings.
The building is crowned with low, asymmetric towers at its Main Street corners. The street corner tower was earlier topped by a pyramidal roof.
The building is currently home to a local brewery known as City Steam Brewery, a
Residence Inn Marriott, a
Fastsigns, and a local restaurant named Pietro's Pizza.
Gallery
Image:PostcardHartfordCTMainStGFoxBuilding1905.jpg, 1905 postcard
Image:RichardsonChaneyHartford.jpg, Historic image
Image:Cheney Building, Hartford CT - main facade composite.jpg, Facade
Image:CheneyBuildingEntry.jpg, Detail
Image:CheneyBuildingEntry2.jpg, Detail
Image:CheneyBuildingEntry3.jpg, Detail
See also
*
*
Louis R. Cheney
References
* James Francis O'Gorman, ''Three American Architects: Richardson, Sullivan, and Wright, 1865-1915'', University of Chicago Press, 1991, page 47. .
* Jeffrey Karl Ochsner, ''H. H. Richardson: Complete Architectural Works'', MIT Press, 1985, page 58. .
Hartford Courant article (September 25, 2005)
{{National Register of Historic Places
Richardsonian Romanesque architecture in Connecticut
Henry Hobson Richardson buildings
Commercial buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Connecticut
Office buildings in Connecticut
Residential buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Connecticut
Buildings and structures in Hartford, Connecticut
Department stores on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places in Hartford, Connecticut
Buildings and structures completed in 1876
Historic district contributing properties in Connecticut