Henry Beaumont Herts (January 23, 1871 – March 27, 1933) was an American architect. Herts was born in New York City, attended

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 ...

without graduating, and apprenticed under

Bruce Price Bruce Price (December 12, 1845 – May 29, 1903) was an American architect and an innovator in the Shingle Style. The stark geometry and compact massing of his cottages in Tuxedo Park, New York, influenced Modernist architects, including F ...

. He studied architecture in Europe at the

École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts 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 Science ...

in Paris and at the Universities of Rome and Heidelberg. In 1900 Herts, with partner

Hugh Tallant Hugh may refer to: *Hugh (given name) Noblemen and clergy French * Hugh the Great (died 956), Duke of the Franks * Hugh Magnus of France (1007–1025), co-King of France under his father, Robert II * Hugh, Duke of Alsace (died 895), modern-day ...

, formed Herts & Tallant and became known for their theater designs. Tallant was the designer, and Herts serving as the engineer and businessperson. The 1903

New Amsterdam Theatre The New Amsterdam Theatre is a Broadway theater on 214 West 42nd Street, at the southern end of Times Square, in the Theater District of Manhattan in New York City. One of the oldest surviving Broadway venues, the New Amsterdam was built from ...

was their first big success, followed by the

Fulton Fulton may refer to: People * Robert Fulton (1765–1815), American engineer and inventor who developed the first commercially successful steam-powered ship * Fulton (surname) Given name * Fulton Allem (born 1957), South African golfer * Fult ...

(razed in 1982), the

Gaiety Gaiety or Gayety may refer to: * Gaiety (mood), the state of being happy * Gaiety Theatre (disambiguation) * ''USS Gayety (AM-239'', former name of the ship ''BRP Magat Salamat (PS-20)'' See also *Gaiety Girls Gaiety Girls were the chorus girl ...

(razed in 1982), the

Liberty Liberty is the ability to do as one pleases, or a right or immunity enjoyed by prescription or by grant (i.e. privilege). It is a synonym for the word freedom. In modern politics, liberty is understood as the state of being free within society fr ...

(defunct in 1933), the

Lyceum The lyceum is a category of educational institution defined within the education system of many countries, mainly in Europe. The definition varies among countries; usually it is a type of secondary school. Generally in that type of school the th ...

, the New German Theatre, and the

Brooklyn Academy of Music The Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM) is a performing arts venue in Brooklyn, New York City, known as a center for progressive and avant-garde performance. It presented its first performance in 1861 and began operations in its present location in ...

. Herts perfected the cantilevered arch construction that enabled theater architects to support balconies without the use of columns.''Broadway: Its History, People, and Places: An Encyclopedia'', by Ken Bloom, Taylor & Francis, 2004, pp. 241-242. Fulton Theater, New York City

The partnership with Tallant ended in 1912. Herts continued in business with assistant Herbert J. Krapp and produced the

Booth Booth may refer to: People * Booth (surname) * Booth (given name) Fictional characters * August Wayne Booth, from the television series ''Once Upon A Time'' *Cliff Booth, a supporting character of the 2019 film ''Once Upon a Time in Hollywood'' ...

, its companion the

Schubert Franz Peter Schubert (; 31 January 179719 November 1828) was an Austrian composer of the late Classical and early Romantic eras. Despite his short lifetime, Schubert left behind a vast ''oeuvre'', including more than 600 secular vocal wor ...

, and the Longacre Theaters. Krapp left the firm in 1915. Herts also served as architect for the playground commission of New York City, and designed Rice Memorial Stadium in

Pelham Bay Park Pelham Bay Park is a public park, municipal park located in the northeast corner of the New York City borough (New York City), borough of the Bronx. It is, at , the largest public park in New York City. The park is more than three times the siz ...

the Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...

(razed in 1989) and the Betsy Head Memorial Playground in

Brownsville, Brooklyn Brownsville is a residential neighborhood in eastern Brooklyn in New York City. The neighborhood is generally bordered by Crown Heights to the northwest; Bedford–Stuyvesant and Cypress Hills to the north; East New York to the east; Canarsie ...

. He also studied fireproofing methods and aided the

New York City Fire Department The New York City Fire Department, officially the Fire Department of the City of New York (FDNY), is an American department of the government of New York City that provides fire protection services, technical rescue/special operations services, ...

in developing building codes and designed the Guggenheim family mausoleum at

Salem Fields Cemetery, Brooklyn Salem Fields Cemetery is a Jewish cemetery located at 775 Jamaica Avenue in the Cypress Hills neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York, United States, within the Cemetery Belt. It was founded in 1852 by Temple Emanu-el. Salem Fields is the final ...

. Herts retired in 1928 due to poor health, died in 1933 at Montefiore Hospital in

. His papers are held at 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 ...

at Columbia University.

References

External links

* Herts & Tallant paper finding aid
Held by the Department of Drawings & Archives
{{DEFAULTSORT:Herts, Henry Beaumont 1871 births 1933 deaths American theatre architects Columbia University alumni Architects from New York City Defunct architecture firms based in New York City