The Gothic Revival and American Church Architecture: An Episode in Taste, 1840-1856

by Phoebe B. Stanton

Overview

This illustrated account of the impact of the English Gothic revival on American church architecture in the mid-nineteenth century finds that this fundamentally conservative movement provided the foundation for a new, influential aesthetic.

With meticulous research and carefully chosen illustrations, Phoebe Stanton here explores the influence of the English Gothic revival on American church architecture in the mid-nineteenth century, arguing that this fundamentally conservative movement provided a foundation for a new aesthetic. Examining the writings of the movement's leading proponents as well as a variety of important buildings, Stanton offers a comprehensive survey of the architectural principles and models that became most influential in America. She also confirms the importance of the Cambridge Camden Society, which provided the theoretical atmosphere and practical examples that helped to establish new standards of excellence in American architecture.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780801856228
Publisher:	Johns Hopkins University Press
Publication date:	05/28/1997
Series:	Johns Hopkins Studies in Nineteenth-Century Architecture
Edition description:	Revised ed.
Pages:	376
Product dimensions:	7.00(w) x 10.00(h) x 0.78(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Phoebe B. Stanton is emeritus professor of art and architectural history at the Johns Hopkins University.

Editorial Reviews

Lavishly illustrated with excellent photographs and drawings, extensively documented, and written in a clear and lucid style . . . Particularly successful in illustrating the influence the influence of English and continental architecture on American architecture.
—Library Journal

Stanton so illuminates her investigation that the way in which the mania of the Cambridge men infected American architecture can be followed with fascination by anyone. This fascination derives partly from her evident mastery of the subject. Her research has been exhaustive . . . But she offers in fact far more than might be expected: she covers the whole history of the Gothic revival in America . . . and offers an altogether convincing introduction to the Victorian Gothic revival in England itself.
—Architectural Design

From the Publisher

Stanton so illuminates her investigation that the way in which the mania of the Cambridge men infected American architecture can be followed with fascination by anyone. This fascination derives partly from her evident mastery of the subject. Her research has been exhaustive . . . But she offers in fact far more than might be expected: she covers the whole history of the Gothic revival in America . . . and offers an altogether convincing introduction to the Victorian Gothic revival in England itself.

Architectural Design