Kilham & Hopkins

Hose House No. 2 (Beverly, Massachusetts)
First Congregational Church of Hyde Park
Blithewold Mansion
Students House on Fenway in Boston

Kilham & Hopkins was an architectural firm in Boston, Massachusetts formed in 1899 or 1900 by its founding members, Walter Harrington Kilham (August 30, 1868 - September 11, 1948) and James Cleveland Hopkins (December 25, 1873 - 1938).[1] The firm later became Kilham, Hopkins & Greeley after William Roger Greeley (May 12, 1881 - October 1966) joined the firm in 1916, and Kilham Hopkins Greeley and Brodie after Walter S. (Steve) Brodie (October 26, 1911 - January 1985) joined the firm in 1945.

The firm has been recognized for its contributions to early 20th century reform housing, including its work at the Atlantic Heights Development in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, at the Woodbourne Historic District in the Forest Hills section of the Jamaica Plain neighborhood of Boston, and for the Naumkeag Steam Cotton Company in the Salem Point Neighborhood of Salem, Massachusetts. A number of the firm's works, including Blithewold and Hose House No. 2, have been listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

History and membership

Kilham & Hopkins was formed in 1899 or 1900 by its founding members, Walter H. Kilham and James C. Hopkins.[2][3]:50–51[4] Both were graduates of Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Kilham receiving a B.S. in 1889 and Hopkins receiving his in 1895.[5]

The works of the firm up to 1912 were documented in an illustrated retrospective, "The Work of Kilham & Hopkin: Architects of Boston, Massachusetts" published in Architectural Record.[6] Kilham served as an instructor in architecture at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology for several years,[4][5] and also developed a reputation for his work as a painter.[7]

The firm became Kilham, Hopkins & Greeley after William Roger Greeley joined the firm in 1916.[8] Greeley lived in Lexington, Massachusetts, wrote "The Essence of Architecture" in 1927,[9] and served as moderator of the American Unitarian Association, the highest lay position in the Unitarian Church.[10][11][12] The firm later became Kilham Hopkins Greeley and Brodie while Walter S. Brodie was a member of the firm from 1945 to 1970.[13][14] One of the founder's sons, James C. Hopkins, Jr. (c. 1914-1998), also became partner.[15]

Firm founder Walter Kilham was an advocate for the end of tenement housing and for the construction of suitable housing for working men.[16] By 1918, the firm "had achieved a reputation as advocates of housing reform and progressive town planning." The firm produced plans for World War I shipyard workers' Atlantic Heights Development in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, based upon their work in five projects already completed by the firm in Massachusetts.[3]:50–51 The firm's contributions to early 20th century reform housing were the subject of a 1987 work published by the University of Chicago Press.[17]

In 1946, firm founder Walter Kilham published a book on the history of architecture in Boston.[18]

A number of these architects' works are listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.[19]

Works

Works include (with varying attribution):

Kilham & Hopkins

Kilham, Hopkins & Greeley

Kilham, Hopkins, Greeley & Brodie

Other

References

  1. ↑ "Draft Registration Card for James Cleveland Hopkins, architect, born December 25, 1873". ancestry.com. September 12, 1918.
  2. ↑ "The AIA Historical Directory of American Architects: James C. Hopkins". American Institute of Architects.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Lisa Mausolf (April 2006). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Atlantic Heights Development". National Park Service. and accompanying photos
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Walter H. Kilham: Noted Architect, Author Built Shipyard Housing". Daily Boston Globe. September 12, 1948. p. C47.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Robert Peabody Bellows. "Walter Harrington Kilham". Proceedings of the Massachusetts Historical Society.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 6.6 6.7 6.8 6.9 6.10 6.11 6.12 6.13 6.14 6.15 6.16 6.17 6.18 6.19 6.20 6.21 Herbert Croly (February 1912). "The Work of Kilham & Hopkin: Architects of Boston, Massachusetts". Architectural Record. pp. 97–128.
  7. ↑ "Exhibition of Pictures by Walter H. Kilham". Daily Boston Globe. September 2, 1933. p. 17.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 8.5 8.6 American Architects Directory. 1962. p. 263.
  9. ↑ William Roger Greeley (1927). The Essence of Architecture. D. Van Nostrand Company.
  10. ↑ "Unitarians Name Lexington Man". The Christian Science Monitor. August 22, 1953.
  11. ↑ "Obituary: W. R. Greeley, Architect, Civic Planner". Boston Globe. October 11, 1966.
  12. ↑ "A Man for All Season". Boston Globe. October 11, 1966.
  13. ↑ "Walter S. Brodie, 73; Architect, Designed Schools in Mass., Maine". Boston Globe. January 23, 1985.
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 14.3 14.4 American Architects Directory. American Institute of Architects. 1970. p. 105.
  15. ↑ "James C. Hopkins, 84, Partner in architectural firm". Boston Globe. October 31, 1998.
  16. ↑ "New Era Seen In Housing for Workingmen: Boston Architect in Address Before the Cambridge Board of Trade Says There Are Signs of End to Tenement Flats". The Christian Science Monitor. February 24, 1916. p. 4.
  17. ↑ Richard M. Candee and Greer Hardwicke (1987). Early Twentieth Century Reform Housing by Kilham & Hopkins, Architects of Boston. University of Chicago Press.
  18. ↑ William Germain Dooley (September 1, 1946). "Review of "Boston After Bullfinch: An Account of Its Architecture, 1800-1900," by Walter H. Kilham". The New York Times.
  19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 19.2 19.3 19.4 19.5 19.6 19.7 "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. 2010-07-09.
  20. ↑ "The Mansion". Blithewold: Mansion, Gardens & Arboretum.
  21. ↑ 21.0 21.1 Aymar Embury (1909). One Hundred Country Houses: Modern American Examples. The Century Co. pp. 22–26.
  22. ↑ Massachusetts Cultural Resource Information System
  23. ↑ 23.0 23.1 23.2 "Three Massachusetts School Houses, Kilham & Hopkins, Architects". The Brickbuilder. December 1909. pp. 243–246.
  24. ↑ Bryant F. Tolles, Jr. (2004). Architecture in Salem: An Illustrated Guide. UPNE. p. 275. ISBN 158465385X.
  25. ↑ "Massachusetts Historical Commission Area form for Salem Point Neighborhood". Vanasse Hangen Brustlin, Inc. June 2006. pp. 5–6 of 39.
  26. ↑ "American Seaside Homes". Journal of the RoyalInstitute of British Architects, Volumes 27-28. 1910. pp. 109–111.
  27. ↑ "DEDICATE CHELSEA'S FINEST NEW SCHOOL STRUCTURE TONIGHT". Christian Science Monitor. December 16, 1909.
  28. ↑ "Unitarian Universalist Church of Marblehead (1911)". Historic Buildings of Massachusetts.
  29. ↑ "Vose School / High School". Milton Historical Society.
  30. ↑ Greer Hardwicke, Preservation Consultant, and Betsy Friedberg, Massachusetts Historical Commission (April 1999). "Woodbourne Historic District". Jamaica Plain Historical Society.
  31. ↑ Fisher Hill, Tour One, Brookline Preservation Commission
  32. ↑ "Lexington Comprehensive Cultural Resources Survey: Cary Memorial Hall". Massachusetts Historical Commission. August 1, 1978.
  33. ↑ Mills Whitaker Architects. "Contract no. 10-55: Final Report, Isaac Harris Cary Memorial Building Evaluation". City of Lexington.
  34. ↑ "Appendix B, History". State of Massachusetts, Department of Conservation and Recreation. p. 174.
  35. ↑ "Construction begins on Glover School in Marblehead". Boston Globe. August 15, 2012.