From the collection of the Redwood Library and Athenaeum, Newport, Rhode Island “Peter Harrison”, attributed to Louis Sands

Peter Harrison (1716-1775)

America’s First Architect Ronald J. Onorato

Supported by VAN BEUREN CHARITABLE FOUNDATION

AIA / RHODE ISLAND ARCHITECTURAL FORUM A Charitable Organization Supporting Educational Programs within the Architectural Community

PETER HARRISON BIOGRAPHY  Peter Harrison, often regarded as the “First American Architect” had a significant impact on American mid-18th century

buildings and as the first importer of Palladianism across the Atlantic, on subsequent generations of architects to the present

day. As a young man, both in his native England and here in his adopted American city of Newport, Rhode Island, he

learned and excelled at numerous traditional skills and crafts including many which would support his interest in

architectural design including drafting, wood carving, surveying and cartography. He was to become a well-read gentleman,

with interests ranging over literature, geography, history and the newly discovered archaeology of Herculaneum. In his 30’s

and 40’s he added to these skills what was also a crucial ability: an aptitude for management both in terms of organizing

crews of workmen (to build and outfit his ships, to run his farm, to construct buildings) and in running the financial aspect of

his successful other business as an importer of European goods.

His knowledge of architecture, based both on historical buildings and the most fashionable contemporary English designs,

was unsurpassed for an American colonist in the mid-18th century. Harrison gained this specialized, worldly knowledge in

various ways: through early social connections in his birthplace of York, he personally crossed paths with major English

architects and designers; through extensive travel, he had seen significant examples of both historical and contemporary

buildings in England, France and Italy, and finally, through his impressive library, which included much primary source

material in the form of pattern books, the lingua franca of 18th century European design. Many of the 600 plus volumes in

his collection he purchased and brought back with him from London to Newport, a wealthy town second only to Boston as

the most thriving seaports on the north east Atlantic Coast.

Harrison was the epitome of a gentleman architect who in designing buildings was informed by both his own visual

experiences of architecture and the book-learned knowledge of his century. While he did receive compensation for some of

his drawings and design work, he often provided architectural services to civil authorities and institutions pro bono because

he was the only man who possessed the appropriate knowledge and design experience. In this, as in all his unique design

work, he was an exemplar of the Enlightenment intellectual whose practice was based on an engagement with current

intellectual ideas and historical forms.

A number of private residences in Massachusetts and Rhode Island are firmly attributed to Harrison, including Shirley Place

for Governor William Shirley of Boston with monumental pilasters framing its august front elevation, raised atop an elevated

basement course and the Vernon House in Newport with its very correct Georgian proportions and pattern book classicism.

His real forte however, was in the design of civic structures and in this he again stood out from all his other contemporaries.

Function begins to inform the exterior imagery of American architecture during his era as the blockish colonial wood frame

architecture begins to give way to other solutions based on how the building will be used. This is evident in his earliest civic

design, the Redwood Library and Athenaeum where he creates for the first time in America the image of a classical temple

for the intellectual atmosphere of Newport. Drawing on his own experiences of Palladian churches and farmhouses in the

Veneto as well as contemporary London pattern book plates such as Edward Hoppers Andrea Palladio’s Architecture (1736)

– Harrison gives the Redwood group an idealized temple dedicated to the life of the mind. Site, function and image all

PETER HARRISON BIOGRAPHY  coalesce in his design. This center of intellectual discourse is poised at the top of a hill overlooking the more profane

precincts of the bustling seaport; its classical details (including metopes, triglyphs and guttae) and cut wood siding, emulate

timeless masonry symbolizing erudition. With a pedimented entry portico raised above a monumental Doric colonnade, this

temple evokes a kind of special space, an American acropolis (although the sandstone based with its directional staircase is

more Roman than Greek). This is all created a generation before Jefferson further develops these antique revival themes and

symbols.

By the time Thomas Jefferson visits Newport on two occasions in 1784 and 1790, Harrison has been dead for nearly a

decade. It is hard to imagine that Jefferson, with his abiding interest in architecture did not take the time to visit the

unparalleled collection of civic buildings including the Redwood Library, the Synagogue and the Brick Market which were

designed by Harrison years earlier – all were only a few city streets from his lodgings. Harrison’s contributions to American

architecture are very much centered on the third quarter of the 18th century, prior to the Revolution, while the younger

Jefferson’s full blown development of similar ideas and forms bridges into the 19th century. His second campaign of work on

Monticello is begun in 1793 after both visits and it is tempting to think that the body of Harrison’s Newport work had a

direct influence on the architecturally minded Virginian.

Harrison designed several churches, mostly for the Anglican faith, in Boston, Cambridge and Charlestown, South Carolina,

but his most remarkable religious structure was for Jewish congregation in Newport. For that community, which had thrived

within the religious toleration of the Rhode Island colony, Harrison built what is now the earliest synagogue in North

America. Here, the reticence of the masonry exterior, punctuated by the pedimented and arched entry porch supported on

ionic columns only cloaks a stunning interior, replete with metalwork, paneling, turned balustrades and Dutch-influenced

furnishings. He again asserts his own design method in combining what may have been his own visual knowledge of a

synagogue in Amsterdam with numerous elements drawn from pattern books, to create a unified space containing symbolic

elements. The main space is divided vertically by twelve sets of superimposed columns representing the tribes of Israel and

horizontally by a commodious balcony for women. Centered on the raised platform of the bimeh and with the Holy Ark

facing eastward, his building creatively mixes contemporary 18th century classicism with ancient, non-English roots. The

entire building reflects Harrison’s subtle design sensibilities as it is an architectural metaphor for the experience of Jewish

life in eighteenth century Newport: lives richly led within their community of their faith but presented with modest rectitude

to the broader, albeit tolerant, citizenry. With the possible exception of the Redwood Library, Touro Synagogue remains his

most singular, memorable achievement and the example of his work least affected by later alterations.

As the noted American historian Carl Bridenbaugh concluded over 50 years ago, “Peter Harrison’s career is a colonial

version of the American success story”. The Quaker-born, well-travelled ships captain with a passionate interest in classical

architecture employed his broad intellect, his considerable enterprise and his social skills to become America’s first

important architect. Ronald J. Onorato, 2011

PETER HARRISON CHRONOLOGY  1716: Born June 14, in York, England to a Quaker family c.1735: The young Harrison probably meets Lord Burlington, who instigated the 18th century revival in Palladian

architecture and his assistant William Kent (a fellow Yorkshire man) who had recently studied in Rome and Northern Italy and was soon to become a key architect and landscape designer in 18th century England (both were at work on the Assembly Rooms in York); Harrison may also have apprenticed with York architects, William Etty and his son John Etty. At this time Harrison also gains knowledge of wood carving and drafting.

1739: Goes to sea (following his older brother Joseph) On his first sea voyage, he arrives in Newport, Rhode Island,

meets John Bannister, a “very eminent merchant” and prominent Newporter. Later that same year, Harrison becomes a ships captain at age 23 and eventually a ships owner in transatlantic trade including whaling.

1739-40’s: Extensive transatlantic travel between Newport and London, also to the Carolinas and to the Netherlands;

gains management experience organizing crew of craftsman outfitting newly built Newport ship and knowledge of navigation and surveying.

1744: Captured by French privateer, imprisoned at Louisburg, Nova Scotia Earliest known drawings; Draws plans of

fortress at Louisburg and maps of the coast line in secret (now Collection of Public Record Office, London). 1745: When released, Harrison passes copies of drawings to William Shirley, Massachusetts Governor who later

captured Louisburg for the English and subsequently becomes Harrison’s architectural patron. Due to his experience in drafting, surveying, and knowledge of harbors and fortifications Harrison was commissioned by the Rhode Island colony, to “procure a draught or plan, of Fort George and the Harbor of Newport”. Gains reputation as a military engineer as he is paid 75 pounds for his drawings and later superintends the new construction and alterations at Fort George, Newport.

1746: settles in Newport, Rhode Island, marries Elizabeth Pelham whose family ties to Governor Shirley, John Bannister

and others secures Harrison’s social position and patronage. In addition to these marriage ties, his Quaker background also gave him access to the powerful merchant class of Newport’s Society of Friends.

1746: Harrison receives his earliest known building commission to design Governor’s house, Shirley Place, Roxbury;

for this Harrison creates what George Washington later called “rusticated boards”, i.e. to make wood siding appear to be stone through carving and sanded paint. This technique subsequently used by Harrison and other architects throughout New England.

1747: Sails to London again for long European stay. 1748: Travels to France and the Veneto, Italy; returns to Newport, late 1748. Harrison has with him a box of recently

published English pattern books by Kent, Hopper, Gibbs, Halfpenny, Salmon and others, adding to other architecture volumes already in his collection. This is the finest and largest architectural library in 18th century English America.

Before his return, he begins providing plans for The Redwood Library, the earliest temple fronted Palladian

design in the American colonies. These early plans were revised in February 1749 enhancing the external elevation and function. His design was based on contemporary English pattern book images as well as buildings by Lord Burlington and Palladio of which he probably had direct experience. (i.e. Burlington’s Garden Temple at Chiswick and Palladio’s Church of San Giorgio, Venice).

1749: Based on immediate public success of the Redwood design, Harrison receives commission for a major building in

masonry, King’s Chapel, Boston. Again uses pattern books as source material for the six drawings he submits (an unusually large number for this era).

PETER HARRISON CHRONOLOGY  1751: Harrison’s reputation spreads, design of St. Michael’s Church, Charlestown, South Carolina, attributed to him. It,

like King’s Chapel has a classical entrance portico, rare for the colonies. 1750’s: Involved with birth of his children, other business such as ship owning, whaling and managing family land in

Newport, including work on its main house, barn and other outbuildings with noted colonial craftsmen such as the stonecutter and mason, John Stevens II. Harrison’s extensive library of between 600 and 700 volumes includes many agricultural and engineering manuals to complement his architectural books. During these same years, Harrison gathers a collection of over 2 dozen paintings including some from Italy and Spain whose Roman Catholic subjects would have been unusual in New England.

1755: Designed new Beavertail Lighthouse at mouth of Narragansett Bay, one of the earliest in America of stone and

brick. Continues to advise on its operation and maintenance into the 1760’s. Harrison also redesigns fortifications for renovation of Fort George in Newport during French and Indian War and was among first in America to use the expertise of German and French military engineers, John Muller, Sebastien Le Prestre de Vauban and Guilllaume Le Blond in his designs. Harrison also continues to use his drafting and cartography skills to provide the town with maps and plans for Newport and its harbor.

1759-60: Plans for Touro Synagogue, Masonic Hall and Brick Market in Newport and Christ Church, Cambridge, Mass. All combine his knowledge of pattern book designs with local materials and craftsmanship, sensitivity to site and unique functions.

1761-64: Early Patron of theatrical productions; associated politically with Martin Howard and other early Tories during

Stamp Act era. 1766: Becomes Customs Collector in New Haven, Conn., moves there with his family in October to avoid early

revolutionary atmosphere in Newport.

1768: Elected to membership in the American Philosophical Society, Philadelphia, an elite colonial organization for “promoting useful knowledge”; one of only 4 Rhode Island members along with his friend Ezra Stiles and Stephen Hopkins, the Rhode Island Governor and signer of the Declaration of Independence

1768-70 Design for Governor John Wentworth’s large Country House, Wolfeborough, New Hampshire. 1773-74 Correspondence with President of Dartmouth College to discuss building of a new College Edifice in Hanover,

New Hampshire. 1775: In ill health for the past decade, dies of a stroke, April 30, 1775; buried at Trinity Church, New Haven. One

contemporary tribute published in Connecticut states in part:

“In his death learning appears veil’d: and the Fine Art of Architecture has now in America no standard.

R.J. Onorato 2011

REDWOOD LIBRARY, 1748‐1750  LOCATION:  Newport, Rhode Island 

PROGRAM:  Private Library 

AWARDS:  1960, National Historic Landmark     1966, National Register of Historic Places DESCRIPTION:  The  Redwood, with  its  finely  balanced  lines,  classical  pediment  and  columned  grand 

façade, was the first public Palladian building constructed in the American Colonies. The predecessor  of  the  formal  buildings  that  would  grace  America’s  capital  city,  Peter Harrison  designed  the  Redwood  as  a  neo‐classical  temple  in  homage  to  the  great civilizations of the past, and as a testament to a faith in the future. 

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 PHOTO: WARREN JAGGER PHOTOGRAPHY 

KING’S CHAPEL, 1749‐1754  LOCATION:  Boston, Massachusetts 

PROGRAM:  Church 

AWARDS:  1960, National Historic Landmark     1974, National Register of Historic Places DESCRIPTION:  The original King's Chapel was a wooden church built in 1688 at the corner of Tremont 

and School Streets, where the church stands today. It was situated on the public burying ground  because  no  resident  would  sell  land  for  a  non‐Puritan  church.  In  1749, construction  began  on  the  current  stone  structure,  which  was  designed  by  Peter Harrison and completed in 1754. The stone church was built around the wooden church. When  the  stone  church  was  complete,  the  wooden  church  was  disassembled  and removed through the windows of the new church.  

                                THOMAS HYDE PAGE, 1777?                     CHURCH WEBSITE 

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TOURO SYNAGOGUE, 1759‐1763  LOCATION:  Newport, Rhode Island 

PROGRAM:  Orthodox Jewish Temple 

AWARDS:  1946, National Historic Site     1966, National Register of Historic Places     2001, National Trust for Historic Preservation DESCRIPTION:  Touro  Synagogue  is  perhaps  Peter  Harrison’s  most  successful  building.  Although  it 

presents  a most  sever  façade  to  the  street,  the  interior  treatment,  including  carved wooden furnishings and galleries, is rich, sophisticated work characteristic of English and Continental design of the mid‐18th century.  

  

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 PHOTO: WARREN JAGGER PHOTOGRAPHY 

CHRIST CHURCH, 1759‐1761  LOCATION:  Cambridge, Massachusetts 

PROGRAM:  Church 

AWARDS:  1960, National Historic Landmark     1966, National Register of Historic Places DESCRIPTION:  Founded by members of the King’s Chapel who lived in Cambridge, to provide Church of 

England  services  to  students at Harvard College, Christ Church was designed by Peter Harrison,  in wood  but  finished  in  a  sanded  paint  treatment  to  give  appearance  of  a traditional English stone church.  

   

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VERNON HOUSE, 1760  LOCATION:  Newport, Rhode Island 

PROGRAM:  Private residence 

AWARDS:  1968, National Register of Historic Places 

DESCRIPTION:  “The all‐over  rustication of  its wooden exterior, originally painted  light pink with sand thrown onto the wet surface to simulate granite, is the most conspicuous aspect of this remarkable house…beyond  this overt  indication  that  it may be Harrison’s work, even though  no  document  proves  it,  the  nature  of  the  design,  the  sophistication  of  its sources, and the discrimination of its execution all suggest the fact”. William H. Jordy 

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 PHOTO: WARREN JAGGER PHOTOGRAPHY 

BRICK MARKET, 1760‐1772  LOCATION:  Newport, Rhode Island 

PROGRAM:  Market, Open arcade below and “dry stores” above 

AWARDS:  1960, National Historic Landmark     1966, National Register of Historic Places DESCRIPTION:  Peter Harrison designed this building as a “plainer version of Somerset House in London, 

designed  by  Inigo  Jones  and  John  Webb  and  published  by  Colen  Campbell  in  his Vitruvius  Britannicus…” William H.  Jordy.  Currently  housing  the Museum  of Newport History, it served as the city hall from 1853 to 1900. 

 

  CHARLES BLASKOWITZ, 1777 

 

                    PHOTO: WARREN JAGGER PHOTOGRAPHY 

ANNALS OF THE REDWOOD LIBRARY  

1891, George Champlin Mason, page 36 

 

Architectural books in Harrison library  

HABS No. RI‐100 pages 12 and 13 

 

Abbreviated Bibliography  Batchelder, Samuel Francis. "Peter Harrison," Bulletin of the Society for the Preservation of New England Antiquities 6, no. 2 (January 1916):12-19.

Bridenbaugh, Carl. Peter Harrison. Chapel Hill: The University of North Carolina Press, 1949.

Downing, Antoinette Forrester. Early Homes in Rhode Island. Richmond, VA: Garrett & Massie, Incorporated, 1937. 215-229.

Downing, Antoinette F. and Vincent J. Scully, Jr. The Architectural Heritage of Newport, Rhode Island 1640-1915. 2nd ed. New York: Clarkson N. Potter, 1967. 3,9,78-91,115,512 [pl 127].

Friedman, Lee M. "The Newport Synagogue," Old Time New England 36, no. 3 (1946):49-57.

Haley, John Williams. "Peter Harrison, a Great Colonial Architect," Old Time New England 36, no. 3 (1946):58-61.

Hunt, William Dudley, Jr. Encyclopedia of American Architecture. New York: McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1980. 241-243.

Isham, Norman Morrison. "Report on the Old Brick Market or Old City Hall Newport, Rhode Island," Bulletin of the Society for the Preservation of New England Antiquities 6, no. 2 serial no. 13 (January 1916):2-11.

Jordy, William H. “Buildings of Rhode Island”, Society of Architectural Historians, Oxford University Press, 2004.

Kimball, Fiske. "The Colonial Amateurs and Their Models: Peter Harrison," Architecture 53, no. 6 (June 1926):155-ff.

Kimball, Fiske. "Harrison, Peter" in Dictionary of American Biography, vol. 8 New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1932. 347.

Mason, George Champlin. Annals of the Redwood Library and Athenaeum Newport, Rhode Island. Newport: Redwood Library, 1891. 36.

Onorato, Ronald. "Peter Harrison", The Grove Dictionary of Art, Macmillan Publishers Ltd,London, England, 1996, pp. 197-198

Onorato, Ronald J. “AIA Guide to Newport”, AIAri Architectural Forum, 2007

Page, Marian. "Peter Harrison - Architect of the New England Colonies." [extract from Interiors 129, no. 10 (May 1970):126-133.]

"Peter Harrison, Architect," Massachusetts Historical Society 49, (March 1916):261-268.

Placzek, Adolf K. ed. Macmillan Encyclopedia of Architects. New York: The Free Press, 1982. 2:321-322.

Richards, J.M. ed. Who's Who in Architecture from 1400 to the Present Day. London: Weidenfield and Nicolson, 1977. 138.

The National Cyclopaedia of American Biography, vol. 23 New York: James T. White & Company, 1933, 396.

Witney, Henry F. and Elsie Rathburn Witney. Biographical Dictionary of American Architects (Deceased). Los Angeles: Hennessey & Ingalls, Inc., 1970. 266,267.

Who Was Who In America: Historical Volume 1607-1896. Chicago: The A.N. Marquis Company, 1963. 237. (Harrison, Peter).

The Historic American Buildings Survey, a remarkable tripartite endeavor by the Library of Congress, AIA, and National Park Service, features eight surveys of projects by, attributed to, or related to Peter Harrison.