Ruskin, Norton, and Memorial Hall

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Citation Shaffer, Robert B. 1949. Ruskin, Norton, and Memorial Hall. Harvard Library Bulletin III (2), Spring 1949: 213-231.

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I-IE 1nost frightening building in greater Boston! In these , vo r ds 1\-1arcclB rcu er rccen tl y j n dica ted his feelings about Harvard University's l\1cmorjal Hull.. And the ,vell- kno,vn -architect \Vent on to say·: 'An impossible con- glonleratc of imitations. . .. . It is too high and too big for the land on ,vhich it is built. The building has no connection ,vith the streets and is ,vholly unrelated to its surroundings . .. . the n1aterials used throughout in construction are an unf orrunate choice. Clumsy and formless on the exterior, ,vhat possible inducement is there to enter?,. 1 There 2re a grcnt many people ,vho are in complete agreement \vith this judgn1ent, but jr is not shared by all. For example, \Valter H. l(ilham, the Boston architect, says that 'Harvard has not properly appreciated this n1onument in recent years," and c]aimsthat the building has its points. 2 This attitude to l\1crnorial Hall ,vas anticipated ahnost forty· years ago by· l\1ontgomcry·Schuy]er, a perceptive pioneer critic and historian of American architecture, ,vho called A1emorial Hall 'the most architccturall) 7 challenging and note\vorthy- [ of I-lar~ vard buildings] ·... by no means an architectural failure." s A sin1ilar,vide range of recorded opinion and feeling can be found among non-professional critics, particularly in Cambridge and Har~ vard circles. The novelist flenry Jan1cs ,vas sufficiently interested jn the building to ,vrite about it at least t,vicc. In 1 885 he sent nvo of the leading characters of T_beBostonians on n tour of the Hall; he describes the l\1etnoriai Transept as 'a chan1her high, dim, and severe/ and com- n1ents on the in1pression jt makes! 'The effect of the place is singularly nob]e and solc111n,and it is in1possible to stand there ,vithout a lifting of the hearL Ir is erected to dut)T ~nd honor, it speaks of sacrifice and examp]e, sec111sa kind of temple to youth, 1nanhood, and generosity.' 4

1 In 7 /Je A1nerica11Scene"' about t\vcnty years lat~r1 he further discusses the great official., the great bristling brick Va]haHa of the early "seventies,'~ that house of honor and of hospit9:lity ,vhich, under the name of the Alumni

..As quoted in the Boston Traveler, 20 January l945• Boston after Bulfinch ( Ca.n1bridge, l\1ass.t 1946), p. 7 5. :11~The Architecture of A n1cri can Co] leg es! I. - Harvard,!- Arr.!:,i tee tur al Record t XXVI { 1909) !-167-2.69. " ~The Bostoni;1ns,' Century ]t.-fagazine, XXX ( 18 8 5), 69 5.

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Harvard University - Houghton Library / Harvard University. Harvard Library bulletin. Cambridge, Mass., Harvard University Library. Volume III, Number 2 (Spring 1949) 214 Harvard Library Bulletin Ha1l, dispenses ( 1.part f ro]n its con raining a noble anditorju1n} laurels. to the dead and dinners to the . living .. The recording nibkts of the 111embersof the University sa crifi c cdi on the Northern ·~dtl e, in the Ci vii , \ 7ar, are too imp ressi vc not to ret9.in here ahvays their collec-tjt•e beauty; but the n1onumenrnl office and character suffer throughout frorn the too scant presence of the massive and the 111arurc. The great str u c turc sprca ds and soars ,v j th th c h cst ,vii I in the

,vorld 1 but succeeds in resernhling rather son1e high-masted ship at sea._in slightly pros~ic equilibrium, than :1 thtng of builded foundations a.nd cn1brasured ,valJs. ,vhich it fa 11npossible not immediately to ndd that these distinc:tions :ire To t rclntil'C and these co1npadsons almost odious~ in face of the recent gcncrationsj gathered in f ro1n b cneath emptier skicsi ,vho nn1st have found in the bjg building as it st:=-ndsan admonition nnd an ideatti

But son1c of the pron1inent figures of the Cambridge scene itself ,vere less charitable. And the n1ost vocal in disapproval ,va.s for 1nany ye2rs Charles Eliot Norton., Professor of the History of Art 2t Harvard f ro1n- 1875 to 1898. In 1878, the )•car of the completion·of 1\1c111orial I--IalJ,he ,vrotc to James Russell Lo,vell: cl have given ,up a.11hope of any· [I-Iarvard] Co]iege building being other than ugly. 1 6 In 1890, ,vith characteristic hyperbole., he proposed the destruction of all Har- vard buildings erected durjng the preceding fifty years.7 And he expressed hitnsclf in similar fashion on numerous other occasi

Arthur Scdg\vick1 ?\Torton"'sbrothcr-in-la\v 1 indicated this in a re1ni- niscent 1e ttcr to l\1iss Sara Nor ton in ,v hi ch h c stated that the existen cc 8 of 1\11en1orial I-Iall ,vas j n great part, if not chicfl y, due to Norton. Actually, some indications of Norton's relationship to this edifice are to be found in the co]lection s of the Harvard University Li bral}•. It sohappens that 1\1emorialI-Jail is a ,vell-docun1ented structure. Its rather involved history can be traced through letters., reports 2nd

minutes of con1n1itreestbuilding contracts 1 and similar material pre-· served in the Harvard {]niversity'" Archives jn the ,,ridencr Library. This material., together ,vith the considerable quantity of Norton papers and letters 110\v kept in the Houghton J,.tihrary,presents a.n

The An1erica11 Scene .(Ne,v York, 1907),.p. 59. t: Lette1's of Charle~ Eliot Norton, ecL Sc1raNorton and l\.".LA+ De ,v ..Ho,ve (Bos- ton! I 91 3 ) ._lJ, 81 ,. C. E. Norton._'I-I ar vard University in J R90/ H 1.1.rper's .i\f agazinr., LXXXI ( 1890), 59L 8 Letters of CharlesEliot J!.lorton) II. 436.

Harvard University - Houghton Library / Harvard University. Harvard Library bulletin. Cambridge, Mass., Harvard University Library. Volume III, Number 2 (Spring 1949) I . - ::-,; ·-:~ .. ...: -r-· - ,.:..

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PLATE Ila rIRST DESIG~ roR nlE.l'\IORL-\L HALL, 186 5

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Harvard University - Houghton Library / Harvard University. Harvard Library bulletin. Cambridge, Mass., Harvard University Library. Volume III, Number 2 (Spring 1949) 0 DO co,_

Harvard University - Houghton Library / Harvard University. Harvard Library bulletin. Cambridge, Mass., Harvard University Library. Volume III, Number 2 (Spring 1949) Harvard University - Houghton Library / Harvard University. Harvard Library bulletin. Cambridge, Mass., Harvard University Library. Volume III, Number 2 (Spring 1949) Ruskin, Norton., and Me1norialflail 215 unusual opportunity for an examination of the architectural motives, thinking~ and ideals of a ,vcll-cducatcd and ,veil-traveled Nc,v Eng- lander of the post---bcHumperiod. On 1 z May, , 865 t Norton ,vas one of a group of pron1inent alumni ,vho met to consider the subject of a proper n1cmorial to the ,:sons of Harvard fallen in the ,var., The subject ,vas a controversial one from the beginning. Some felt a simple monument to be the proper expression; others f avurcd a hall of n1onun1ental character; the. suggestion ,vas also made that this latter n1ight be con1bincd ,vith t,vo other buildings needed by· the College and the graduates: a dining ha11for the alutnni gath c r ingt{,and a thca tre for a cadcn1i c ccren10ni es. No rt on., according to Sedg,vickJ led the faction \vhich. felt 'that the n1en1orialshould be one .,vhich did not suggest victory or triun1ph in ,var, but the sacrifice of Jifc,for a cause '"vholl}rdisconnected ,vith ordinar)T ,varfnrc, and above itt and that the n1en1orial should be avo,vcdly dedicated to the uses of peace and the objects of the University. -..... ' 0 One of the opponents of this schcn1e said that he ~vnnted nn alnn1ni hall as 1nnch as an}rone, hut thought the subjects of a hall and of a n1emorial should not he confounded; \Vhi]e another alun1nl1.~thoug11t that the embracing of t\VO objects in one schen1e ,vo11]dsubject the alumni to a. charge of 'Yankee shre,vdness.' 10 A comrnittcc of c]cvcn mcn1bers ,vas appointed at Norton's suggestion to cxan1ine the various proposals carefully and to report on a pern1anc.nt 1nen1orial; he ,vas a1nong those appointed. This ,vas the mo

comp]ete1 and ,vhich ,vas to cost, in contrast to the first estimate of $75 ,ooot nearly $400.,000. The ·committee evident!y dccicted to get professional advice., for on 29 A1aya prjnted circular \Vas sent to a. sc1ected number of architectst asking for an opinion as to ,v h et her

1 1bld~ 1 Tl, 43 7.. Except ,vhcrc otl1cr sources arc indicated~ tho account of the history of the Luilding h~s Leen derived from. papers in the Harvard _University Ar- chives. 1 1) T hcsc h cc1ted a rgu rn en ts of 18 65 for and a g c1:insta ~useful' n1cm orj al take on an add cd interest b cca use of the p rcscnt-day discussions of suitAbl e . ,\ 1or 1d War II me morfa ls. thcs e discussions the c ,1 sc of J\-icmorial Hall has provided a1ntnu ni-

tion for both sid es1 no\v adduced as a horrid example,,ag:a.i n prop oscd -as a m cans of achieving ex pcnsi ve 11tili tarian ends at re 1ati v el y l 01.\' co~t. I c is ,vor th nothing t h~t Prc:-.sjdent Eliot, \Vho ,v~s on the Building Committc c. for l\ 1r.1n or in l I In1 l for a t•m c •nc to th c con du sio n ( in his H n.r·v,1rdAl enzo r ie s, Ca.mhrid gc, A-ilSS~1 19 i :h p. 140) that 'th c rc,1l n1on un1cn~ and the survi \Ti11 g monun1 cnts :are strnctu res of high a r- e hi tc ctu ral Q.nd rti stic mc.rit "\'1-"h ic h ha ·~.1cno uses "\V hatcvc r.'

Harvard University - Houghton Library / Harvard University. Harvard Library bulletin. Cambridge, Mass., Harvard University Library. Volume III, Number 2 (Spring 1949) _...... ,___ -----

216 !-larvardLibrary Bulletin a suitable men1ori2l character c01lldbe well given to a building erected for an ~lu1nni hall; the circular also asked advice on ho,v to run an architectural co n1p eti ti on. (Professional pro ccdure ,vas not standard- ized at that tin1c~) The leaflet ,vas signed ~CharlesEliot Norton - for

the Co1nmittce. Please address your reply to fvlr. Norton. i · A fortunate notation jn Norton~s hand on a copy in the Archives te11sto \vhom the circular ,vas sent. Seven alun1ni ,vere approached:

J. E. Cabot1 '40; ,,,. R. '''are, '5 2; G .. F. l\1ea.chan1.,'5 3; J. E. Col- burn, '56; C. D. Gan1brjll~ '56; Henry \ 1an Brunt, '56; and \1/. P. P.. \ Longfello,v, '56. 11 Five non-alumni ,vere also circularized: John H. Sturgis and Han1mctt Billings of Boston; and Russell Sturgis, Jr, P. B. ,vight, and R. 1\11. Hunt of Ne,v York .. The replies \Vere encouraging/~ and on 10 June Norto11 launched his architectural co1npctition, again by circular. The announced pro- gnnn called for a n1cn1orial jn the forn1 of an alumni hallt ,vith the f o 11o \Ving con diti ons: I. The building n1ust not cost over .$I 50,000. II. It must contain an academic theatre and a dining halL

II I. It n1ust expre..ss,if possibleI its monu rncnta l cha ractc r. l\r, It must provide noble and _befittingplace for the accutnulation of memorials of the dead and the living.

This ,vas quite an order, inas1nuch as the announced deadline allo,vcd only t\ven ty-fi ve days for the arch itccts to pre pare th cir.cl cs ig ns. These also \Vere to be submitted to i\1r Norton. Unfortunately, the designs ,vhich \Vere entered arc not kno\•;,,-~today. But they cvidcntl) 7 convinced a majority of the committee that the project \Vas feasible, for the con1n1ittccts printed report of 14 July co nsidcred a l\ 1cmorj al I-Ia] 1 the ,(n1 ost d csirab 1c f o nn, nor only as best e1nbracing all the purposes of any n1crc 1nonumcnt~ but as secur- ing at the .san1etin1c, the con1bination ,vith them of numerous sacred

2nd interesting past and future associations 1 of ,vhich no other form can possibly· ad111i t ..t On 19 July, a 'Con1mittcc of Fifty' \Vas chosen by the alumni as a pcrn1ancnt organlzation to carry the project to con1plction. From this date until the final selection of ~he design of the firm of '~'are -and ,, an Brunt, in Decernhcr, n1attcrs ,vcrc in a state of considerable con-

n There ,v.1s a strong feel ia g that the bu i] ding sh ou] d Le d e:s:1gaed by an :alumnus, sin cc it ,vas to be a gift of the alumni to the College. 1.:! r or an cxan1plc, sc e th c re p1y of , Var e and ·van Ilcu nt, quoted b eJo,,.. ,

Harvard University - Houghton Library / Harvard University. Harvard Library bulletin. Cambridge, Mass., Harvard University Library. Volume III, Number 2 (Spring 1949) Ruskin, N orto11'Jand Aie1norialHnll 217 fusion. It ,vould appear that the architects ,vere all asked for revised designs in July... It is also evident that, although the designs ,vere submitted -anonyn1ously,they did not ]ong retnain so. Furthern1oreJ Nor- ton's competition did not sctdc either the matter of the design or of the architect~ nor CYcn, ju fact., the n1attcr of the ty·pe of mcn1orial, as is .sho,vn by a Jetter of 2 August from s~unuel F.liot to J\Torton:

Our Comn1ittce of Fjfty n1et on j\1:onday t ancl great ,v=3.sthe confusion thereof. Finally, a Sub-Con1mittcc of six ,vas appointed to djgcst and if pos- sib1e, recondlc conflicting plans. This sub-cornmittee met; a.nd nppDiated me (ag'1inst my ,vill) to :3.skthe architects already nppUedto1 if they ,vi1l"take the troub]c to make '~pen and ink sketches'' of such a building as ,vi11 compdse 1. A c1oister or propyJacum of a strictly n1cn1orial character~ :3.nd 2.+ A h-all for the social purposes of the Alun1ni. I do not at a11Jikc the idea of applying to the architects again, but I see no \vay to a.void iti' as the majority a.re evid en tI y o ppo!icd to a11the p 1ans procured through your circular. \T cry fe,v favor the jdea of building an auditorjun1., and very many appear to prefer a monumcnt 1 ,vithout any building at aJL

It seems likely that 1nost of the architects had lost interest by this ti1ne; but Eliot"s co1nn1ittee ,vas able to agree by 2 3 Septen1bcr on :i design by ''-'are nnd \Tan Brunt. At a meeting of the Comtnitree of Fifty on r 2 Decetnber, their design ,vas officially and nnanin1ously accepted on a n1otion ro that cffcct by Norton~ ,vho ,vas then appointed not on]y to· a con1mirtcc to get up a prospectus appealing for fundst but also to the important Building Committee of live, "rhich \vas to ., ,vork ,vith the architects. The printed appeal of February-, 1866'J contained a ,voodcnt of ~he proposed bui]ding (Plate Ila),. and a description by the architects in \vhich they indicated not only· their ideas, but also the sources of soine of them+

This dcsi g n cmb races t hrec principal parts~ - L The HalL II.. The Th ea tre. IIL The i.\1onument. These three djvj~ions are distinct fro,n each othcrt but are so combined as to form a single cornposition.

t 'rhe HalL 4 • • [Its roof] bears a general rescn1bbnce to the famous roof of vVestminster I-Ia.111 and to the roofs of many of the cnllegiatc ha1Is at Oxford and Carnbridge. IL The l"'heatre + • is not unlike those of classic antiquity. .. It is proposed to have no seats in the pit. In thist the exan1ple of the fa.rnous Sheldonic1n

Harvard University - Houghton Library / Harvard University. Harvard Library bulletin. Cambridge, Mass., Harvard University Library. Volume III, Number 2 (Spring 1949) Harvard Library Bulletin

Th ea tre at Oxford has been f o 11o,ved; a build ing1 lV hlch~ as a successful solu ... ti on of n problem 9-lmost ide ntic o.l,v j th thisi h~s been m-ade ;;,.plrticu la r obj ect of stady jn the preparation of this design. . IIL The !\1onun1enta 1 or i\1en,orial division of thjs ·building is an inde- pendent :stnu::ture at the end of the Hnll. The ,vhole end of the building is treated as an external n1urnl n1onun1cnt, upo~ an unprecedented scale.

111 • ..... p.a ••••• The bui,ding is designed to be erected in freestone and brick, or in freestone altogcthcri as 1nay pro\Te best: in either casci -nvo v:irictics of stone ,,rould be used ..... In any case1 it is proposed to have the n1onu1nenta] portion en-

tirely of stone, and t hus 1 by its 1n:1teri a.las ,v ell as by its f ormi to d lstin guis h it f ro111the rest of the building. It is evident, then, that Norton had a leading part in the formulation of the original scherne and the selection of the -architects; -anclone n1ay reasonably a~k what his qualifications ,vere for this pro1ninent role~ In 1865 he ,vas a gentlen1an of means, living in Can,bridge and primarily occupied \Vith literary activities~ \i\ 1ith l...rO-\ve]l,he ,vas editing the North A111ericanRe·view; he \Yas also taking an active p~rt in the founding of the Nation. He had pnh]ished a translation of Dante>s Vita Nuovrt in 1859, and ,vas continuing his Dante studies in the con1- pany· of Longfello,v. I-le ,vas doing considerable political _,vriting at this titnc, as ,velL But before the ,,rar, he had been attracted by artjstic 1n-atters,also. Shortly after his graduation fro1n I-Iarvard in I 846, he had traveled in India and Euro pc, and his 1ctt crs reveal an intercst j n a rchite c ture~ particular 1} 7 I taliun a rchi tc cn1rc. For exam pl c~ he ,v rote to S2111u cl Eliot from \Tcrona in 1850:

I-'lo\v splendidly Palladio h~s illustrated \ 1icenztt1 I hope you admire his buiJdings as much as I do,~ but I -am quite sl.ue you do, for their proportions

arc too fine 1 thci r dctniJs too eleganti not to he admired+ One \VOt1ld like to be a great architect and build up his n~t"thrccity in this ,vay, - but I should "r:int to do it in stonci and not in brick and stucco ,vhich turns to n,tns so soon. 13 This enthusias1n for the Renaiss~nce did not last long, for'in 1856,, dudng a second trip to Europct he n1ade the acqunint~nce of John Ruskin.1t This ,vas the beginning of a close and Jife-long friendship, featured by a voluminous corre~pondence -at1dby numerous meetings

From an u n pu hlishcd letter of 9 A pr il I 8j o, prcsctTcd in th n I-Iou g h ton Libr'-1ry-. l~ Ruskin gives an inttrcsting description of Norlon and their m.e:ctingin I'raeter- i ta, 11I~ Chapters 2 and 3.

...

Harvard University - Houghton Library / Harvard University. Harvard Library bulletin. Cambridge, Mass., Harvard University Library. Volume III, Number 2 (Spring 1949) Ruskin, Norton, and Aie111orialHall 219 in Europea 15 Ruskin had ,vrjttcn Tbe Seven Lamps of Architecture and Tbe Stones of Venice just -a fc\v )rears before this meeting, and ,vas sti]l much jntcrcstcd in architecture. There must have been 1n2.ny earnest discussions bct\vccn the t\VO at this time, in London and else- ,vhere - discussions that ,vere to be continued through the )rears in

such toYvns us Abbcville 1 , 1{here in J 868 lluskinl ,vaiting for· Norton's arrival, ,vrotc to hitn: '-[ I-Iere I can] explain to you n1ore of my o,vn mistakes nnd delights in the ~1Seven. J~ampsn epoch, than I could in an)7 other place in the ,vor]d." 10 N Orton's ideas on architecture ,vcic obviously n1uch influenced by Ruskin in the earl}yyears of their friendship, and this influence never

entirely disappeared. As late as 1890 1 Norton stated, in the introduc~ tion to an edition of the Seven Lan1ps,vhich he brought out at that time: iThe fundamental doctrine of the book is sound, and needs to be enforced to-day no less than forty ))"earsago/ 17 Concrete evidence for this influence of lluskin on Norton is .sup- plied by· the case of the Oxford A1uscun1 (Pl-ate Ia) .18 After a period ·of controversy n1ore bitter and involved than that ,vhich attended the beginnings of 1\1cinoria1Hal1, Oxford University began in 1855 a l\1useum to house scientific collections. The originating spirit behind the project ,vas Dr Henry Acland, ,vho ,vas an old friend of Ruskin. By a narro,v margin, a ~Veronese Gothic' design ,vas chosen, and Ruskin took a great personal interest-in it, even to designing ,vindo,vs and other details~as he hoped it ,vould become a practical demonstra- tion of the principles he ,vas advocating. In 1857 Norton visited Oxford 1.:vithRuskin, and admired ,vith hin1 the old buildings. In a letter he speaks of seeing the 'fine old halP of ' i~ Th E hi.sto~y of the f ri endshi p is traced in Norton 1s edition of the letters l1D

received fro n1 Ruskin (Let ttt s of Jo /Jn Rusk ln to Cbar le s Eliot Norton I Boston 1 t 904). He "'as sufficient! y close to Ruskin to bccom e one of his ]j tcrary executors. Ruskin considered hjm 'the dearest friend I ha\'·e in the ,vorld 1 (Tbe 1Vorks of Jobn Ruskint cd+ E. T. Cook :a.nd Alexander \Veddcrburn, London~ 1903-12, XVIIt 43lt

477). Norton of ten introduced his friends to Ruskin1 but they djd not ahvays share his sympathetic feeling, For -example,after such an introduction Henry J:imes con-

cluded about Ruskin; 'In face, in manncI", in t~lk, in rnind 1 he js \V'eakness pure and

sitnpl e ( letter of 1 869~ given in The Letters of 1-le11r y Ja1ne s I c d.. Percy Lu bho c ki

Ne,v York:t 1920 1 l:t io ). :i-:i Leners of John Ruskin ta Charles Eliot Norton, 1, r Sj',

"J'1 The 'Ilranrwood' cdidon (Nev, York 1 18~H ). p. x~ 1:ePlate I a shows the

Harvard University - Houghton Library / Harvard University. Harvard Library bulletin. Cambridge, Mass., Harvard University Library. Volume III, Number 2 (Spring 1949) ,, .· -~-- ... _:..,.r• .. . ' ' ,_ .. - I .._ . .... 220 H ar·vard Library Bulletin . • • 'I. Christ Chnrch.1~ Through Ruskin he met Acland/ 0 and must h·ave ·... - . seen the unfinished i\1useum and heard much about it.. ·· - · Norton returned to America in the sun1mer of 1 857. The l\1useuin .; had evidently made a consioerablein1pression on hin1, for ,vhen a little bon]c about the l\.11useun1 ,vas published in 1859, containing descriptive 1naterial by Acland and some ren1a.rksby Ruskin,:::1 Norton revie,ved it in the Atlrnitic 1l.iJ011tblyat son1e length, seizing the opportunity to coi~trast the architectura] activity at Oxford ,vith that at I--Iarvard. It provides a clear state1nenrof his architectural ideas at that time~ [ The Oxford i\1uscum] is the first considerable building \11hich has for centuries been erected in England ~ccord1n.g to Lhc trl]c prjnciplcs of Gothic Art . . . It is no copy1 but c1n origfr1at creation of rhoughti fancy1 and in1agina~ tion. It has combined brauty "\vhhuse, elegance -i..vjthconvenience, nnd orna- n1cn t ,vj th ins cruc tio n. It has proved th c per f cct p lfonc y of Gothic a rchi tee turc to 111o d ern needs+

...... +++++1- ...... [Oxford] does not neglect to regard the duty that lies upon her, gs the guardian and in.structrcss: of youthi to set hcf ore their eyes models of fair proportion, noble .structures ,vhich shaH excrcis<::at once :an influence to refine the taste and the sen rim en t and to en b rgc th c j n t eUcct. She ackn o \\'] edges the cl aims of the funue ~s \\·ell as of the present:tand does not erect thrit \\·hich the future

••• ,viH regard 'ilS ba~e~,nean, or ugly. She recognizes the value to herself 1 as ,v cll ~s to her sons, of aH Lhosc associations , vh1ch, Lhrou g h the p O\\! er of her adorned and 111unificent architecture, shall bind then1 to her in tics of closer tender nessi and of strong, thong h most delic:a te feel•n g-. Norton then compares this happy state of affairs ,vith the hopeless condition at Harvard, ,vhich by chance ,vas erecting a sinlilar building (the I\1uscum of Con1parativc Zoology) at that tin1c.:

I-Io,;.v do cs i c coin pa re ,vi d1 the Oxford i\1 us eu in? What provision has been n1ade that in jrs out\\.'ard aspect it shnlI correspond \virh the \vDrth_and grandeur of the coilcctions it is to hold and the studies th:1t arc co be c:1.rricd on 1vithin · it? "\Vhar patienl thought, ,vhar stores of in1c1g1narion1vthat happy adaptations do its ,vaHs: reveal? These CJ.uesti9nsare easily ans,vered. Convenience of in- terna 1 ar ran gc1nen t has b cc n sought , v •thou t reg a rd to extern al be au ty, \vi thou t

cons idera tIon of th c clai 111sof Art. . . + The bu i 1ding for tb c 1'v1useu_n1 is one ,vhich can ne.v

l[I Letters of Cb.,rler Eliot A1orto'li, I. 176. The interjor of the dining portjon of j\femorfal H:i.11is deri,·ed fron1 such a building. ~Ibid., I, 174-177. -n Tlie Oxford A-1.us~un,(Lonllon! 1859 }.

columns or memorial statues 1 ,vj]l stand jncapable of affording support for those assocfadons ,vhich endear c, 1ery h111nan,vork of ,vorth ..•• The Uni- versity ... has not a single building that is beautiful, perhaps ,ve might s9.y none that is not positively ugly; and "\,re almost d~pair of a future ,vhen our pc:.oplcshaU hccon1c enlightened and n1agnani1nous enough to appreciate noble archj t cc tu re a.t its true ,v orth. 22

These ideas arc the ones ,vhrch ,vould have been brought to benr a fe,v }Tearslater on the problem of lVIen1orialHall; they arc in harn1ony ,vjth those of Ruskin, and it is-no surprise that the first design fo~ the bnildi11gsho,vs a number of e1ementsequally associated ,vith Ruskin. The extent to ,vhich Norton n1ay have influenced the choice of style can not be deter1nined. No particu]ar style ,vas specified in the circular announcing the cotnpcti tionr But it is \VOrthy of note that the ,vinning architects v..'cre propcr]y ~pprcciative of the Oxford l\1useurn. l\Torton's circular of 29 Al2y.,requesting an opinion on the feasibility of a 1ne1norjalhall, ,vas replied to by 'i\'are and ,ran Brunt on 5 June · as f ollo,vs: The propos1don to un1te the proposed memorial ,vjrh the 1-Iall of the .A.lumn1seems to us a particub.t1y happy one.... The problem conternplated in your circu 1:ar contains c1cm en ts ca pa b] c of th c nob 1est ex-pres~ions of art It presents an opportunity for elevating the tone of architecture in this country, ,,·hich the alumni n1ight ,veil c111bracc,vith son1cthing of the jnterest ,vhich the UniYersity of Oxford has exhibited in building the nevi,' 1nuseun1, an cx- an1p]e ,vhich has nlrc.ady-e;,:ercjse.d.n marked influence upon the architecture of Eng]and.

Norton's vie\vs on art and his interest in ltuskin ,vcre sufficiently ,videly kno,v11 to attract the attention of others of like n1ind, as is ,vit- ncsscd by u letter addressed to hin1 fron1 Nc,v York on 2 June 1863: j\1y Dear Sir

I kno,v you only through your ,vorks 1 ,vjth ,vhich, ho\vcvcri I =inl ,vell ac- quainted ~nd heartily in sympathy~ There are ,rery fc,v \Vorks on art ,vhich scenl to r:ne to have any value, - those fc,v are on that account the n1or.c pre~ cjous~ and I esteem more than I can no,v tel1 you the Travels in Italy. I sen

[C. E. Norton], 'The Oxford j\:Ius cum,' Atlm11ic Af onthly 1 l\T ( r 859) 1 767- 770. It should be noted, ho1.vc,·cr, th~t Norton ,,~~s not the first to find the older Harvard bujldings disrnstcful. As early ~s 1S36, they had uecn cnlled 'vast brick barns' hy I~Icnt·y Russdl Clc, ..chnd~ ~i. 7., v.. ·riting in· tho N ortb Antcrica1t Re-1.Jiew (XLIH, 362 )~ ,vho aJso expressed cxtren1c dissatisfaction \\'ith Bulfir1t.:h'sUniversity H-alL

Harvard University - Houghton Library / Harvard University. Harvard Library bulletin. Cambridge, Mass., Harvard University Library. Volume III, Number 2 (Spring 1949) 222 H a.rvard Library Bulletin ... I shall br, very glad to hear of your receipt of this1 and ho,v far you are satisfied ,vi th our c onf ession of faith.

I ,viU send you in a fc,v days 1 copies of the first sncl second numbers of our little journut Very· Tn.ily Yours R USSCLL STURGIS JR. 2 i Sturgis is referring in this letter to the Society-for the Advancement of

Truth in Art 1 ,vhich ,vas formed by a group of young peop1e in Ne\v York for the t\vo-fold purpose of advancing in A1nerica the Pre ... Raphaelite cause and the Gothic llevival according to the. principles of ltllskin. For nvo years, they managed to publish their little journal, The Ne·w Patb. Norton rep]ied cordiaUy to Sturgis.,and subscribed to it. This \vas the beginning of a Jifelong friendship.~"' Stnrgis ,vas at ·this time a young architect associated ,vith P. B .. ,1\7ight, also a 111c111berof the Society/ti and the flew Patb contained a nu n1ber of bell ig cren t arti cl cs ,v ri tt c n by th t:m~ cncr geticall y push- ing the architectural principles of Ruskin. These principles had actu~ aUy been put into practice by \~'ight, ,vho had just ,von the comperi- tiori for the b11i]dingof the National Academy of Design in Nc,v York (Plate lb) ..2 ~ The New Patb considered this edifice to be of pr1.1ne significa.ncc, and devoted long article to it: The building ... has evidently been designed in cntjrc accorcfonce \Vith the vje,v~ conceroing a:rchitecmre ,vhich have ahvays been set forth in this journaL It is the first building in th1s country, so fnr as ,,•e are informed, ,vhich has been so designed. T,vo main prindplcs :ire involved in this designi first that all buildings should be designed in the mediaeva] spirit, in other words should be "Gothicn and not rcvjved cfass:ic of any schoo]; second that all carved ornament should be desig.ned by the ,vork1ncn ,vho cut .it..... 27 '\\'ight hin1selfspoke of it much later ( 1917) as 'the first building erectc d in An1 crj ca of care f u 11y studied I tali an Gothic of its best Letter among the Norton .papers in the I·Ioughton Librarr. The 'Travels in Iuily" is Norton ts Notes of Travel and Study in Italy (Iloston ... 1860). Although Sturgjs later designed some buildings, he is best kno,vn for his critical and hjsto:rkal 1.vr fring.s on a rchitccture+ n The H-arvnrd Libr:1.ry stt of tho Ne-w Patb is largely the gift of llcnry W. Longfellow, a good friend of Nor ron+

Charles H. J\1oorc, fatcr Professor of Art at Harvard 1 ·was also a m~1nbor. I-le be c~me a ,varm friend of Nor ton., "Tho intro du ccd him to Ruskin. 121,Plate lb h ceproduc-ed from P. B. '''igbtt Natlonal Acadeuty of DeJign. Photo- gr~phs of the New Buildingl witb an lntradu.ctory J,:srayand Description (New \,.ork, r 866 ).

t'. ~An Tmport~nt Gothic Building/ New Path~ II ( 1864)~ 17-3 i .

Harvard University - Houghton Library / Harvard University. Harvard Library bulletin. Cambridge, Mass., Harvard University Library. Volume III, Number 2 (Spring 1949) Ruskin, Norton, and Afe111orinlHnll 223 period.' 25 Herc, surely ·, the stones of Venice had been reincarnated; the jrrevercnt nicknamed jt 'The Palace of the Doge.. ' Ent Norton, as might have been expected, considered the bui] ding significant, and in 1866, ,vhen the l\1emorialHnU project ,vas already·under "\va.y,,,vrote a rcvic,v of \~'ighe s hook of photographs and co1nn1cnts~ Norton called the structure ·

one of the 111os t or j gj na t. interesting, · and im porta nt 1 vorks of arch itee tu re erected durjng the present generation. It is constnlCted upon principles '-\vhich lie at the foundation of all architecn1ral excellence, ~nd ,vhich, Lo the injury of :1.rtnnd the degradation of public taste, have hitherto been Jirtlc regarded in our building ..

.... • ..... • ...... •••• ••• ...... It is the first attempt jn our countrri so fnr ns ,ve arc a,varci to .revive a system of constrnctjvc building nnd natura] dccoratjon \Yhich has been for a Jong time neglected in Europe as i.vell as in America, but has of ]ate become •natter of scriou.'°!ithought a.nd endeavor among those ,vho rccogo1ze architccrurc as having :i v.ital relation to the needs and habits of each successive generation of n1cn.20

The cxatnple of the _Oxford l\1useun1 ,vou]d, of course~ have been in the n1inds of these y·oungcnthusi-asts of the New Pntb, and it con1cs as no surprise to find it mentioned in their mag3zineas a building of ,vhich all have heard and of ,vhjch the details have been ubun- dantly rcprocluced in photography .... Every person ,li/ho cares for architec- turc1 and 1s interested in the attcn1pts ,,,hich are being made in America to nat- uralize true architecture herei should possess some of thc.sc photographs .... and a Httle book on the Oxford l\1useun11 by IJr. Acland. conta.ining Jetters from 1\,1r.Ruskin. 30

Ir no,v beco1nes clear ,vh)r Norton invited Sturgis and "\1/ight to subn1it designs for lVlemorialI~Iall, although tl1e)r ,verc young, rela- tively obscure) and not gr2dt1ates of Harvard. ,~right ,vas too busy to enter the competition. But Sturgis subrnitted designs. And it is a n1atter of some jntcrcst that his schc1ne \Vc1.Sactually Norton's favorite

of all those subn1itted - a fact established, son1c,~hat indirectly1 by· Norton's correspondence in th c Archives. It is not kno\vn ,vhy Sturgis . 1Pcter B. lVight," A111erlcnn.Au~!Jiiect., CXX, 7111 ( 1915 ), 389+

[C.· E. Norton], 'The National Acadcn1y of Design/ b7orth Anierlcan Re.-:.,iew1 CHI ( 186~), 5 86--589, tJ) N e-wI'at/J~ I ( :r864), 142r These rcn1ttrks occur in an article advocating the use of scu l pturc on bui Id ings. The book ref erred to is of con r.,:;;cThe O.:rfo rd .Aiuxeuni, .. rc\~ievr'ed by K orton a f e"\v yeur.s previously.

Harvard University - Houghton Library / Harvard University. Harvard Library bulletin. Cambridge, Mass., Harvard University Library. Volume III, Number 2 (Spring 1949) ... Har-vardLibrary Bulletin failed to get the job, but there ,verc a number off actors not in his favor. U nlikc \17ight, he had not yet been the architect of a large project ,v hi ch \voul d establish his practical competence. Furthermore, he ,va s living in Ne,v York;. he ,vns nor an alumnus; and he ,va.s slo\v in getting his dr:r\vings to the co1nmitrcc .. It may simply h-a.vcbeen that the other J11e111bcrsof the con1n1ittcc did not shnrc Norton\; cnthusiasn1. The nature of his design is not kno-\vn~ but in vic\v of his N e-w l\rtb activities and Norton~s interest, it n1ay reasonabl) 7 be conjecn1red to have been I tali2 n ( i.c., R uskini an') Go th ic - perhaps so1nethin g 1ikc the National Acadcn1) 7 of Design, concerning ,vhich Sturgis ,v1+otein 1866~ The esterjor of the Ne\Y ,~ ork Academy of Desigo building is good architecture. The de~ign is hnsc:dupon the needs nnd purpo~cs of the bu1lrliog, nnd is graccf ul and sin1p]c; the use of shade and color of n1-atcrial is to the best ad- vantage; the carving ,vith ,vhich the edifice JSprofusely decorated is in nearly every instance good in itself and in hnrn\ony ,vith the ,\Thole~s• There are son1c other ,vritings of Sturgis \vhich arc of interest in connection ,vith lvlen1orial Hall. Shortly after the founding of the Notion., he began to \vrite articles on art subjects for that periodical in vlhat he called "the Ruskinian n1anncr of criticism .." One of the first of these \vas nn essay on monuments and rncmorialst\vritt-cn in July~ 1 1865,. \Vhile he ,vas preparing his dra\vjngs for the con1pctition. i\.1orc interesting ,vas his article in the issue of 1 1 July- J 867, criticizing at length the accepted design of l\1emorial I-1~11.It ,vas his judgn1ent that the design "sho\vs ingenuity, skil1 in adaptation -and combination, but is \vholly defective j11that unity and si1nplicityof organization ,vhich is the first requ isitc of great a rchi tcctu re, and d isp1a ys Iit de originality of conception or depth of feeling/ He ,vent on to say that a mc111orial shou]d he rich and otna1nent-al,profusely decorated, and built to last forever; there must be evidences of lavish expenditure - but he feared that the I-larv~rd alutnni ,vould not build lavishly.:~2 Sturgis ,vas not the only one to criticize the design of ,,rare and Van Brunt. i\1any others raised objections, particularly to the to,vcr. and to the ,vest front, ,vhich jn this first d€sign ,vas intended to be the

'1"he Conditions uf Art in America,' J\lon h A 1ner i can Review, CH ( t 866) t 9. 1""hoso ,v 11o

Harvard University - Houghton Library / Harvard University. Harvard Library bulletin. Cambridge, Mass., Harvard University Library. Volume III, Number 2 (Spring 1949) . Ruskin, Norto11,aud A1e111orial!{all 2 2 5 men1orialpart of the building4 An additional difficulty appeared by the tin1c the architects had been selected: \~'arc had been appointed the first dirccto r of th c first arc hitectura 1sch oo I in An1 eri cat at l\-1assa- c h u setts Institute of Technology, and \Vasleaving for Europe to study educational 111ethods. The Building Committee "gladly consented to the departure of l\1r. '''are for Europe - in the hope that his observa.... tion and ·enguiries there ,vuuld prove of important use to him and his

partner' in developing the accepted design; in an}T case1 not enough n1on cy had b ecn raised to b cgi n co nstrncti on. "\Varc spent many· months in England and Scotland, and met the leading architects. There is no jndication that he n1et Ruskin. But

bJT1866 Ruskin had1 as he said, 'seceded f ron1 the study .... of ·-architecture.' aa For one thing" he had been bitterl}r disappointed in the Oxford i\1useum. The University had decided against "lavishexpendi- ture~ in I 8 59~and cut off the funds \vhich ,vould have con1pleted the building+ \Tery litt1c of the sculptural decoration ,,;-asever done. Rus- kin felt the u11finishedcharacter of the building and called it shabby; he found the colored decoration ~vile.' In spite of Ruskin's distaste for architecture at this time., it \vould be reasonable to suppose that Norton \vrote to hin1. about !vlcmorial fl~ll. But no such letter has con1e to 1ight. And an ans,ver could hardly have been expected, as Ruskin at this time \Vas saying that the barbarous manner in ,vhich the people of the North haQ conducted the ,var upon the Southern peop]e had utter 1y destroy cd his interest in A111 cri can art. 31 He certain 1y could not have been sy1npathctic to a n1cn1orialto the Northern dead.

Norton, during this ti1nc, had not lost interest in A1nerican art 1 but he \Vas very pessiniistic about jts prospcctsr In il lecture on 'American

Culture,' delivered in Boston in October 1 I 867, he could find in A1ncrica neither culture nor the desire for it. He \Vas particularly· dis- couraged about arc hitecture4 clt js only by courtcS)Tthat architecture as a fine art can be said to exist in America., B)7 indi ca ting ,v hat q nali-

ti es he found lacking in American buildings1 he defined his o,vn stand- ards! [There is 1 not a single building of note "·hich indicates th~t its design ,vas conceived for the delight and instruction of all 1vho should enter it or look upon it. There is not one bui]ding in America in ,vh1ch a characteristic and original sentiment is so en1bodied in a forn1 of in1aginativ-cbeauty, as to make

;3.J Tbe TVorks of Jobn Ruskin 1 XIX, 38~ ~Ibid., X\rn, 480.

Harvard University - Houghton Library / Harvard University. Harvard Library bulletin. Cambridge, Mass., Harvard University Library. Volume III, Number 2 (Spring 1949) I Inrvard J_jbraryBulletin it the expression of the noble mood of a great people'.!or of the genius of an artist i:nspired by a popular emotion .... Architecture cnlbraccs and rcq11ires for its full pcrfcctJon the joint support of sculpture and painting. 35 He said further that the greatest architecture embodied the ideals of a

co mn1unity or na tiCJ n I and, after describing the p opl1l ar cnth u siasm \vhich accon1paniedthe building of the Cathedral of Florence, found Americans not anin1ated hJr such a spirit .. These passages, if read ,vith l\1en1orial I-Ia11in 1nind~ n1a.ke clearer \vhat Norton~s hopes for the project ,vcrc., and his interest in it be-· con1es understandable~ 1-Icrc,vas a chance to erect a great building ,vhich ,vould embody -a.nob]e ideal (i.e., the incentive to nob1c living provided by the sacrifice of life for a great ca11sc); it ,vould be raised

by the enthusiastic effort of a· ,vho]c community (i.c ..1 all the alumni ,vould contribute or help)~ and it \vould reach expressive perfection by the liberal use of sculpture und painting (as ,vas sitni]arly intended in the Oxford [VJ.useum and the Nadonal Academy building). Norton and the other n1en1bersof the Bni]ding Conunittee s~t vigor- ously to \vork in j\Jarch, 1868, after the return of ,,rare from Europe,. co obtain a n1orc satisfactory-design than the n111chcriticized scheme of 1865.. It must have been a difficult tin1c for the -architects. N e\v schen1es,vere cal]ed for, additions proposed., and other architects even C'llled in to criticize, during the course of n1any ~nd protracted meetings, before the ~-econd schcn1e ,vas finally agreed upon in July., 1 868. As the 15 July report of the Bui1ding Co1n1nittce stated: '[Fro1n j\ilarch] until no,v the con1mittee hgs been in constant consultation ,vith the grchitccts, n1aking such criticisn1s and suggestions as their judgn1ent dict8tcd~ nnd the architects n1aking from tin1e to titne fresh studies and designs in accordance ,vith them~' The gradual gro,vth of the design may be follo,ved h1 the l\1inutcs of the Building Con1mittee,"hut it is h-ardly ,vorth ,vhHe to trace it in detail. The record of the 1neeting of 30 April 1868 ,viJl suffice to sho,v ,vhat ,vas happening: Lee, Lyn1tln, Norton [ prcscntJ. The architects presented a sketch to turn the the-atrc at right angles ,vith the main building; ai:so shaded dra,vings of their o,~rn propos:ed elev~tion. This last j\,fra Norton thought superior to the origjnal design gs 9dopted by the Committee of Fifty·. i\-icssrs. Lee n.nd Lyman c..lis~ente

I;!; The origjna l ma.nuscri pt is in the I-Iau g h ton Lihr:i.ry

Harvard University - Houghton Library / Harvard University. Harvard Library bulletin. Cambridge, Mass., Harvard University Library. Volume III, Number 2 (Spring 1949) R11skin,N orton1 and Aie111orialHall 227 to take the design to Europe! -and thus submit it, and pay the crjtics for the • job. lvlr. l.ree thought it ,vould \Vaste money and be of no use. Mr. Lyn1an, that it ,vonld Icad to no practical result. The architects rather f a\'ored it .. It is not improbable that Norton ,vished to submit the design to Ruskjn. The stage of the project reached in Jttl}r, 1868, is sho,vn in Plate Ilb. 86 The dining hall and the theatre had been enlarged; the mcn1orial part had been n1oved to the center; the to,ver ,vas made more pro1nincnt; and the c n trances , vere· given n1ore emp ha.sis. 1\Torto n resigned from the Committee soon after this design had been accepted, as he ,vas leaving for Europe on -account of his ,vif el's health. I-le did not return until 1873, and had no further connection ,vith il\1e1norj~IHalL But the ,vork of the Con1mittce \Vas h)7 no 1ne2ns .finished.. Ten 1nore y·ears of constant n1cctings ,virh the architects ,vcre to take plr-tcc, and coundcss n1odifications of the design ,vcrc to be introduced, before the building "\Yas to be con1pleted and the Comn1ittee could finall)• dis- band in 1878.. l\1any of the changes had to be nJade for ·the sake of economy·, for by 1869 the esti,nates had reached almost a ha~f million do]lars and the alumni did not respond generously.nr The building lost n1ore and 1nore of its Ruskinian character as 'Javjsh, ideas ha.d to be given up. Brick ,vas substituted for stone; sculpture and 'carven colun1ns' ,vere out of the question; n1uch of the color had to he 01nitted; the interior finjsh had to he cheapened. But the architects ,vcrc never djsciples of Ruskin in any case, and their final design is in line, Iather, ,vjth conten1po~ary English ,vork. "'\'-'are hnd met such 1nen as Butterfield and Scott ,vhi]e in Eng1and, and had seen their ,, ..ork. Van Brunt sho,ved ,vherc his syn1pathics lay· b)r 1naking a translation of "\1io1let-Je-Ducls E11tretie11sstir tArcbitecture in 1875, in the 1nidst of the ,vork on [\tlemorjaJ Hall; furthcrn1orc, in his introduction to this book, \Tan Brunt spoke of th c disastrous state of architecture i11 England ~nd the United States as ltrought on by the approach based on ]itcra.ry exposition rather than practical kno-\vlcdgc~ and rcn1arkcd on the fearful tyranny" in aesthetics that had resulted fron1

M Pfote I l lJ is ta ken from a negati \'C jn the coUccti on of the I-Ia tvard D epar tn1 ent of Arch i te ctu re. The present 1o ca don of th~ original d m,ving j s unkno,vn, as is a]so i~ exact date. Reproductions of it may have been used in raising funds! as several C.:K3mp1eshave IJeen donated to the Archives by alun1ni. a:; Only one fifth of them responded at aH~th~ Finance Co1mnittcc "ras rather bitter about the lack of response (Final R,:ports-of the Building Co1111uitteeand of t/Je Trea.rurcr of t1Je H a'rvard A1e']}lori a! Fund to the Counnittee of Fifty, 26 June! 1878, Cambridge, J\1ass.t 1878t p. 4 r )~

Harvard University - Houghton Library / Harvard University. Harvard Library bulletin. Cambridge, Mass., Harvard University Library. Volume III, Number 2 (Spring 1949) ..-

2 2 8 fl n.rr-.;ardLibrnry Bulletin Ruskin's setting himself up as a dictator on questions of a.rt.88 "\Vhcn \ 7 an Brunt later had occasion to describe l\1en1orial I.Jall (P1atc lll), 30 it js interesting to note that he did so in tcrn1s of ]inc, mass'.tand expression of function: The architectural t.:hnracter of the design is technically mediae\ral; but the s1.1g-- gestions of the style have hccn treated ,vith great freedom, an

its conditions of plan 1 struc.:ture, aod usei lly confining its expressions ,v.ithin the limits of any rec.:ugnized urchaeo1og-jcalera. It is distincL1y a chrjc and collegi- ate building, althottgh the combination of its three main divisions rougnly re- en lls ... the outljncs of certain rc1igiou5 types of architecture. This rcsen1- bhnce to the cathedral forn1 is purely accidenta1, nnd h-.:lsno significance of sent1ment ,vhateveL 1 ..he t0\\ 1er rises frorn the central d1vision, partly as a. con- spicuous and solcn1n exterior expression of its n1cmorial fnnr..:tLon,ancl partly to dotnina.tc the bu1iding at the point "~here such a culmination and c:tnphasis s.rc demanded by the conditions of line and ma~s jn the rest of the co1npos.ition."'I) As a result of -Jllthe changes n1adc after Norton"s departure, he 1nnst have had so1ncthing of a shock upon his return home in 1?73~ The corner-stone had been laid in October, r 870, ,vith great cere,nony, to th c acco1npan in1cnt of brass bands 8 n d the expressed hope of orators that the bui]ding \vould bccon1ethe heart of the CoJlege and stand for centuries as a perpetual jncenthre to noble Jiving and high endeavor. '\'hen Norton sa,v it for the first tin1e.,the Dining I-Iall and the 1\1c- morial Transept ,vere suh.stantiall) 7 con1plctc; the Theatre \Vas not yet begun. He \Vas disappointed. He ,vrote to James Russell Lo,vcll in No- ven1ber., r 87 3: 'The Delta~ - ,vell, perhaps you 1nay like the big building that covers it better than I do . .,41 "\~ 1hat he n1ay have \vrittcn to Ruskin is not preserved, but it js very likely· that an othcr\visc cryptic rcn1ark by R.. uskin~ 1nadc in a letter 1Yrittcn to Norton in l)ecen1ber, 1873, 1san ans,ver and refers to fvlen1orialHalJ: 'I ,vill find a bit of architecture for you - or, even ,vith n1y old eyes, do you a bit that ,von't he copiable by the Hbold,, scholars."!" 1 Another echo of

i-s ''i olJet-1 e-D uc I Dis cour res on AT c bite ctu re I translation and introduction Ly Henry \Tan Orunt (Boston, 18 75 ) , p. -viii. P] ate UT, from the p ho tog r~ph £le in the Arch l vest ho-ws l\1ernodal Hal 1 abot1t 1880, short 1y .1fter completion. 40 Henry \Tan Ilr u n t, 'Harvard l\.1em orfo.l Ha] l and s~nd ers 1."hca. trei' I/ arvard Regirtcr, I ( 1880 )1 5 3. 41 Letters of Cbarlcs Eliot Norto·n! II, 2 Ir n Lettrrs of I obn Ru.tkin to Cbarles Elfot t-l ortont IT169.

Norton's dissatisfaction at this time is prohabl)7 to he discerned in 8TI unsigned criticisn1 of the building ,vhich appeared in a student publica- tion ju October of the same year: 'A vast pile of masonry·., en1bodying appan:ntl y n1any styles of an.:hitecture. . . . ' 'It seen ls to be little ~f every· thing, and nothing-especiaHy.... ' 'It \Vas natural to expect ... that in its construction the architects ,vould f ollo,v the guidance of Ruskin's uLatnp of Truth,'' and ha,Tcno fa]s-c or ta,vdry decoration about it.' .Js It is unf ortun2tc that Norton ,s later paptrs and ,vritings do not inc~ode any· specific discussion of the reasons for his distaste for f\1e- n1orial I-fall. Tiut they· do sho,v that this distaste lasted for the rest of hjs life. 1-Iis rc1nark of r 878 has alread~t been 9l1oted.. In 1895 he spoke of 'the ugliness of n1ost of the [Harvard] buildings erected dur~

ing the last tnrcnty-fivc years; the defects either in proportion, position1 or ornan1cnt of every one of them ..' 4~ And he continued in r904: Every one ,vho recognizes the in1portanc:e of fine architech1re as an influence in the educ~tinn of youthi through i~ po,ver to quicken the poetic sen- sibilities and irn:agination, and to deepen tl1c scntjn1cnt " 1 hi~h should invest school, collcg~i and uni vcrsity ,~?ith an abiding charn1 in the hearts of their stud cnts, 11111stregret the Joss of the opportunity to enhance the dignity and beauty of Harvard College by menns of the character ;an

its object1 js ]jkely to be held in admiration one or t\vo generations hence. 45 This idea of nrchitccturc as an jnflucncc on y·outh ,vill be rccognjzed ns a Jong~pcrsistingone ,vi th Nor ton - he had ad vanccd it in his Ox~ ford l\1useum revie\v in 1859. But it n1ust not be supposed that all his ideas ,vere equally pern1anent. ~is dislike of 1\1en1orja}Hall ,vonld

4 :i [Et hcl b crt S1nith l\.1i] ls, '74],. .i:i\1 cri1ori a] I-Ia] I,' H arvttrd Advocate I X\TJ ( 1 8 73 ) 1 3 7-3 8. The rcn1arks of this foHo"·cr of Ruskin arc a curious anticipation of those ma cle s-eventy-three y cars latcr Ly j\ 1a reel Breuer.

u ~The Educational \T alue of the I-Iistory of the Fine Arts,' Educational Revierw 1 IX ( 1895 ) .. 346. .i:ACriticism of Harvard Architecture 1\1ade to the Board of Oilcrsccrs/ Har- vard Graduates' A!agnzine, XII ( 1903-04)1 359---362.It is kno,vn that Norton oc- casionall y discussed the architecture of Harvard in. his ] ecru res to the stud cnts. He 1nw;t have received some interesting ansv...-ers to the foHo,,·ing quc~tinn~ ,vl1ich ~r- peare d in his .finn] examin~tion in F j ne A rt:s 3, in 1 89 3 : 1lVha t is the lnc:111ing of 1csty]e~1 in art? 'LHomer has the grand style. i, Atattbe-w Arnold. So has Phidiasi so hJJ.s Dante. Hovr '\'i.'"ou]dyou designate the sty]e of i\1emorial Hall?'

Harvard University - Houghton Library / Harvard University. Harvard Library bulletin. Cambridge, Mass., Harvard University Library. Volume III, Number 2 (Spring 1949) 230 Harvard Librar)J Bulletin seem to stcn1 no less from changes ,vithin himself than from changes in the design.. In the first place, he kne,v actual mediaeval ·architecture 1nuch better in 1873 than he did in 1868. During his stay in Europe~ he had spent n1any n1onths studying the cathedral of Siena and ~imilar bui]dings. The result of this study ,vas his bookt Historical Studies of Church-Building in the A1iddle Ages~published in 1880. In the second

pl ace~ his interest j n cl 2ssical nr t un d cu lturc ,v as g ro\v i ng+ This ,vas to result in 1879 ( only a )rear af rer the completion of i\1len1ori:ti Hall) in his founding the Archaeological Institute of America. In the third p]acc~ during his European sojourn he \Vonldhave become ,veJl a,vare of Ruskin's disillusion,vith the Gothic Revival, and must have come to share it. He certainly did not feel that either the Gothic or the llo1nan~squc Rcviva]s had been successful. in Anlerica ,,-hen he said h1 1 888~ 'There is still not a single architect in this country ,vho has created a great ,vork of art.~ -rn Nor ,,tas Norton the only· Ruskin adherent ,vhosc vic\vs changed.. C]arcnce Cook, the original editor of the }{err,,1JPntb and an advocate of the Gothic Revival in the sixties, found nvo of its prime examples odious in I 882: 'The [Boston] l\1useu1nof Fine .i.4-..rt.sand the !\1en1orial Hall at Carnbridgc ..... arc examples of ,vhat co1nes of building getting into the hands of li~erary, critical men, art-students, ,vith their . heads cran1rned full of ren1ernbcredbits of O]d ,vorld architecture, and their portfolios stuffed ,vith photographs of more and rnore bits/ 47 The Building Conlmittec itself· scen1sto have been dubious of the result of its efforts. In its FinalReport 'in 1878, it praises the architects and the ,vay in \vhich they sur1nounted difficulties, but confines co1n- mcnt on the building itself to a so1nc,Yhat qualified and invk,vard state- 1 ment: 'The result of their ( the architccts ) labors, ho,vcvcr., though possibly in thisJ as in all sin1ilarundcrtakingsr j11stly liable to criticis1n, ,vc feel assured, pllblic opinion ,vill concur in pronouncing as highly creditable to their architectural ability and good judgn1cnt.~.ia l""hchoped-for concurrence has obviously never been reached. 1\1c- morial Hall has ahvays been, and remains~a controversial and much- discussed 1non u1nen t. But it has stin1n ln ted a cop i011s expression of pub]ic and private opinion ,vhich provides an interesting com n1entar~f

1~ rv1anuscript (in the T·Joughton Library) of an ~ddrcss delivered at the opening of the Sl a tcr 1\,1c1nor j '1.1 1uscu 1n1 N or,vi ch I Con nccticut, 21 N ovcm bcr I 888. n "Architecture in A1ncrica;' Nort/J A1neric.~1llRe'Vie1v, cxxx,r (1881 )~ i48- :2.49.Cook 1nay h,nTc had Norton partic_ular1y in mind .. ..L.!IFina! Repart:s~ p. 19.

Harvard University - Houghton Library / Harvard University. Harvard Library bulletin. Cambridge, Mass., Harvard University Library. Volume III, Number 2 (Spring 1949) Ruskin.,Norton, and Aie111orialHall 231 on architectural jdeals and thinldng in Atnerica. The sa111plingof this· opinion can hard I)r b c con1 pl cte., h o,vever, , vi thou t a fina] testin1 on}' f ro1n the architects th ems clvcs .. Fortunately., Henry Van Brunt put do\vn jn a private letter of 1899 some of his thoughts on the subject of f\1emorial Hall, and it is fitting that he should haYc the last \Vord on the subject: These dnnvjngs ff or l\1cn1orfal Hall J '\\'ere n1ade a.t a. time ,yhen the fever of the i\lodcrn Gothic experi1nent ,vas ut its height. It '1'8S a style ,vhich at the tin1c ,vc ,vere persuaded "'as the only one having lif c and progressive po,vcr and pcculfarly applicable to -a large gnd some,vhat irregular 1nonurnenti ,vhich mu st have. a rchi tcctu ra1 dj gni ty and i 111p ortn nee but at a. d cc id cd economy of cost~ It ,vould have seemed aln1ost a \vork of arrnchronisn1 to have developed this building in any other style. In this ,va.y,vfrh all its faults, it is a historical expression and is so far deserving of respect; for the Gothic rcviva.I of that tirn e ,vas a universal cult nmong all Eng 1i sh-s pc :l.king people~and had renc h ed th c dignity of an intcl Icc tu al if not a n1 oral 1novcm en t. It cer tai nl y "'as n at caprjcious g~ son1e of the later experin1ental 1·cvivals hnve proved to be. If I "\Vere called upon to design a great monu1ncnt today for a sitnil:ar pur~ pose,. I ;lnl entirely persuaded thnt, 11nder the ne,v in1pulses\vhich no\\' prc- vaj ]J the b uj Id in g ,vou 1d ass 11me other c hara ctcr is ti cs, recognizing poss ib Iy classic and ac~den1ica] influences, ,vbich not only ,vould nrn.ke it a n1ore accu- rate exponent of the spirit of contcn1porary ci\Tjlization, as ,ve understand it at this n1on1cnt, but ,vould perhaps gh•c jt a better chance for permanent rccognitjon as a ,vork of arti and ,vouid bring it into some rela.tion.s of con- sanguinity ,vith the older colJege buildings. These reflections have occurred to me ,vhile rcvic\"i!jng the ,vork ,vhich oc-

cupied my rnind nearly 30 years 9go1 and I have thought it ":rorth ,vhilc to avail myself of this opportunity to set them do,vn. I regret of course th~t 1\1r. \Vs.re and I ,vere not inspired to make a better use of the opportunities afforded usi but it \Vas the best ,vc conld do. Person- a.Hyit is. interesting to me as an honest \Vork of generous cnthusinsmt carried to completion ,, 1ith the aid of a sympathetic building conunittcc .... Ev.en

no-\v I,.for onet an1 not a.sh:an1edof it 1 though of course I could no,v ,vjsh that in son1c iinportant respects it ,vcrc di:fferent." 9 " RoBEH.'l' B. SHAFFER •°From a Jcn~r j n the Harvard A re 11iyes, ,vdtten to ,v..C. Sabine on 14 July , 1899frorn I{ansas City., in connection ,vfrh the forwarding uf the ·working dnnvings of i\1cnwrial Hall to s~hin(\ \Vho, at that ti1nc Assistant Professor of Physcc;~,.vas prc.suma bl y enga gcd in his acou sd c~I studies of ders T heatrc. TJ 1e present Io ca- . tion of thc~o dra\vings is uakno,vn. Van Hrunt had ,,·ritten on J.lan•ard architecture in a sinlifa.rvein ~Gv.cr~lyears prcvjously. ln the l\7atiou, LI ( 1890), 2 i6t he had t1.nS\vcrcdjn a rather effective ,vay the strictures ,vhich Norton had ju5t voiced in Harper~sAfagaz.ine in his article, '1-I-acvard University in r S:90.'

Harvard University - Houghton Library / Harvard University. Harvard Library bulletin. Cambridge, Mass., Harvard University Library. Volume III, Number 2 (Spring 1949) List of Co11tributors

Er.av1 N p .-,._NO FSK Y 1 Prof cssor t Ins tj tu te for Ad v:aneed S rn dy KEYESD. l\1E'ICALF,Professor of Bibliography, Djrector of the Harvard Uni- \'crsity Library, -and Librarian of I~Iarvard Co11ege

W ALTF.R 11.}{No·rrsi Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, I-Jarvard University

ROBERTn. SHAFF.LR! ,;vashingtonl D4 C+

1\1ABEL .t\. E. STEELE, ·Custodjun of the Keats j\·Ic1norial Collection! Harv·ard College Library

HA~RY Li::vlN, Professor of English, I-Jar,·ard University

l\.1F.R'I'ON i'vl+SEALTSi JRi Assistant l)rofessor of English~ L-a\vrencc College

FREllSON Bo,,~F.RS 1 Assodate Professor of Jl:nglish Literarnre, University· of Virgin1:1 ROBEnT ,vr Lo\'ETT, Head of the i\1anuscript Division, Baker Library, I~I~rv~rd University

EooARV/rNu, Prof es~or of Philosophy and of Art 1 Smith College

h1oRRI soN C. I-IA. VILA NDt A ssisran t in Charge of R cf crcncc \1/ or k in th c Laino n t Library t I-Iarv ard Uni vcrsi ty

LESLJ E l\1 Al rIK O L1 \.TER, Assistant to the Librarian in the I-iou gh ton Library, H-ar \!ard University

Do;-1AJ~DT ..CJ.Akl.:'.i As~oc..:iateL.ibtarian of the Baker Library, Har-i.."ardUniversity

Harvard University - Houghton Library / Harvard University. Harvard Library bulletin. Cambridge, Mass., Harvard University Library. Volume III, Number 2 (Spring 1949)