“‘THE GLASS THAT DECORATES:’ THE HISTORY, DESIGNERS, AND STAINED-GLASS OF THE CHURCH GLASS AND DECORATING COMPANY OF NEW YORK” by Amber L. Wingerson A Thesis Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of George Mason University in Partial Fulfillment of The Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts History of Decorative Arts Committee: ___________________________________________ Director ___________________________________________ ___________________________________________ ___________________________________________ Program Director ___________________________________________ Department Chairperson ___________________________________________ Dean, College of Humanities and Social Sciences Date: _____________________________________ Spring Semester 2017 George Mason University Fairfax, VA “‘The Glass That Decorates:’ The History, Designers, and Stained-Glass of the Church Glass and Decorating Company of New York” A Thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of History of Decorative Arts, as in Master of Arts at George Mason University by Amber Lynne Wingerson Masters of Arts Duquesne University, 2012 Bachelors of Arts Pfeiffer University, 2007 Director: Lindsy Parrot, Professor Department of History of Decorative Arts Spring Semester 2017 George Mason University Fairfax, VA Copyright 2017 Amber Lynne Wingerson All Rights Reserved ii DEDICATION This is dedicated to my family, friends, and everyone who has been supportive and helpful in this process. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank the many friends, professors, and colleagues that have helped me to make this happen. Special thanks to Lindsy Parrott for making me aware of the Church Glass and Decorating Company of New York and for being my thesis advisor through this process. To Jean Farnsworth for providing me with her research on the Church Glass and Decorating Company of New York in the earliest stages of my project. To Gail Barham and the staff of the Rakow Library for their continued support and helpfulness through email and during my visits. To Barbara Krueger and all the contributing members of the H-Stained-Glass discussion board of the American Glass Guild, who answered several questions I had about known windows and their personal knowledge on the company. To Julie L. Sloan, LLC and Neal Vogel, who corresponded with me over email to learn more about the Church Glass and Decorating Company in Chicago. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Page List of Figures ................................................................................................................... vii Abstract .............................................................................................................................. ix Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 1 Chapter one: Church Glass and Decorating Company of New York ................................. 6 What Did the Church Glass and Decorating Company Design? .................................... 7 Who Made the Window Glass and Constructed the Windows? ................................... 12 Exhibitions .................................................................................................................... 15 New York Offices ......................................................................................................... 20 New Jersey Office ..................................................................................................... 23 Chicago Office ........................................................................................................... 25 Crediting Their Designers and Signing Their Works.................................................... 27 Early Misattributions ................................................................................................. 31 Confusing Church Glass and Decorating Company with Tiffany Today ................. 34 The American Stained Glass Movement of the Late Nineteenth and Early Twentieth Centuries........................................................................................................................ 35 Chapter Two: The Designers behind the windows ........................................................... 40 Founding Members of the Company as Designers ....................................................... 41 Freelance Designers for Church Glass and Decorating Company ................................ 53 American Stained-Glass Artists: A New Profession ..................................................... 65 Chapter Three: Beyond the opalescent glass windows: Partnerships and New Ventures 69 Sole American Agent for John Hardman and Company ............................................... 70 Ornamental Glass Windows .......................................................................................... 78 Colored Ornamental Windows .................................................................................. 79 “Clear” Glass Windows ............................................................................................. 82 Conclusion ........................................................................................................................ 87 Figures............................................................................................................................... 94 v References ....................................................................................................................... 118 vi LIST OF FIGURES Figure Page Figure 1: Catalog Illustration. ........................................................................................... 94 Figure 2: Church Interior, 2015. All Saint’s Church, Lakewood, NJ. .............................. 95 Figure 3: Religious Freedom, Edward Peck Sperry, 1902. First Church, Plymouth, MA. ........................................................................................................................................... 96 Figure 4: Detail, Religious Freedom, Edward Peck Sperry, 1902. First Church, Plymouth, MA. ................................................................................................................................... 97 Figure 5: Frank Dickinson Bartlett Memorial Window, Edward Peck Sperry, 1903. University of Chicago, Chicago, IL. ................................................................................. 98 Figure 6: Clapp Memorial Window, Edward Peck Sperry, 1900. Clapp Memorial Chapel, Pittsfield Cemetery, Pittsfield, MA. .................................................................................. 99 Figure 7: Philip D. Armour Memorial Window, Edward Sperry, 1900. Armour Institute of Technology, Chicago, IL. ............................................................................................... 100 Figure 8: Teta Instructs Lioba: Harriet Maria Scott Memorial Window, Caryl Coleman, 1912. College of Education at Wayne State University, Detroit, MI. ............................ 101 Figure 9: I am the Vine, Edward Peck Sperry. Brown Memorial Park Avenue Presbyterian Church, Baltimore, MD. ............................................................................ 102 Figure 10: Detail, I Am the Vine, Edward Peck Sperry. Brown Memorial Park Avenue Presbyterian Church, Baltimore, MD. ............................................................................ 103 Figure 11: Catalog Illustration of Glass Mosaic, Violet Oakley. ................................... 104 Figure 12: Ascension, William Fair Kline, 1905. Second Presbyterian Church, Chicago, IL. .................................................................................................................................... 105 Figure 13: The Ascension, John La Farge, 1889. Church of the Ascension, New York, NY. .................................................................................................................................. 106 Figure 14: The Ascension, Clara Miller Burd. St. Andrew’s Church, Pittsburgh, PA. ... 107 Figure 15: Clara Miller Burd. St. Andrew’s Church, Pittsburgh, PA. ............................ 108 Figure 16: Advertisement, 1906. .................................................................................... 109 Figure 17: The Great Window, John Hardman and Company, 1906. Thompson Memorial Library, Vassar College, Poughkeepsie, NY. ................................................................. 110 Figure 18: Window detail, John Hardman and Company. Trinity Church, Hartford, CT. ......................................................................................................................................... 111 Figure 19: Catalog Illustration of an Ornamental Window. ........................................... 112 Figure 20: Catalog Illustration of an Ornamental Window. ........................................... 113 Figure 21: Catalog Illustration of an Ornamental Window. ........................................... 114 Figure 22: Catalog Illustration, Glass That Decorates, But Does Not Destroy Light. ... 115 Figure 23: Catalog Illustration, Glass That Decorates, But Does Not Destroy Light. ... 116 vii Figure 24: Catalog Illustration, Glass That Decorates, But Does Not Destroy Light. ... 117 viii ABSTRACT “‘THE GLASS THAT DECORATES:’ THE HISTORY, DESIGNERS, AND STAINED-GLASS OF THE CHURCH GLASS AND DECORATING COMPANY OF NEW YORK” Amber Lynne Wingerson, M.A. George Mason University, 2017 Thesis Director: Lindsy Parrot In operation between 1899 and 1914, the Church