Ehrick Rossiter
Encyclopedia
Ehrick Kensett Rossiter was an American architect
known for the country homes he designed. He was educated at Cornell University
.
Rossiter was born to American parents in Paris, France, on September 14, 1854. His father, Thomas Pritchard Rossiter (1818-1871), was a Hudson River school
artist. Ehrick attended The Gunnery
school in Washington
, Connecticut
, graduating in 1871. He then studied architecture at Cornell University
, where he received a degree in 1875. He practiced architecture in New York City
from 1877 until 1921, working first with partner Frank A. Wright and later with John Muller. He designed residential, institutional and public buildings in New England
, New York
, New Jersey
and Maryland
, many of which are now designated as historic properties.
Among Rossiter's architectural designs are 25 estate homes, referred to as "summer cottages," and artist's studios in Washington, Connecticut, most in the Queen Anne
("shingle style") and colonial revival styles. Rossiter buildings in Washington include:
Other Rossiter designs include:
Rossiter was a member of the American Institute of Architects
and the Architectural League of New York
. He retired in 1921 and subsequently made his home in Washington, Connecticut. He died in White Plains, New York
, on October 14, 1941.
valley in Washington, Connecticut, in order to protect the land from logging
. This parcel later became the first piece of the Steep Rock Land Trust, which he established with a 1925 donation of 186 acres (75.3 ha). Through purchases and donations, the land trust
's holdings have since increased to 2700 acres (1,092.7 ha).
Architect
An architect is a person trained in the planning, design and oversight of the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to offer or render services in connection with the design and construction of a building, or group of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the...
known for the country homes he designed. He was educated at Cornell University
Cornell University
Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...
.
Rossiter was born to American parents in Paris, France, on September 14, 1854. His father, Thomas Pritchard Rossiter (1818-1871), was a Hudson River school
Hudson River school
The Hudson River School was a mid-19th century American art movement embodied by a group of landscape painters whose aesthetic vision was influenced by romanticism...
artist. Ehrick attended The Gunnery
The Gunnery
The Gunnery is a coeducational boarding and day Prep school for 295 students in grades nine through twelve. The campus borders the village green of Washington, Connecticut, U.S., a small, historic town in the Litchfield Hills. The Gunnery has no religious or military affiliations.The Gunnery was...
school in Washington
Washington, Connecticut
Washington is a rural town in Litchfield County, Connecticut, in the New England region of the United States. The population was 3,596 at the 2000 census. Washington is known for its picturesque countryside, historic architecture, and active civic and cultural life...
, Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
, graduating in 1871. He then studied architecture at Cornell University
Cornell University
Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...
, where he received a degree in 1875. He practiced architecture in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
from 1877 until 1921, working first with partner Frank A. Wright and later with John Muller. He designed residential, institutional and public buildings in New England
New England
New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
and Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
, many of which are now designated as historic properties.
Among Rossiter's architectural designs are 25 estate homes, referred to as "summer cottages," and artist's studios in Washington, Connecticut, most in the Queen Anne
Queen Anne Style architecture
The Queen Anne Style in Britain means either the English Baroque architectural style roughly of the reign of Queen Anne , or a revived form that was popular in the last quarter of the 19th century and the early decades of the 20th century...
("shingle style") and colonial revival styles. Rossiter buildings in Washington include:
- His own country home, called the Rocks, which was started in 1882 and built over two decades
- The Sumacs, completed in 1894 for artist William Hamilton GibsonWilliam Hamilton GibsonWilliam Hamilton Gibson was an American illustrator, author and naturalist.-Biography:Gibson was born in Sandy Hook, Connecticut, of an old, distinguished New England family; one of his great-great-grandfathers was the jurist Richard Dana , who was the great-grandfather of the famous author...
- Glen Holme, completed in 1898 for industrialist William Leslie Van Sinderen, which now houses the administrative offices of the Devereux Glenholme School
- Kirby Corners, completed in 1900 for U.S. Senator Orville Hitchcock Platt
- The clubhouse of the Washington Club, completed in 1906
- The Gunn Memorial Library, opened in 1908. Rossiter donated the design for the building, which was built using fieldstoneFieldstoneFieldstone is a building construction material. Strictly speaking, it is stone collected from the surface of fields where it occurs naturally...
and wood donated by local farmers and merchants. - Edgewood (originally Standish House), commissioned by Ruth Standish Bowles Baldwin and completed in 1910. Rossiter purchased the house in 1919 for his own use and renamed it Edgewood.
- Saint John's Episcopal Church, built in 1918.
Other Rossiter designs include:
- The Boulders in New Preston, ConnecticutNew Preston, ConnecticutNew Preston is a rural village in the northwestern corner of the town of Washington in Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States. The village is also at the center of New Preston CDP, a census-designated place , whose population was 1,110 at the 2000 census.-Geography:According to the United...
, built in 1890 and currently used as a country inn following extensive interior remodeling. - The Norfolk Music Shed in Norfolk, ConnecticutNorfolk, ConnecticutNorfolk is a town in Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 1,660 at the 2000 census.Norfolk is perhaps best known as the site of the Yale Summer School of Music – Norfolk Chamber Music Festival, which hosts an annual chamber music concert series in "the Music Shed," a...
, built in 1907 and the site of the Yale Norfolk Chamber Music Festival
Rossiter was a member of the American Institute of Architects
American Institute of Architects
The American Institute of Architects is a professional organization for architects in the United States. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach to support the architecture profession and improve its public image...
and the Architectural League of New York
Architectural League of New York
The Architectural League of New York is a non-profit organization "for creative and intellectual work in architecture, urbanism, and related disciplines"....
. He retired in 1921 and subsequently made his home in Washington, Connecticut. He died in White Plains, New York
White Plains, New York
White Plains is a city and the county seat of Westchester County, New York, United States. It is located in south-central Westchester, about east of the Hudson River and northwest of Long Island Sound...
, on October 14, 1941.
Conservation
In 1889 Rossiter bought about 100 acres (40.5 ha) of land in the Shepaug RiverShepaug River
The Shepaug River is a river in Connecticut, in the United States. The river originates in Warren and runs south through Washington, Roxbury, and Southbury, where it empties into the Housatonic River at Lake Lillinonah , thereafter flowing into the Long Island Sound...
valley in Washington, Connecticut, in order to protect the land from logging
Logging
Logging is the cutting, skidding, on-site processing, and loading of trees or logs onto trucks.In forestry, the term logging is sometimes used in a narrow sense concerning the logistics of moving wood from the stump to somewhere outside the forest, usually a sawmill or a lumber yard...
. This parcel later became the first piece of the Steep Rock Land Trust, which he established with a 1925 donation of 186 acres (75.3 ha). Through purchases and donations, the land trust
Land trust
There are two distinct definitions of a land trust:* a private, nonprofit organization that, as all or part of its mission, actively works to conserve land by undertaking or assisting in land or conservation easement acquisition, or by its stewardship of such land or easements; or* an agreement...
's holdings have since increased to 2700 acres (1,092.7 ha).
Further reading
- Stephen J. Ketterer (2006), Rossiter: Country Houses of Washington, Connecticut, Gunn Memorial Library, ISBN 0-9772586-0-2, ISBN 978-0-9772586-0-4
- Alison Gilchrist Picton (1997), Return to Arcadia: Ehrick Rossiter's Washington : the architect, his clients, and their houses, Gunn Memorial Library