John Rudolph Niernsee
Encyclopedia
John Rudolph Niernsee was an American architect, the head architect for the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
. He was born as Johann Rudolph Niernsee in Vienna, Austria and immigrated to the United States in 1837, at age 22. He apprenticed to Benjamin Latrobe
.
In 1847, with James Crawford Neilson
, he formed the Niernsee & Neilson architectural firm that largely served the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
.
He is credited with having mentored Ephraim Francis Baldwin
.
John Niernsee also served in the Confederate Armed Forces as a Major. He is buried at
St. Peter's Catholic Church in Columbia, South Carolina
.
Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was one of the oldest railroads in the United States and the first common carrier railroad. It came into being mostly because the city of Baltimore wanted to compete with the newly constructed Erie Canal and another canal being proposed by Pennsylvania, which...
. He was born as Johann Rudolph Niernsee in Vienna, Austria and immigrated to the United States in 1837, at age 22. He apprenticed to Benjamin Latrobe
Benjamin Latrobe
Benjamin Henry Boneval Latrobe was a British-born American neoclassical architect best known for his design of the United States Capitol, along with his work on the Baltimore Basilica, the first Roman Catholic Cathedral in the United States...
.
In 1847, with James Crawford Neilson
James Crawford Neilson
James Crawford Neilson , or J. Crawford Neilson, was a Baltimore, Maryland-based architect. He was born in Baltimore, Maryland in 1816. After the death of his father in 1822 the famiily moved to England and in 1824 to Brussels...
, he formed the Niernsee & Neilson architectural firm that largely served the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was one of the oldest railroads in the United States and the first common carrier railroad. It came into being mostly because the city of Baltimore wanted to compete with the newly constructed Erie Canal and another canal being proposed by Pennsylvania, which...
.
He is credited with having mentored Ephraim Francis Baldwin
Ephraim Francis Baldwin
Ephraim Francis Baldwin was an American architect, best known for his work for the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad and for the Roman Catholic Church.-Personal life:...
.
John Niernsee also served in the Confederate Armed Forces as a Major. He is buried at
St. Peter's Catholic Church in Columbia, South Carolina
Columbia, South Carolina
Columbia is the state capital and largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The population was 129,272 according to the 2010 census. Columbia is the county seat of Richland County, but a portion of the city extends into neighboring Lexington County. The city is the center of a metropolitan...
.
Selected works
- The Green Mount Cemetery hilltop chapel, in Baltimore, Maryland, which he designed with Nielsen, is a Gothic RevivalGothic Revival architectureThe Gothic Revival is an architectural movement that began in the 1740s in England...
work. - Baltimore's Johns Hopkins HospitalJohns Hopkins HospitalThe Johns Hopkins Hospital is the teaching hospital and biomedical research facility of Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, located in Baltimore, Maryland . It was founded using money from a bequest by philanthropist Johns Hopkins...
and the Johns Hopkins Colored Children Orphan Asylum.
- 1855-56: St. John the Evangelist Roman Catholic ChurchSt. John the Evangelist Roman Catholic Church (Baltimore, Maryland)St. John the Evangelist Roman Catholic Church, now known as Sweet Prospect Baptist Church, is a historic Roman Catholic church located at Baltimore, Maryland, United States. It is an 1855-1856 Italianate-influenced masonry structure that is constructed of stuccoed brick walls resting on a rubble...
(by Niernsee & Neilson), Baltimore, Maryland, listed on the National Register of Historic PlacesNational Register of Historic PlacesThe National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
in 1982. - 1868: Aigburth ValeAigburth ValeAigburth Vale house at 212 Aigburth Road in Towson was designed in 1868, by architects Niernsee & Neilson, as a country home for wealthy actor John E. Owens. Aigburth is a suburb of Liverpool in England....
(by Niernsee & Neilson), listed on the National Register of Historic PlacesNational Register of Historic PlacesThe National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
in 1999. - 1870: Churchville Presbyterian ChurchChurchville Presbyterian ChurchChurchville Presbyterian Church is a historic Presbyterian church located at Churchville, Harford County, Maryland. It consists of three harmoniously designed sections: the original one-story, four by three bay, gable-roofed brick building dated to 1820; the three-story, restrained Italianate,...
(clock tower by Niernsee & Neilson), Churchville, MarylandChurchville, MarylandChurchville is an unincorporated town in Harford County, Maryland, located between the county seat, Bel Air, and Aberdeen, where the Aberdeen Proving Ground is located.-History and Lower Cross Roads:...
, listed on the National Register of Historic PlacesNational Register of Historic PlacesThe National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
in 1986. - ca. 1870: Clifton Park, BaltimoreClifton Park, BaltimoreClifton Park is a public urban park located in the Belair-Edison neighborhood in the northeast section of Baltimore, Maryland. USA. It is roughly bordered by Erdman Avenue to the northeast, Sinclair Lane to the south, Harford Road to the northwest and Belair Road to the southeast...
(by Niernsee & Neilson), listed on the National Register of Historic PlacesNational Register of Historic PlacesThe National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
in 2007. - The Greek RevivalGreek Revival architectureThe Greek Revival was an architectural movement of the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in Northern Europe and the United States. A product of Hellenism, it may be looked upon as the last phase in the development of Neoclassical architecture...
South Carolina State HouseSouth Carolina State HouseThe South Carolina State House is the building housing the government of the U.S. state of South Carolina. The building houses the South Carolina General Assembly and the offices of the Governor and Lieutenant Governor of South Carolina. Until 1971, it also housed the Supreme Court...
is another National Historic LandmarkNational Historic LandmarkA National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
building which he designed, c. 1851, although full implementation was delayed. From 1888 to 1891, a time when much of the interior work was completed, it was in fact Niernsee’s son, Frank McHenry Niernsee, who served as architect. - His Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Martinsburg ShopsBaltimore and Ohio Railroad Martinsburg ShopsBaltimore and Ohio Railroad Martinsburg Shops is a historic industrial district in Martinsburg, West Virginia. It is significant both for its railroading architecture by Albert Fink and John Rudolph Niernsee and for its role in the Great Railroad Strike of 1877. It consists of three contributing...
that he worked on together with Albert FinkAlbert FinkAlbert Fink was a German civil engineer. He is best known for his railroad bridge designs, and devising the Fink truss....
were declared a National Historic LandmarkNational Historic LandmarkA National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
in 2003.