Philip H. Frohman
Encyclopedia
Philip Hubert Frohman was an architect who is most widely known for his work on the Washington National Cathedral
, named, the "Cathedral Church of St. Peter and St. Paul" in Washington, D.C. He worked on the English Gothic style cathedral from 1921 until his death in 1972.
, supervised the building of the first railway from Liverpool to Manchester.
In 1849, the family moved to America. While practicing architecture in New York, Frohman’s grandfather, Philippe Gengembre Hubert, designed the Hotel Chelsea, later to become a well-known residence for actors, writers, musicians and other artists. Built in 1883, it had the distinction of being the tallest building in New York until 1899. Initially constructed as an apartment building, it still remains in operation today, as a hotel. Frohman would be born in this building in 1887 to Gustave Frohman
, a theatrical producer, and the former Marie Hubert,an actress and daughter of Philip Gengembre Hubert.
, and became the youngest person ever to pass the state architectural examination. The following year, at the age of twenty-one, he opened his own office in Pasadena. In his early practice he focused on the design of both churches and houses. Early Frohman-designed churches include Trinity Episcopal Church in Orange, California in 1909, and other parish churches in Santa Barbara and Inglewood, California between 1909 and 1917.
During World War I Frohman served in the ordinance construction section of the Army
and was stationed in the Washington, D.C. area. Placed in charge of the architectural division at Aberdeen Proving Ground
, he designed buildings there and at Rock Island Arsenal
. It was at this time that he made the acquaintance of dean
of the National Cathedral and, later, the Episcopal
bishop of Washington.
of the District of Columbia was chartered by Congress in January 1893, in part to fulfill L'Enfant's intended design.
Not until 1906, however, would the Cathedral Foundation select two architects, George Frederick Bodley
, an Englishman, and Henry Vaughan
of Boston.
Planning then proceeded swiftly with preliminary designs by Bodley for a massive Gothic
structure accepted on June 10, 1907.
On September 29, the Foundation Stone (cornerstone) of the cathedral was laid in a great ceremony at which President Theodore Roosevelt and the Bishop of London spoke.
Within a month, however, Bodley would be dead.
Vaughan became the first officially appointed Cathedral Architect
and held the position for a decade, until his death in June 1917.
Over the course of his long career Frohman would be credited with the design of some fifty churches in the United States. The great majority of Frohman’s life and work, however, would be dedicated to the construction of the Washington National Cathedral, on which he labored for more than fifty years.
During a visit to Washington in 1914, Frohman visited the Bethlehem Chapel, which had been completed in 1912. He described it as, “a more beautiful crypt
than any I had ever seen abroad; the most satisfying example of church architecture in America.” So taken was he by the cathedral that in signing the visitor register he included a small prayer in code. The prayer was that he might someday become the cathedral architect. Following military service in World War I Frohman moved from Pasadena to Boston to continue his architectural practice.
In 1919 Frohman began making preliminary sketches for revisions of Bodley’s designs at the invitation of the Bishop of Washington, The Right Reverend
Alfred Harding. During the next two years he formed a partnership with E. Donald Robb and Harry B. Little and in November 1921, the firm of Frohman, Robb and Little was officially designated Cathedral Architects. Robb died in 1942 and Little followed in 1944, after which Frohman served as the sole architect of the cathedral.
Although adhering to Bodley and Vaughan’s original plan in its essence, Frohman made substantial refinements to the initial blueprint. His impact on the overall structure has been described by one author on the cathedral: “Bodley and Vaughan’s preliminary plans envisioned a predominantly English Gothic structure; under Frohman’s guidance the style became more eclectic, a happy blending of Medieval Gothic from both England and the Continent . . . . Frohman’s cathedral combines architectural elements from both sides of the North Sea.”
In particular, Frohman revised and augmented the original design for the crypt, adding ambulatories and an additional chapel. Over the years he was intimately involved in virtually every aspect of the cathedral’s furnishing and embellishment. The most notable and visible of his revisions is his redesign of the west facade, the principal entrance to the cathedral., It “is said to be the culmination of Frohman’s genius—his most plastic work and his most original design.”
Frohman's successor described him as: "[an] architectural giant—a man who never compromised on less than perfection." It was said that he did not hesitate to change drawings to modify structural details by as little as a sixteenth of an inch. When the cathedral's construction progressed to the crossing
and a crucial debate arose over whether to complete the nave or build the central tower
next, Frohman's recommendation to proceed with the tower proved decisive.
His focus on construction of the Washington National Cathedral notwithstanding, Frohman still found time to design a number of other churches, including two cathedrals. The Cathedral of the Incarnation in Baltimore and the Cathedral Church of St. Luke in Orlando, Florida are both Frohman designed, although the latter would not be completed until 1987. In addition, the Church of our Saviour, Baltimore; Trinity College
Chapel, Hartford; Christ Lutheran Church, Baltimore; Trinity Church, Takoma Park, Maryland; St. Paul's Episcopal Church, Washington, D.C.; Trinity Church Morgantown, West Virginia and the Church of the Heavenly Rest, Abilene, Texas, have all been attributed to Frohman. Frohman also designed the Roman Catholic Church of the Annunciation in Washington, located near the cathedral, of which he was a member.
Frohman was the architect of Grace Church and rectory and its later enlargement (both have been razed), and a rancher's home in the prestigious "Snob Hollow" area (1917) (also razed in the late 1970s), all in Tucson, AZ.
Frohman received the distinction of Fellow of the American Institute of Architects
(FAIA
) from that organization. He was awarded the Medal Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice
(For Church and Pope) by Pope John XXIII
.
Frohman was a member of the Washington Archdiocesan Commission on Sacred Art, the National Cathedral Association
, the Guild of Religious Architecture, the Liturgical Art Society, the American Guild of Church Architects and the American Ordinance Association.
Although one bishop in the early 1920s informed Frohman that he intended to build the Washington National Cathedral in five years, Frohman himself observed: “Not often does an architect knowingly prepare designs for a building which he is sure he will not see completed in his own lifetime.”
Frohman’s prediction proved more accurate than the bishop’s. Frohman died on October 30, 1972, following an accident on August 7 in which he was struck by an automobile near the cathedral’s grounds. The cathedral nave
would not see completion until 1976. Only in September 1990, would the west end he redesigned be dedicated, completing construction of all principal features of the church’s interior and exterior structure, although minor embellishment is expected to continue for years.
A Roman Catholic, Frohman was interred in the columbarium
in the Chapel of St. Joseph of Arimathea on the crypt level of the cathedral by special dispensation of the Archdiocese of Washington. He is also memorialized by a bay
on the north aisle of the cathedral nave dedicated to him. The inscription on the bay wall reads, in part,: “From the deep well of faith sprang devotion to perfection; A graceful witness in this Cathedral Church; To his steadfast spirit and; The prayer his genius sought to record in all his work.”
Washington National Cathedral
The Washington National Cathedral, officially named the Cathedral Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, is a cathedral of the Episcopal Church located in Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States. Of neogothic design, it is the sixth-largest cathedral in the world, the second-largest in...
, named, the "Cathedral Church of St. Peter and St. Paul" in Washington, D.C. He worked on the English Gothic style cathedral from 1921 until his death in 1972.
Personal life
Frohman had a notable lineage in the related worlds of architecture and engineering. His great-great-grandfather was Philippe Joachim Joseph Gengembre, who served as Director of Works for King Louis Philippe of France in the early 19th century. Gengembre designed France’s first steam warship and the first home in Paris to feature gas lighting. Gengembre’s son, Charles Antoine Colomb Gengembre, both an architect and civil engineerCivil engineer
A civil engineer is a person who practices civil engineering; the application of planning, designing, constructing, maintaining, and operating infrastructures while protecting the public and environmental health, as well as improving existing infrastructures that have been neglected.Originally, a...
, supervised the building of the first railway from Liverpool to Manchester.
In 1849, the family moved to America. While practicing architecture in New York, Frohman’s grandfather, Philippe Gengembre Hubert, designed the Hotel Chelsea, later to become a well-known residence for actors, writers, musicians and other artists. Built in 1883, it had the distinction of being the tallest building in New York until 1899. Initially constructed as an apartment building, it still remains in operation today, as a hotel. Frohman would be born in this building in 1887 to Gustave Frohman
Gustave Frohman
Gustave Frohman was a theatre producer and advance man. He was one of three Frohman brothers who entered show business and he worked for most of his career alongside his brother, Charles Frohman. These two financed a number of theatre productions, often featuring African American actors...
, a theatrical producer, and the former Marie Hubert,an actress and daughter of Philip Gengembre Hubert.
Education and early career
Frohman’s interest in architecture was evident even in his early years. At the age of eleven, he enrolled in the Throop Institute in Pasadena, California. He designed his first house when he was fourteen. In 1907, he graduated from what is now the California Institute of TechnologyCalifornia Institute of Technology
The California Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Pasadena, California, United States. Caltech has six academic divisions with strong emphases on science and engineering...
, and became the youngest person ever to pass the state architectural examination. The following year, at the age of twenty-one, he opened his own office in Pasadena. In his early practice he focused on the design of both churches and houses. Early Frohman-designed churches include Trinity Episcopal Church in Orange, California in 1909, and other parish churches in Santa Barbara and Inglewood, California between 1909 and 1917.
During World War I Frohman served in the ordinance construction section of the Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
and was stationed in the Washington, D.C. area. Placed in charge of the architectural division at Aberdeen Proving Ground
Aberdeen Proving Ground
Aberdeen Proving Ground is a United States Army facility located near Aberdeen, Maryland, . Part of the facility is a census-designated place , which had a population of 3,116 at the 2000 census.- History :...
, he designed buildings there and at Rock Island Arsenal
Rock Island Arsenal
The Rock Island Arsenal comprises , located on Arsenal Island, originally known as Rock Island, on the Mississippi River between the cities of Davenport, Iowa, and Rock Island, Illinois. It lies within the state of Illinois. The island was originally established as a government site in 1816, with...
. It was at this time that he made the acquaintance of dean
Dean (religion)
A dean, in a church context, is a cleric holding certain positions of authority within a religious hierarchy. The title is used mainly in the Anglican Communion and the Roman Catholic Church.-Anglican Communion:...
of the National Cathedral and, later, the Episcopal
Episcopal Church (United States)
The Episcopal Church is a mainline Anglican Christian church found mainly in the United States , but also in Honduras, Taiwan, Colombia, Ecuador, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, the British Virgin Islands and parts of Europe...
bishop of Washington.
National Cathedral's origins and early architects
The Washington National Cathedral traces its inspiration to an intention by District of Columbia’s original city planner, Pierre L’Enfant that the city should include a church “for national purposes” to be “equally open to all.” Although the First Amendment would presumably preclude the construction of such a church by the government, the Protestant Episcopal Cathedral FoundationProtestant Episcopal Cathedral Foundation
The Protestant Episcopal Cathedral Foundation was chartered by Congress on January 6, 1893 and oversees the Washington National Cathedral and its sister institutions...
of the District of Columbia was chartered by Congress in January 1893, in part to fulfill L'Enfant's intended design.
Not until 1906, however, would the Cathedral Foundation select two architects, George Frederick Bodley
George Frederick Bodley
George Frederick Bodley was an English architect working in the Gothic revival style.-Personal life:Bodley was the youngest son of William Hulme Bodley, M.D. of Edinburgh, physician at Hull Royal Infirmary, Kingston upon Hull, who in 1838 retired to his wife's home town, Brighton, Sussex, England....
, an Englishman, and Henry Vaughan
Henry Vaughan (Architect)
Henry Vaughan , a prolific and talented church architect, came to America to bring the English Gothic style to the American branch of the Anglican Communion . He was an apprentice under George Frederick Bodley and went on to great success popularizing the Gothic Revival style.-Life:Vaughan was...
of Boston.
Planning then proceeded swiftly with preliminary designs by Bodley for a massive Gothic
Gothic Revival architecture
The Gothic Revival is an architectural movement that began in the 1740s in England...
structure accepted on June 10, 1907.
On September 29, the Foundation Stone (cornerstone) of the cathedral was laid in a great ceremony at which President Theodore Roosevelt and the Bishop of London spoke.
Within a month, however, Bodley would be dead.
Vaughan became the first officially appointed Cathedral Architect
and held the position for a decade, until his death in June 1917.
Work on Washington National Cathedral
During a visit to Washington in 1914, Frohman visited the Bethlehem Chapel, which had been completed in 1912. He described it as, “a more beautiful crypt
Crypt
In architecture, a crypt is a stone chamber or vault beneath the floor of a burial vault possibly containing sarcophagi, coffins or relics....
than any I had ever seen abroad; the most satisfying example of church architecture in America.” So taken was he by the cathedral that in signing the visitor register he included a small prayer in code. The prayer was that he might someday become the cathedral architect. Following military service in World War I Frohman moved from Pasadena to Boston to continue his architectural practice.
In 1919 Frohman began making preliminary sketches for revisions of Bodley’s designs at the invitation of the Bishop of Washington, The Right Reverend
Right Reverend
The Right Reverend is a style applied to certain religious figures.*In the Anglican Communion and the Roman Catholic Church in Great Britain it applies to bishops except that The Most Reverend is used for archbishops .*In some churches with a...
Alfred Harding. During the next two years he formed a partnership with E. Donald Robb and Harry B. Little and in November 1921, the firm of Frohman, Robb and Little was officially designated Cathedral Architects. Robb died in 1942 and Little followed in 1944, after which Frohman served as the sole architect of the cathedral.
Although adhering to Bodley and Vaughan’s original plan in its essence, Frohman made substantial refinements to the initial blueprint. His impact on the overall structure has been described by one author on the cathedral: “Bodley and Vaughan’s preliminary plans envisioned a predominantly English Gothic structure; under Frohman’s guidance the style became more eclectic, a happy blending of Medieval Gothic from both England and the Continent . . . . Frohman’s cathedral combines architectural elements from both sides of the North Sea.”
Frohman's successor described him as: "[an] architectural giant—a man who never compromised on less than perfection." It was said that he did not hesitate to change drawings to modify structural details by as little as a sixteenth of an inch. When the cathedral's construction progressed to the crossing
Crossing (architecture)
A crossing, in ecclesiastical architecture, is the junction of the four arms of a cruciform church.In a typically oriented church , the crossing gives access to the nave on the west, the transept arms on the north and south, and the choir on the east.The crossing is sometimes surmounted by a tower...
and a crucial debate arose over whether to complete the nave or build the central tower
Tower
A tower is a tall structure, usually taller than it is wide, often by a significant margin. Towers are distinguished from masts by their lack of guy-wires....
next, Frohman's recommendation to proceed with the tower proved decisive.
Other churches designed by Frohman
Trinity College (Connecticut)
Trinity College is a private, liberal arts college in Hartford, Connecticut. Founded in 1823, it is the second-oldest college in the state of Connecticut after Yale University. The college enrolls 2,300 students and has been coeducational since 1969. Trinity offers 38 majors and 26 minors, and has...
Chapel, Hartford; Christ Lutheran Church, Baltimore; Trinity Church, Takoma Park, Maryland; St. Paul's Episcopal Church, Washington, D.C.; Trinity Church Morgantown, West Virginia and the Church of the Heavenly Rest, Abilene, Texas, have all been attributed to Frohman. Frohman also designed the Roman Catholic Church of the Annunciation in Washington, located near the cathedral, of which he was a member.
Frohman was the architect of Grace Church and rectory and its later enlargement (both have been razed), and a rancher's home in the prestigious "Snob Hollow" area (1917) (also razed in the late 1970s), all in Tucson, AZ.
Awards and affiliations
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...
(FAIA
FAIA
Fellow of the American Institute of Architects is a postnomial, designating an individual who has been named a fellow of the American Institute of Architects...
) from that organization. He was awarded the Medal Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice
Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice
The Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice medal is an award of the Roman Catholic Church. It is also known as the "Cross of Honour". The medal was established by Leo XIII on July 17, 1888, to commemorate his golden sacerdotal jubilee and was originally bestowed on those women and men who had aided and...
(For Church and Pope) by Pope John XXIII
Pope John XXIII
-Papal election:Following the death of Pope Pius XII in 1958, Roncalli was elected Pope, to his great surprise. He had even arrived in the Vatican with a return train ticket to Venice. Many had considered Giovanni Battista Montini, Archbishop of Milan, a possible candidate, but, although archbishop...
.
Frohman was a member of the Washington Archdiocesan Commission on Sacred Art, the National Cathedral Association
National Cathedral Association
The National Cathedral Association is an organization that seeks to provide funds and promote the Washington National Cathedral.It consists of more than 14,000 people across the United States. It is subdivided into State committees. More than 88% of its members live outside the Washington area....
, the Guild of Religious Architecture, the Liturgical Art Society, the American Guild of Church Architects and the American Ordinance Association.
Retirement and death
Although continuing to climb the scaffolding several times a week to inspect the ongoing work, in March, 1971, at the age of 83 Frohman retired. In an unusual move for an architect, he was awarded a retirement stipend by the cathedral.Although one bishop in the early 1920s informed Frohman that he intended to build the Washington National Cathedral in five years, Frohman himself observed: “Not often does an architect knowingly prepare designs for a building which he is sure he will not see completed in his own lifetime.”
Frohman’s prediction proved more accurate than the bishop’s. Frohman died on October 30, 1972, following an accident on August 7 in which he was struck by an automobile near the cathedral’s grounds. The cathedral nave
Nave
In Romanesque and Gothic Christian abbey, cathedral basilica and church architecture, the nave is the central approach to the high altar, the main body of the church. "Nave" was probably suggested by the keel shape of its vaulting...
would not see completion until 1976. Only in September 1990, would the west end he redesigned be dedicated, completing construction of all principal features of the church’s interior and exterior structure, although minor embellishment is expected to continue for years.
A Roman Catholic, Frohman was interred in the columbarium
Columbarium
A columbarium is a place for the respectful and usually public storage of cinerary urns . The term comes from the Latin columba and originally referred to compartmentalized housing for doves and pigeons .The Columbarium of Pomponius Hylas is a particularly fine ancient Roman example, rich in...
in the Chapel of St. Joseph of Arimathea on the crypt level of the cathedral by special dispensation of the Archdiocese of Washington. He is also memorialized by a bay
Bay (architecture)
A bay is a unit of form in architecture. This unit is defined as the zone between the outer edges of an engaged column, pilaster, or post; or within a window frame, doorframe, or vertical 'bas relief' wall form.-Defining elements:...
on the north aisle of the cathedral nave dedicated to him. The inscription on the bay wall reads, in part,: “From the deep well of faith sprang devotion to perfection; A graceful witness in this Cathedral Church; To his steadfast spirit and; The prayer his genius sought to record in all his work.”
Books cited
- Feller, Richard T., and Marshall W. Fishwick (1979), For Thy Great Glory. 2nd ed. Culpeper, Virginia: The Community Press of Culpeper, Virginia.
- Feller, Richard T. (1989), Completing Washington Cathedral For Thy Great Glory. Washington, D.C.: The Washington Cathedral.
- Harrington, Ty (1979), The Last Cathedral. London: Prentice Hall International, Inc.
- Fallen, Anne-Catherine (editor) (1995), Washington National Cathedral. Washington, D.C.: Washington National Cathedral.
- Montgomery, Nancy S. (editor) (1974), Guide to Washington Cathedral. rev. ed. Washington, D.C.: National Cathedral Association.
External links
- A World Without End article at Frommers website
- American Institute of Architects official website
- Cathedral Church of St. Luke, Orlando, Florida official website.
- Cathedral of the Incarnation, Baltimore, Maryland, official website.
- Christ Lutheran Church, Baltimore, Maryland, official website.
- Church of the Annunciation, Washington, D.C., official website
- Church of our Savior, Baltimore, Maryland, official website.
- Church of the Heavenly Rest, Abilene, Texas, official website.
- Hotel Chelsea official website.
- Protestant Episcopal Cathedral Foundation of the District of Columbia official website.
- St. Paul's Episcopal Church, Washington, D.C., official website.
- Trinity College official website.
- Trinity Episcopal Church, Morgantown, West Virginia, official website.
- Trinity Episcopal Church, Orange, California, official website.
- Trinity Episcopal Church, Takoma Park, Maryland, official website.
- Washington National Cathedral official website.