Warren H. Hayes
Encyclopedia
Warren Howard Hayes was a leading designer of churches
in the United States
and Canada
during the late 19th century. Hayes' work holds a significant place in its association with the "Social Gospel
" movement. He is credited with the some of the earliest use of the "diagonal auditorium" plan and the vast majority of his churches uncovered to date are centered around the diagonal auditorium design with fan shaped pew arrangements and, to assure excellent acoustics, the seating sloping toward the pulpit and domed ceilings. As noted at the opening of the Rockville Ct. Congregational Church:
Often the interiors have Arts and Crafts
attributes, and some of the congregations accepted Hayes recommendations of Louis Tiffany for their stained glass
.
From early in his career Hayes worked closely with artists-decorators, such as Lawrence A. McIvor, who worked for Hayes in Elmira, and later followed him to Minneapolis where he worked as the L.A. McIvor & Company. While attentive to the look and sounds of his churches, Hayes also was an early adopter of advanced mechanical and electrical systems.
The National Register of Historic Places
currently includes seven of his works in Minnesota
and the Methodist Episcopal Church
at Lodi, New York
.
Hayes was deeply involved in the institutional church movement throughout his career, and although he was a Methodist, he had extensive ties with other denominations. This is well illustrated in the nationwide dissemination by various church organizations charged with promoting church building and development of his ideas and plans in the late 19th century.
included a lengthy entry about Hayes, together with some family background, five years before his death:
On his father's side he is of New England
stock, being descended from George Hayes, of Windsor, Connecticut
, who emigrated from Scotland
to Derbyshire, England, and thence to Windsor, Connecticut, in 1680, where descendants of the family still live. Many honored names represent the family in professional and official life, 19th President of the United States
Rutherford Hayes being among the number. Upon his mother's" side, Mr. Hayes' progenitors are the Robsons and Straughans, of Northumberland, England, who emigrated to Geneva
in Ontario
, early in the nineteenth century. The boyhood of Mr. Hayes was spent on the farm of his father, George Goundry Hayes, who was at that time one of the most successful agriculturists in that section, owning and tilling large farms in Yates
, Steuben
, and Ontario. The son's studies were begun at the age of five in the district school, and continued for seven years. This was supplemented at the select school in Italy, New York
, at Watkins' Academy, and at Genesee Wesleyan Seminary
at Lima, New York
.
In 1868 Hayes entered the sophomore class of Cornell University
, and was graduated in 1871, having successfully taken the courses in architecture
and civil engineering
, including the natural sciences and modern languages. He also, during his college course, took two President Andrew Dickson White
, who was the founder of the Department of History and Political Science, first prizes for proficiency in mechanics
and physics
. The succeeding ten years were given to the successful practice of his chosen profession, architecture, at Elmira, New York
, where, in May 1881, he was united in marriage to Miss M. F. Beardsley. In September 1881, he opened an office in Minneapolis, Minnesota
, where from that time to 1894, he has maintained a widely extended and successful practice. Many of the finer business and public buildings in Minneapolis and St. Paul have been erected by him, as well as notable structures in other cities. Hayes shows especial originality in ecclesiastical architecture. Among the churches which he has designed are the First Congregational Church at Rockland, Massachusetts
, the Union Congregational Church at Rockville, Connecticut
, the First Baptist Church at Portland, Oregon
, and the Wesley Methodist Episcopal Church
in Minneapolis, Minnesota
.
At the present time Hayes has in process of erection the Fowler Methodist Episcopal Church
, a most complete and finely equipped edifice, and named for Bishop C. II. Fowler and now known as the Scottish Rite Temple. All the above buildings, and many similar ones, notably the Central Presbyterian Church
of St. Paul, Minnesota, and the First Presbyterian Church of Galesburg, Illinois
, are planned on Hayes' original "diagonal plan" of auditorium, developed by him in the winter of 1882, and first used in several leading churches in Minneapolis. Its beauty and success were popular from the first. It has become widely known and used, until now it may justly be said to be the most practical and successful form of church auditorium known in modern architecture. It insures superior qualities with respect to Acoustics
, facilities for sight, ventilation, light, access, and ease of combination with the chapel
, bringing all within sight of, and within short distance from, the speaker. The diagonal auditorium is the result of much study on the part of the originator, to whom it has brought great credit and enduring fame. On October 26, 1886, Hayes was married to Mrs. Lillie Cook Van Norman, of Hamilton, Ontario
, his first wife and daughter having died four years previous. From this second marriage three children were born to them: Edith, George Edson, and Helen, who, with Mary Van Norman, the stepdaughter, form the present family. [mention of his daughter Alice Grace Hayes (Smith) unfortunately was omitted].
An article at the time of his untimely death in 1899 from pernicious anemia noted:
After Hayes' death his architectural business was purchased by Frederick H. Heath, who began his architectural studies in Hayes office and who worked as a draftsman and designer for Hayes for ten years. Heath went on to a very distinguished career and designed hundreds of buildings in the Tacoma, Washington
area.
visited the Presbyterian Historical Society and studied various annual reports of the Board of Church Erection for the Presbyterian Church U.S.A.
which he described as a "bonanza" of late 19th century Protestant church architecture
. He put together a list of Hayes designs and reported to the Hayes Research Project that "Among work of literally dozens of architects...", that he found 9 designs and renderings by Warren H. Hayes, as follows:
Eighth Annual Report (1878)
Fourteenth Annual Report (1884)
Twenty-first Annual Report (1891)
Often these Hayes' designs were accompanied by a note ("Plans, detailed drawing,specifications,and form of contract all complete, ready to be sent, by mail, on receipt of $5.00") Hayes also advertised in the Presbyterian "Assembly Herald".
Hayes had an extensive relationship with the Congregational Church Building Society, [American Congregational Union]. His advertisements appeared frequently in its "Church + Building Quarterly" and on occasions there appear announcements regarding various churches Hayes' had designed. St. Louis Compton Hill Congregational Church Morning Sun Iowa Congregational Church; Plymouth Congregational Church, Oshkosh, Wisc.; Eagle Grove Iowa Congregational Church; Salt Lake City, Utah First Congregational Church; Wausau, Wisc. As noted by Jeanne Halgren Kilde in her book When Church Became Theater: The Transformation of Evangelical Architecture ... (2002) (p. 105) "[...] Hayes [...] gained the imprimatur of the National Council of Congregational Churches during the 1890s when he was the architect most often featured in the Congregational Yearbook."
Similarly, Hayes advertised in the Baptist Home Monthly, and had many commissions for Baptist churches. Sommerville, Mass. Union Baptist Church
The Methodist Church likewise published Church Plan catalogs
In effect these church building societies were putting together "plan books" or plan exemplars and sending them to their members on a regular basis. While Hayes is best known for some of the larger churches he designed, many of the participants in these building societies were small churches, which logically gravitated to such 'off the shelf design'.
Often local architects would use these plan book designs, or would be required by local ordinance, custom, or oversight duties to adopt the plans as their own.
An example of this approach is the construction of the Congregational Church of St. Joseph,Missouri. While Hayes designed the church, --- as evidenced by his rendering in the October 1890 edition of the "Church + Building Quarterly" of the American Congregational Union. — all of the public filings, and the all important architect's signature and seal were done by local St. Joseph, MO. professionals. See also Hayes advertisement including a rendering of the St. Joseph Mo Congregational Church.
This process of the use of plan books, and transmission via the mails of standard designs, together with local oversight often can cause great confusion in giving the correct attribution to a particular church. This appears especially to be the case with Hayes, and it may be that literally hundreds of churches built during the 1880s and 1890s are his design. Indeed, if one finds a church 'diagonal auditorium' design of that vintage, with curved floors for better acoustics, it could well be a Hayes' church.
After graduation from Cornell
, Hayes set up his office first in Penn Yan
and then in 1873 in Elmira, New York
. One of his earliest published designs is an 1878 English cottage
that appears in the American Architect and Building News. Another example of Hayes' early residential works is his father's home built in about 1883 at 2505, County House Road, Penn Yan, NY, which is now on the National Register of Historic Places
, and where inscriptions noting the design work signed by Hayes have been found.
Hayes designed his Minneapolis
home at 619 12th Avenue South. The last known example of a Hayes residential commission appears in The Improvement Bulletin of June 24, 1899, which reported that Hayes had prepared plans for a 2-story frame residence to be erected by Rev. T. M Findley at Spicer, Minnesota
.
Hayes' first known church commission was the First Methodist Church of Watkins Glen
, at 127 E. 4th Street, Watkins Glen, NY 140891. Noting that Hayes went from a
This was no doubt due to his close ties to the community. Hayes' uncle, Daniel Howard, was the President of the Board of Trustees. The church also has a stained glass window in memory of Daniel A. and Hannah Howard.
Other churches designed while at Elmira include the Methodist Episcopal Church at Lodi, New York
, featured on the cover of the July 29, 1882 edition of the American Architect and Building News (No 344), and now on the National Register of Historic Places.
In Minneapolis, Hayes designed the Calvary Baptist Church, the Fowler Methodist Episcopal Church
(in 1906 the original sanctuary was converted into a Chapel as part of a substantial church expansion designed by Harry Wild Jones
, which retained the Sunday school
rooms which are now part of the 'Red Room' of the Scottish Rite Temple, which has the original plans, with copies at the Northwest Architectural Archives), the First Congregational Church, and the Wesley Methodist Episcopal Church
.
Elsewhere in Minnesota, Hayes designed the First Presbyterian Church (Hastings, Minnesota)
, significant for its Romanesque architecture
, characterized by its massive quality, its thick walls, round arches, large towers, and decorative arcading, and the Central Presbyterian Church in Saint Paul
.
Hayes' design of a Church for the First Methodist Church Society of Beijing
, China
, with seating capacity for 2000, was almost as large as his Wesley Methodist Church.
Hayes also prepared designs for institutions and developers. Examples include the Science Hall at Hamline University
, University Hall-Old Main at Hamline University, Ladies Hall at Lawrence University
in Appleton, Wisconsin
, and the Music Building at the University of Minnesota
.
Examples of his furniture designs also still exist, such as an octagonal table inscribed "Designed and Built for Warren H Hayes, Architect, 1893" and signed by Hayes.
The Improvement Bulletin also noted the following works by Hayes:
Church architecture
Church architecture refers to the architecture of buildings of Christian churches. It has evolved over the two thousand years of the Christian religion, partly by innovation and partly by imitating other architectural styles as well as responding to changing beliefs, practices and local traditions...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
during the late 19th century. Hayes' work holds a significant place in its association with the "Social Gospel
Social Gospel
The Social Gospel movement is a Protestant Christian intellectual movement that was most prominent in the early 20th century United States and Canada...
" movement. He is credited with the some of the earliest use of the "diagonal auditorium" plan and the vast majority of his churches uncovered to date are centered around the diagonal auditorium design with fan shaped pew arrangements and, to assure excellent acoustics, the seating sloping toward the pulpit and domed ceilings. As noted at the opening of the Rockville Ct. Congregational Church:
The acoustic properties of the auditorium are something wonderful. The pastor says he never before spoke in church or hall which can compare with it in this respect. There are yet to be added a protected desk light for the pulpit and a shaded reflector for the organ. The seating capacity of the auditorium is 600, of the gallery 300, of the chapel 300. This capacity can be extended by placing chairs in vacant spaces without obstructing any aisles from 100 to 200 more. —Warren H. Hayes of Minneapolis.
Often the interiors have Arts and Crafts
Arts and Crafts movement
Arts and Crafts was an international design philosophy that originated in England and flourished between 1860 and 1910 , continuing its influence until the 1930s...
attributes, and some of the congregations accepted Hayes recommendations of Louis Tiffany for their stained glass
Stained glass
The term stained glass can refer to coloured glass as a material or to works produced from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant buildings...
.
From early in his career Hayes worked closely with artists-decorators, such as Lawrence A. McIvor, who worked for Hayes in Elmira, and later followed him to Minneapolis where he worked as the L.A. McIvor & Company. While attentive to the look and sounds of his churches, Hayes also was an early adopter of advanced mechanical and electrical systems.
The National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
currently includes seven of his works in Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
and the Methodist Episcopal Church
Methodist Episcopal Church
The Methodist Episcopal Church, sometimes referred to as the M.E. Church, was a development of the first expression of Methodism in the United States. It officially began at the Baltimore Christmas Conference in 1784, with Francis Asbury and Thomas Coke as the first bishops. Through a series of...
at Lodi, New York
Lodi (town), New York
Lodi is a town in Seneca County, New York, USA. The population was 1,476 at the 2000 census.The Town of Lodi is in the southwest part of the county and is northwest of Ithaca, New York. There is a village called Lodi in the town...
.
Hayes was deeply involved in the institutional church movement throughout his career, and although he was a Methodist, he had extensive ties with other denominations. This is well illustrated in the nationwide dissemination by various church organizations charged with promoting church building and development of his ideas and plans in the late 19th century.
Life
The National Cyclopaedia of American BiographyThe National Cyclopaedia of American Biography
The National Cyclopaedia of American Biography is a multi-volume collection of biographical articles and portraits of Americans, published since the 1890s. The primary method of data collection was by sending questionnaires to subjects or their relatives. It has over 60,000 entries, in 63...
included a lengthy entry about Hayes, together with some family background, five years before his death:
On his father's side he is of 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...
stock, being descended from George Hayes, of Windsor, Connecticut
Windsor, Connecticut
Windsor is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States, and was the first English settlement in the state. It lies on the northern border of Connecticut's capital, Hartford. The population was estimated at 28,778 in 2005....
, who emigrated from Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
to Derbyshire, England, and thence to Windsor, Connecticut, in 1680, where descendants of the family still live. Many honored names represent the family in professional and official life, 19th President of the United States
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
Rutherford Hayes being among the number. Upon his mother's" side, Mr. Hayes' progenitors are the Robsons and Straughans, of Northumberland, England, who emigrated to Geneva
Geneva, New York
Geneva is a city in Ontario and Seneca counties in the U.S. state of New York. The population was 13,617 at the 2000 census. Some claim it is named after the city and canton of Geneva in Switzerland. Others believe the name came from confusion over the letters in the word "Seneca" written in cursive...
in Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, early in the nineteenth century. The boyhood of Mr. Hayes was spent on the farm of his father, George Goundry Hayes, who was at that time one of the most successful agriculturists in that section, owning and tilling large farms in Yates
Yates County, New York
Yates County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2010 census, the population was 25,348. The county seat is Penn Yan. The name is in honor of Joseph C. Yates, who as Governor of New York signed the act establishing the county....
, Steuben
Steuben County, New York
Steuben County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2010 census, the population was 98,990. Its name is in honor of Baron von Steuben, a German general who fought on the American side in the American Revolutionary War, though it is not pronounced the same...
, and Ontario. The son's studies were begun at the age of five in the district school, and continued for seven years. This was supplemented at the select school in Italy, New York
Italy, New York
Italy is a town located in Yates County, New York, United States. As of the 2000 census, the town had a total population of 1,087. The town takes its name from the European country, Italy....
, at Watkins' Academy, and at Genesee Wesleyan Seminary
Genesee Wesleyan Seminary
The Genesee Wesleyan Seminary was the name of two institutions located on the same site in Lima, New York.The Genesee Wesleyan Seminary was founded in 1831 by the Genesee Annual Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church. The plan for its establishment dates to 1829 when the Conference...
at Lima, New York
Lima (town), New York
Lima is a town in Livingston County, New York, U.S. The population was 4,541 at the 2000 census.The town of Lima is in the northeast part of the county, south of Rochester...
.
In 1868 Hayes entered the sophomore class of 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...
, and was graduated in 1871, having successfully taken the courses in architecture
Architecture
Architecture is both the process and product of planning, designing and construction. Architectural works, in the material form of buildings, are often perceived as cultural and political symbols and as works of art...
and civil engineering
Civil engineering
Civil engineering is a professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including works like roads, bridges, canals, dams, and buildings...
, including the natural sciences and modern languages. He also, during his college course, took two President Andrew Dickson White
Andrew Dickson White
Andrew Dickson White was a U.S. diplomat, historian, and educator, who was the co-founder of Cornell University.-Family and personal life:...
, who was the founder of the Department of History and Political Science, first prizes for proficiency in mechanics
Mechanics
Mechanics is the branch of physics concerned with the behavior of physical bodies when subjected to forces or displacements, and the subsequent effects of the bodies on their environment....
and physics
Physics
Physics is a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through spacetime, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves.Physics is one of the oldest academic...
. The succeeding ten years were given to the successful practice of his chosen profession, architecture, at Elmira, New York
Elmira, New York
Elmira is a city in Chemung County, New York, USA. It is the principal city of the 'Elmira, New York Metropolitan Statistical Area' which encompasses Chemung County, New York. The population was 29,200 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Chemung County.The City of Elmira is located in...
, where, in May 1881, he was united in marriage to Miss M. F. Beardsley. In September 1881, he opened an office in Minneapolis, Minnesota
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Minneapolis , nicknamed "City of Lakes" and the "Mill City," is the county seat of Hennepin County, the largest city in the U.S. state of Minnesota, and the 48th largest in the United States...
, where from that time to 1894, he has maintained a widely extended and successful practice. Many of the finer business and public buildings in Minneapolis and St. Paul have been erected by him, as well as notable structures in other cities. Hayes shows especial originality in ecclesiastical architecture. Among the churches which he has designed are the First Congregational Church at Rockland, Massachusetts
Rockland, Massachusetts
Rockland is a town in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States. The 2010 census records its population at 17,489. As of December 31, 2009, there are 11,809 registered voters in the community.-History:...
, the Union Congregational Church at Rockville, Connecticut
Rockville, Connecticut
Rockville is a census-designated place and a village of the town of Vernon in Tolland County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 7,708 at the 2000 census...
, the First Baptist Church at Portland, Oregon
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
, and the Wesley Methodist Episcopal Church
Wesley United Methodist Church (Minneapolis, Minnesota)
The Wesley United Methodist Church building was constructed of granite, stone, brick, and sandstone in Richardsonian Romanesque style, featuring round-arched windows and multiple towers...
in Minneapolis, Minnesota
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Minneapolis , nicknamed "City of Lakes" and the "Mill City," is the county seat of Hennepin County, the largest city in the U.S. state of Minnesota, and the 48th largest in the United States...
.
At the present time Hayes has in process of erection the Fowler Methodist Episcopal Church
Fowler Methodist Episcopal Church
Fowler Methodist Episcopal Church, now known as the Scottish Rite Temple, is a historic church building in the Lowry Hill neighborhood of Minneapolis, Minnesota. It was designed by architects Warren H. Hayes and Harry Wild Jones. Hayes submitted the original design for the chapel in 1894, but...
, a most complete and finely equipped edifice, and named for Bishop C. II. Fowler and now known as the Scottish Rite Temple. All the above buildings, and many similar ones, notably the Central Presbyterian Church
Central Presbyterian Church (St. Paul, Minnesota)
Central Presbyterian Church is a church in downtown Saint Paul, Minnesota. The congregation was founded in 1852 and built its first building in 1854, which was later enlarged during the 1870s. The rapidly growing congregation outgrew the building, so they built a new church building in 1889...
of St. Paul, Minnesota, and the First Presbyterian Church of Galesburg, Illinois
Galesburg, Illinois
Galesburg is a city in Knox County, Illinois, in the United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 32,195. It is the county seat of Knox County....
, are planned on Hayes' original "diagonal plan" of auditorium, developed by him in the winter of 1882, and first used in several leading churches in Minneapolis. Its beauty and success were popular from the first. It has become widely known and used, until now it may justly be said to be the most practical and successful form of church auditorium known in modern architecture. It insures superior qualities with respect to Acoustics
Acoustics
Acoustics is the interdisciplinary science that deals with the study of all mechanical waves in gases, liquids, and solids including vibration, sound, ultrasound and infrasound. A scientist who works in the field of acoustics is an acoustician while someone working in the field of acoustics...
, facilities for sight, ventilation, light, access, and ease of combination with the chapel
Chapel
A chapel is a building used by Christians as a place of fellowship and worship. It may be part of a larger structure or complex, such as a church, college, hospital, palace, prison or funeral home, located on board a military or commercial ship, or it may be an entirely free-standing building,...
, bringing all within sight of, and within short distance from, the speaker. The diagonal auditorium is the result of much study on the part of the originator, to whom it has brought great credit and enduring fame. On October 26, 1886, Hayes was married to Mrs. Lillie Cook Van Norman, of Hamilton, Ontario
Hamilton, Ontario
Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian province of Ontario. Conceived by George Hamilton when he purchased the Durand farm shortly after the War of 1812, Hamilton has become the centre of a densely populated and industrialized region at the west end of Lake Ontario known as the Golden Horseshoe...
, his first wife and daughter having died four years previous. From this second marriage three children were born to them: Edith, George Edson, and Helen, who, with Mary Van Norman, the stepdaughter, form the present family. [mention of his daughter Alice Grace Hayes (Smith) unfortunately was omitted].
An article at the time of his untimely death in 1899 from pernicious anemia noted:
After Hayes' death his architectural business was purchased by Frederick H. Heath, who began his architectural studies in Hayes office and who worked as a draftsman and designer for Hayes for ten years. Heath went on to a very distinguished career and designed hundreds of buildings in the Tacoma, Washington
Tacoma, Washington
Tacoma is a mid-sized urban port city and the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. The city is on Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, northeast of the state capital, Olympia, and northwest of Mount Rainier National Park. The population was 198,397, according to...
area.
Church architecture
In 1997, Don Ramsey, then Associate Professor and Director of the Architecture Program at North Dakota State UniversityNorth Dakota State University
North Dakota State University of Agriculture and Applied Sciences, more commonly known as North Dakota State University , is a public university in Fargo, North Dakota. NDSU has about 14,000 students and it is the largest university in North Dakota based on full time students and land size...
visited the Presbyterian Historical Society and studied various annual reports of the Board of Church Erection for the Presbyterian Church U.S.A.
Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)
The Presbyterian Church , or PC, is a mainline Protestant Christian denomination in the United States. Part of the Reformed tradition, it is the largest Presbyterian denomination in the U.S...
which he described as a "bonanza" of late 19th century Protestant church architecture
Church architecture
Church architecture refers to the architecture of buildings of Christian churches. It has evolved over the two thousand years of the Christian religion, partly by innovation and partly by imitating other architectural styles as well as responding to changing beliefs, practices and local traditions...
. He put together a list of Hayes designs and reported to the Hayes Research Project that "Among work of literally dozens of architects...", that he found 9 designs and renderings by Warren H. Hayes, as follows:
Eighth Annual Report (1878)
- "Rural Chapel"
- "Village Church"
- Untitled
- "First ... Church", Walla Walla, W.T.
Fourteenth Annual Report (1884)
- Untitled
- Untitled
- Untitled
- Untitled
Twenty-first Annual Report (1891)
- "Le Mars", Iowa
Often these Hayes' designs were accompanied by a note ("Plans, detailed drawing,specifications,and form of contract all complete, ready to be sent, by mail, on receipt of $5.00") Hayes also advertised in the Presbyterian "Assembly Herald".
Hayes had an extensive relationship with the Congregational Church Building Society, [American Congregational Union]. His advertisements appeared frequently in its "Church + Building Quarterly" and on occasions there appear announcements regarding various churches Hayes' had designed. St. Louis Compton Hill Congregational Church Morning Sun Iowa Congregational Church; Plymouth Congregational Church, Oshkosh, Wisc.; Eagle Grove Iowa Congregational Church; Salt Lake City, Utah First Congregational Church; Wausau, Wisc. As noted by Jeanne Halgren Kilde in her book When Church Became Theater: The Transformation of Evangelical Architecture ... (2002) (p. 105) "[...] Hayes [...] gained the imprimatur of the National Council of Congregational Churches during the 1890s when he was the architect most often featured in the Congregational Yearbook."
Similarly, Hayes advertised in the Baptist Home Monthly, and had many commissions for Baptist churches. Sommerville, Mass. Union Baptist Church
The Methodist Church likewise published Church Plan catalogs
In effect these church building societies were putting together "plan books" or plan exemplars and sending them to their members on a regular basis. While Hayes is best known for some of the larger churches he designed, many of the participants in these building societies were small churches, which logically gravitated to such 'off the shelf design'.
Often local architects would use these plan book designs, or would be required by local ordinance, custom, or oversight duties to adopt the plans as their own.
An example of this approach is the construction of the Congregational Church of St. Joseph,Missouri. While Hayes designed the church, --- as evidenced by his rendering in the October 1890 edition of the "Church + Building Quarterly" of the American Congregational Union. — all of the public filings, and the all important architect's signature and seal were done by local St. Joseph, MO. professionals. See also Hayes advertisement including a rendering of the St. Joseph Mo Congregational Church.
This process of the use of plan books, and transmission via the mails of standard designs, together with local oversight often can cause great confusion in giving the correct attribution to a particular church. This appears especially to be the case with Hayes, and it may be that literally hundreds of churches built during the 1880s and 1890s are his design. Indeed, if one finds a church 'diagonal auditorium' design of that vintage, with curved floors for better acoustics, it could well be a Hayes' church.
Works
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...
, Hayes set up his office first in Penn Yan
Penn Yan, New York
Penn Yan is a village in Yates County, New York, USA. The population was 5,219 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Yates County and lies at the north end of the east branch of Keuka Lake, one of the Finger Lakes....
and then in 1873 in Elmira, New York
Elmira, New York
Elmira is a city in Chemung County, New York, USA. It is the principal city of the 'Elmira, New York Metropolitan Statistical Area' which encompasses Chemung County, New York. The population was 29,200 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Chemung County.The City of Elmira is located in...
. One of his earliest published designs is an 1878 English cottage
Cottage
__toc__In modern usage, a cottage is usually a modest, often cozy dwelling, typically in a rural or semi-rural location. However there are cottage-style dwellings in cities, and in places such as Canada the term exists with no connotations of size at all...
that appears in the American Architect and Building News. Another example of Hayes' early residential works is his father's home built in about 1883 at 2505, County House Road, Penn Yan, NY, which is now on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
, and where inscriptions noting the design work signed by Hayes have been found.
Hayes designed his Minneapolis
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Minneapolis , nicknamed "City of Lakes" and the "Mill City," is the county seat of Hennepin County, the largest city in the U.S. state of Minnesota, and the 48th largest in the United States...
home at 619 12th Avenue South. The last known example of a Hayes residential commission appears in The Improvement Bulletin of June 24, 1899, which reported that Hayes had prepared plans for a 2-story frame residence to be erected by Rev. T. M Findley at Spicer, Minnesota
Spicer, Minnesota
As of the census of 2000, there were 1,126 people residing in the city. The population density was 1,038.4 people per square mile . There were 605 housing units at an average density of 557.9 per square mile...
.
Hayes' first known church commission was the First Methodist Church of Watkins Glen
Watkins Glen, New York
Watkins Glen is a village in Schuyler County, New York, United States. The population was 2,149 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Schuyler County.The Village of Watkins Glen lies on the border of the towns of Dix and Montour....
, at 127 E. 4th Street, Watkins Glen, NY 140891. Noting that Hayes went from a
"private school in Italy, NY, thence two years at Watkins Academy, here, in 1865, joining on probation the First M.E. Church, (whose present fine edifice erected in later years was from his first church design) ..."
This was no doubt due to his close ties to the community. Hayes' uncle, Daniel Howard, was the President of the Board of Trustees. The church also has a stained glass window in memory of Daniel A. and Hannah Howard.
Other churches designed while at Elmira include the Methodist Episcopal Church at Lodi, New York
Lodi Methodist Church
Lodi Methodist Church is a historic Methodist church located at Lodi in Seneca County, New York. It was constructed in 1880 and it consists of a main block with four steeply pitched gables, a corner bell tower, and a large single story rear wing. It is built of brick with a coursed stone...
, featured on the cover of the July 29, 1882 edition of the American Architect and Building News (No 344), and now on the National Register of Historic Places.
In Minneapolis, Hayes designed the Calvary Baptist Church, the Fowler Methodist Episcopal Church
Fowler Methodist Episcopal Church
Fowler Methodist Episcopal Church, now known as the Scottish Rite Temple, is a historic church building in the Lowry Hill neighborhood of Minneapolis, Minnesota. It was designed by architects Warren H. Hayes and Harry Wild Jones. Hayes submitted the original design for the chapel in 1894, but...
(in 1906 the original sanctuary was converted into a Chapel as part of a substantial church expansion designed by Harry Wild Jones
Harry Wild Jones
Harry Wild Jones was a popular Minneapolis, Minnesota-based architect who designed throughout the country and the world. Born two years before the start of the American Civil War, Jones, a twelfth generation New Englander, took his place on the American architectural stage in the late 19th century...
, which retained the Sunday school
Sunday school
Sunday school is the generic name for many different types of religious education pursued on Sundays by various denominations.-England:The first Sunday school may have been opened in 1751 in St. Mary's Church, Nottingham. Another early start was made by Hannah Ball, a native of High Wycombe in...
rooms which are now part of the 'Red Room' of the Scottish Rite Temple, which has the original plans, with copies at the Northwest Architectural Archives), the First Congregational Church, and the Wesley Methodist Episcopal Church
Wesley United Methodist Church (Minneapolis, Minnesota)
The Wesley United Methodist Church building was constructed of granite, stone, brick, and sandstone in Richardsonian Romanesque style, featuring round-arched windows and multiple towers...
.
Elsewhere in Minnesota, Hayes designed the First Presbyterian Church (Hastings, Minnesota)
First Presbyterian Church (Hastings, Minnesota)
First Presbyterian Church, known also as First United Presbyterian Church, is a church located at 602 Vermillion Street in downtown Hastings, Minnesota listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It is significant for its Romanesque architecture. Architect Warren H...
, significant for its Romanesque architecture
Romanesque architecture
Romanesque architecture is an architectural style of Medieval Europe characterised by semi-circular arches. There is no consensus for the beginning date of the Romanesque architecture, with proposals ranging from the 6th to the 10th century. It developed in the 12th century into the Gothic style,...
, characterized by its massive quality, its thick walls, round arches, large towers, and decorative arcading, and the Central Presbyterian Church in Saint Paul
Central Presbyterian Church (St. Paul, Minnesota)
Central Presbyterian Church is a church in downtown Saint Paul, Minnesota. The congregation was founded in 1852 and built its first building in 1854, which was later enlarged during the 1870s. The rapidly growing congregation outgrew the building, so they built a new church building in 1889...
.
Hayes' design of a Church for the First Methodist Church Society of Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
, China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
, with seating capacity for 2000, was almost as large as his Wesley Methodist Church.
Hayes also prepared designs for institutions and developers. Examples include the Science Hall at Hamline University
Hamline University
-Red Wing location :Hamline was named in honor of Leonidas Lent Hamline, a bishop of the Methodist Church whose interest in the frontier led him to donate $25,000 toward the building of an institution of higher learning in what was then the territory of Minnesota. Today, a statue of Bishop Hamline...
, University Hall-Old Main at Hamline University, Ladies Hall at Lawrence University
Lawrence University
Lawrence University is a selective, private liberal arts college with a nationally recognized conservatory of music, in Appleton, Wisconsin. Lawrence University is known for its rigorous academic environment. Founded in 1847, the first classes were held on November 12, 1849...
in Appleton, Wisconsin
Appleton, Wisconsin
Appleton is a city in Outagamie, Calumet, and Winnebago Counties in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. It is situated on the Fox River, 30 miles southwest of Green Bay and 100 miles north of Milwaukee. Appleton is the county seat of Outagamie County. The population was 78,086 at the 2010 census...
, and the Music Building at the University of Minnesota
University of Minnesota
The University of Minnesota, Twin Cities is a public research university located in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota, United States. It is the oldest and largest part of the University of Minnesota system and has the fourth-largest main campus student body in the United States, with 52,557...
.
Examples of his furniture designs also still exist, such as an octagonal table inscribed "Designed and Built for Warren H Hayes, Architect, 1893" and signed by Hayes.
Publications
Numerous elevation and plan view renderings by Hayes appeared in professional and trade journals of the 1880s and 1890s, for example:| Publication | Date | Location | Building |
| American Architect and Building News | July 29, 1882 | Lodi, New York | Methodist Episcopal Church |
| American Architect and Building News | 1887 | Minneapolis, Minn | The Andrew Presbyterian Church |
| American Architect and Building News | 1887 | Appleton, Wisconsin | First Congregational Church |
| American Architect and Building News | July 7, 1888 | Peoria, Illinois | First Presbyterian Church |
| American Architect and Building News | May, 7, 1892 | Oconto, Wisconsin | First Presbyterian Church |
| American Architect and Building News | May, 7, 1892 | Minneapolis, Minnesota | Immanuel Baptist Church |
| The Improvement Bulletin | Feb 11, 1899 | Portland, Oregon | First Baptist Church |
The Improvement Bulletin also noted the following works by Hayes:
- April 1, 1899 Albert Lea, MinnesotaAlbert Lea, MinnesotaAlbert Lea is a city in and the county seat of Freeborn County in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Minnesota. The population was 18,016 at the 2010 census....
and Knoxville, IllinoisKnoxville, IllinoisKnoxville is a city in Knox County, Illinois, United States. The population was 3,183 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Galesburg Micropolitan Statistical Area.-Description:Knoxville is located just southeast of the City of Galesburg...
"It will be 60X90, with high tower in one corner, of pressed brick veneer and cut stone trimmings, galvanized iron work, slate roof, leaded glass, decorating, church pews, and furnaces for heating" - April 8, 1899 Knoxville, Illinois plans have been accepted by the Presbyterian church
- April 29, 1899 Audubon, IowaAudubon, Iowa-2010 census:The 2010 census recorded a population of 2,176 in the city, with a population density of . There were 1,106 housing units, of which 961 were occupied....
Presbyterian Church - June 3, 1899 Presbyterian Church in Worthington, MinnesotaWorthington, MinnesotaWorthington is a city in Nobles County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 12,764 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Nobles County.The city's site was first settled in the 1870s as Okabena Station on a line of the Chicago, St...
, and Baptist church in Eldora, IowaEldora, IowaEldora is a city in Hardin County, Iowa, United States. The population was 3,035 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Hardin County. Eldora is located adjacent to the Iowa River and Pine Lake State Park. The city is most famous for the filming of the 1996 movie Twister on location. The... - June 17, 1899, First Methodist Episcopal church at Baraboo, WisconsinBaraboo, WisconsinBaraboo is the largest city in, and the county seat of Sauk County, Wisconsin, USA. It is situated on the Baraboo River. Its 2010 population was 12,048 according to the US Census Bureau...
.