Guide to the Allegheny County Courthouse and Jail Architectural Records, 1883-1888 AIS.1980.20

Arrangement

Repository
ULS Archives & Special Collections
Title
Allegheny County Courthouse and Jail Architectural Records
Creator
Richardson, H. H. (Henry Hobson), 1838-1886
Creator
Ord, John
Creator
Myers, Elijah E.
Creator
Boyington, William W.
Collection Number
AIS.1980.20
Extent
186 items (24 flat file folders)
Date
1883-1888
Abstract
Presentation drawings and plans by Henry Hobson Richardson, William W. Boyington, Elijah E. Meyers, and John Ord were submitted for the 1883 Allegheny County courthouse and jail architectural competition. H.H. Richardson's design was chosen in 1884, and construction took place between 1884 and 1888. This collection includes the presentation drawings of all four architects, as well as working drawings by Richardson that were used in the construction of the project.
Language
English .
Author
Julie Hanify.
Publisher
ULS Archives & Special Collections
Address
University of Pittsburgh Library System
Archives & Special Collections
Website: library.pitt.edu/archives-special-collections
Business Number: 412-648-3232 (Thomas) | 412-648-8190 (Hillman)
Contact Us: www.library.pitt.edu/ask-archivist
URL: http://library.pitt.edu/archives-special-collections

History

In 1883, the Allegheny County commissioners invited 100 architects to participate in competition for a new courthouse design to replace the courthouse on the same site that was destroyed by fire in 1882. The finalists, William W. Boyington (1818-1898), Elijah E. Meyers (1832-1909), John Ord (1871-1910), and Henry Hobson Richardson (1838-1886), were offered $2,500 each to prepare studies. Boyington was one of Chicago's first architects. Meyers, based in Detroit, was a successful designer of government buildings. Ord, who lived in Philadelphia, was part of the architecture team responsible for Philadelphia City Hall. However, it was Richardson's design that attracted the attention of the commissioners with its simplicity and the clarity of its planning, and was chosen as the winner in 1884.

The city of Pittsburgh requested that the jail be constructed before the courthouse, and construction on the jail began in 1884. The jail is enclosed by a stone wall with towers. Although Richardson witnessed the completion of the jail, he died April 27, 1886, two years before the courthouse was completed. He chose three men who worked in his office to continue his practice: George Foster Shepley (1858-1903), Charles Hercules Rutan (1851-1914), and Charles Allerton Coolidge (1858-1936). They changed the name of the firm to Shepley, Rutan and Coolidge, and completed the Pittsburgh project. Another person who played an important role in the project was Orlando Whitney Norcross (1839-1920), the leading partner in Norcross Brothers, general contractors located in Massachusetts. Richardson relied on Norcross for his knowledge of materials and construction techniques. Allegheny County awarded the construction contract to Norcross Brothers on September 1, 1884, and they completed the project according to Richardson's plans. The courthouse was dedicated on September 24, 1888. William M. Darlington, the oldest living member of the Allegheny Bar Association, accepted the ceremonial keys to the courthouse.

Richardson considered the Allegheny County Courthouse and Jail one of his finest works. By 1878, he had achieved a personal approach to design, and by 1882 he was recognized as the leading architect in America. The Allegheny County Courthouse features Richardson's signature details, the columns, arches, and ornament that came to be associated with the "Richardson Romanesque" style. The design quickly influenced building styles around the country as local government building of a similar style were soon constructed. Along with Richardson's Trinity Church in Boston, the Allegheny County Courthouse was one of the most widely copied of architectural forms in the late-nineteenth century United States. Modern architectural historians regard the jail highly for its plain outline, functional appropriateness, and almost complete lack of historically derived detail.

Richardson's Allegheny County courthouse and jail still stand as outstanding examples of Pittsburgh's architectural masterpieces.

Scope and Content Notes

Series I includes drawings submitted by four architects to the competition for the design of Allegheny County Courthouse and Jail. The presentation drawings of H.H. Richardson (6 items), William W. Boyington (17 items), Elijah E. Myers (19 items), and John Ord (15 items) are predominately on paper, though a few are on linen. These materials are dated 1883.

Series II includes drawings from Richardson's firm, the majority of which are black ink on linen with color wash. These plans document Richardson's original design for the courthouse and jail, as it was built, between 1884 and 1888. The design method used in Richardson's office followed his experience working in Paris, in which Richardson would give small sketches to his draftsmen to be developed into final drawings. Richardson signed fifty-six of the drawings, and many are stamped "Office of H.H. Richardson, Pittsburgh, PA." The bulk of these drawings are dated 1883-1884.

Series III includes blueprints of additions and alterations made to the courthouse and jail after it was erected.

Arrangement

Series I. Allegheny County Courthouse and Jail Competition Presentation Drawings

Series II. Richardson's working plans for the Allegheny County Courthouse and Jail

Series III. Alterations and Additions to Allegheny County Courthouse and Jail

Access Restrictions

No restrictions, but please make an appointment to arrange access.

Acquisition Information

Deposited by County of Allegheny, Pa., in September 1979.

Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements

In 2005-2006, the University Library System's Preservation Department encapsulated these large drawings in mylar to help protect their fragile nature, and, except for eight oversized items, created housing for them in specially constructed folders.

Custodial History

In 1977, the Pittsburgh Chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) sponsored an exhibition in the Courthouse titled: "Henry Hobson Richardson: Allegheny County Courthouse and Jail." Drawings by all four original competing firms were found in various locations throughout the City-County Buildings and the Courthouse. AIA volunteers encouraged the County employees to gather all the drawings in one place. From this collection, twenty-three examples were chosen for exhibition and photocopied for display, and the originals were returned to storage.

Because the Courthouse storage facilities were not climate controlled, Ann Bayard Ketterer, an architect and member of AIA, worked with the county to find an archival facility to house the collection. The Archives of Industrial Society at the University of Pittsburgh was selected and the collection was deposited by the County of Allegheny, September 1979, by an agreement dated May 23, 1979.

Ms. Ketterer headed AIA's Richardson Restoration Committee, which provided funding for a large five-drawer plan file to house the drawings in Hillman Library at the University of Pittsburgh. She organized the materials and completed an inventory.

The drawings were moved with the rest of the Archives in 2002 to its present location in Point Breeze.

Previous Citation

Allegheny County Courthouse and Jail Architectural Records, 1883-1948, AIS.1980.20, Archives Service Center, University of Pittsburgh

Preferred Citation

Allegheny County Courthouse and Jail Architectural Records, 1883-1948, AIS.1980.20, Archives & Special Collections, University of Pittsburgh Library System

Processing Information

This collection was processed by Ann Bayard Ketterer in 1981. Further processing was performed by Julie Hanify in December 2006. Additional materials were processed by Zachary Brodt in 2010.

Copyright

On deposit from Allegheny County. Permission to reproduce images must be obtained from the County.

Related Material

Harvard University's Houghton Library holds an H.H. Richardson archival collection that includes a total of 267 drawings of the design for the courthouse, as well as 63 drawings showing the design for the jail portion of the Allegheny County Courthouse and Jail. All drawings have been microfilmed. For a complete catalog listing, visit http://lms01.harvard.edu/ and search the terms "richardson allegheny county courthouse."

Official Report of the Dedicatory Exercises Held at the New Court House at the City of Pittsburgh, County of Allegheny, on Monday, September 24, A.D. 1888. Pittsburgh: Wm. G. Johnston & Co., 1889.

https://digital.library.pitt.edu/islandora/object/pitt%3A31735038308866

Separated Material

Eight oversized items bearing County numbers 779 -- 781; 788 -- 789; 7926; 7929 -- 7930 are stored separately in folder 22 (located on top of flatfile 4) and have not been encapsulated.

Subjects

    Corporate Names

    • Norcross Brothers, General Contractors

    Personal Names

    • Boyington, William W.
    • Myers, Elijah E.
    • Ord, John
    • Richardson, H. H. (Henry Hobson), 1838-1886

    Geographic Names

    • Pittsburgh (Pa.) -- Buildings, structures, etc.

    Genres

    • Architectural drawings (Visual works)
    • Drawings (Visual works)

    Other Subjects

    • Architecture
    • Courthouses -- Pennsylvania
    • City halls -- Pennsylvania
    • Jails -- Pennsylvania -- Allegheny County
    • Architecture -- Pennsylvania -- Allegheny County
    • Architecture -- Competitions
    • Prisons -- Pennsylvania -- Allegheny County
    • County government -- Pennsylvania
    • Architecture -- Pennsylvania
    • Prisons -- Pennsylvania
    • Public works -- Pennsylvania -- Allegheny County
    • Government

Container List