All I Got is a Photograph

Chamber of Commerce BuildingI found this wonderful photograph of the Chamber of Commerce Building in the Newark Library’s photo archive. It works on a both large and small scale, from the full breadth of the building down to fine details at street level.

After visiting the building recently I was hoping to find a good period photo, and this one is better than I had hoped for; I’ve become accustomed to very sparse photos of Betelle’s schools, which were generally shot lacking any signs of life. This one, however, captures a vibrant and familiar urban landscape (the stores have since gained a certain tackiness, but it’s still as bustling).

I would like to have imagined that James Betelle is up in one of those windows, looking over the plans for some school or conducting any number of his civic-related duties. There was just one problem; I didn’t know when the picture was taken, it’s not dated. How would I figure this out? For this, we get into the tangential minutia of detective work that has been more and more the bane of my research (commonly known as yak shaving).

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The Franklin Murphy House, Newark NJ

Franklin Murhpy House

The only private residence Guilbert & Betelle designed (that I know of) was the Franklin Murphy House in Newark, New Jersey. Franklin Murphy had quite a life; born in 1846, he fought in the Civil War as a teenager, seeing action at Gettysburg. He went on to found the Murphy Varnish Company in Newark, and later became the 31st Governor of New Jersey, serving from 1901-1904. In retirement he was very active in Newark politics and civic movements, including a stint as Essex County Parks Commissioner. He died in 1920 at 74.
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Discoveries at The Grolier Club

dutch.jpgJames Betelle wrote articles for countless magazines and journals, but as far as I know, only one book; a forward to a 1933 publication by The Carteret Book Club entitled Colonial Dutch Houses in New Jersey. I suspected the book was rare, as it could only be found in by-appointment collections; no open stacks or reference desks. One such collection is at The Grolier Club, conveniently located a few blocks from my apartment. I recently made an appointment to see the book.

The Grolier Club is a beautiful old federal-style building squeezed almost anonymously among the noise, scaffolds and post-war apartments off Park Avenue. Upon entering, a gentleman at the front desk directed me to an elevator and the main reading room on the third floor.
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“Modern American Schoolhouses – Some Recent Examples of Specialized Buildings”

The following excerpts are from Modern American Schoolhouses – Some Recent Examples of Specialized Buildings Guilbert & Betelle, Architects by Rawson W. Haddon in The Architectural Record, September 1914. This lengthy article is a survey of the firm’s work of that period, before the death of Guilbert. The author ruminates on the not-strictly Gothic eclecticism of these buildings, as I explored in my recent drive through Newark.

Many things have combined to make the school house one of the most complicated of modern architectural problems. Not only are the usual appointments changed extensively from year to year, but the growing tendency to devote the school to the broader educational uses and to various sorts of social betterment and neighborhood work has also brought special problems: and each new use, whether educational or sociological, puts before the architect intricate questions of design to solve.
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Betelle Retires

In a hand-written letter to the American Institute of Architects, Betelle announced his (very deserved, in my opinion) retirement. It’s not specified what the bill he requests is for (probably his dues), nor, unfortunately, did my photocopy show his new office address. The letter was dated received by the AIA December 21st, 1939. Courtesy of the American Institute of Architects Archives.

Dear Mr. Kemper:-

Holiday Greeting to you! You have probably heard that I have closed up Shop – in other words, Retired after 30 years successful practice. I decided I owed myself some years of leisure and as I could afford to take it, here I am “out of a job” & no place to go–but so far I rather like it.

Please send me my bill to my temporary office address given below–will give permanent address soon as I am definitely settled.

Best wishes to you + the Inst.

Sincerely yours
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