salt lake 18th ward chapel

(Photo by post author 29 May 2009)

Salt Lake 18th Ward Chapel, now White Memorial Chapel
Original address: 107 North 'A' Street, now 128 East 300 North

12 Jun 1880 - Ground broken for building
2 Aug 1881 - Death of architect Obed Taylor
27 Jul 1882 - First religious services
5 Jan 1902 - First services after remodel addition
1973 - Building dismantled
1979 - Building reconstructed on Capitol Hill

The Eighteenth Ward used Brigham Young's schoolhouse to meet in until the chapel was built (Richard W Jackson, Places of Worship, page 97) Once built, this chapel was initially inside of the walled property of Brigham Young's estate as shown in this image. Some remnants of the wall can still be seen in a parking lot on 1st Avenue, east of State Street, adjacent to and part of the Brigham Young Historic Park. This drawing shows a perspective of both the Church and wall.

The Eighteenth Ward in Salt Lake City represents one of the large meetinghouses of this period.
This is a large Gothic Revival-style meetinghouse that was designed by architect Obed Taylor. Construction was started in 1880 and completed in 1882. Due to crowded and inadequate conditions, even with additions to the chapel made in 1901, the building was scheduled for demolition in the early 1970s. It was carefully disassembled and moved, without the 1901 addition, stone by stone, and reconstructed on a new site opposite the state capitol building in Salt Lake City, Utah, where it functions as a nondenominational chapel for public use. I have selected this building not only because it is a fine example but because it is still standing, albeit on a different site. Many like it were built along the Mormon Corridor and on into Idaho. Of the few that are still standing, some have had their high towers removed and frequently have been so remodeled and covered with additions as to be hardly recognizable. (Richard W Jackson, Places of Worship, page 106-107)

The Salt Lake Eighteenth Ward Meetinghouse (1881) is an early Gothic Revival, central-tower design. The structure, which originally stood at Second Avenue and A Street, was relocated in 1973 to a site just south of the state capitol. Obed Taylor, the architect, used attenuated proportions, wall buttresses, pointed arches, and engaged tower to create a Gothic design. The use of crenelations on the front gable, but not on the rear, suggests a certain naiveté for the time in which it was built. (C. Mark Hamilton, Nineteenth-century Mormon architecture and city planning, page 87) Note that the crenelation appears to have been removed during the 1902 renovation/addition.

The Meetinghouse, 1870-1890
Gothic elements began to appear in meetinghouse designs during this period. The traditional meetinghouse began to assume a more specialized role, taking on the appearance of conventional or contemporary Protestant chapels in Gothic style. The axial plan was extended, the pitch of the roof increased, pointed arch, tracery windows, wall buttresses, and towers were added. These new meetinghouses were more stylistically sophisticated than their earlier vernacular equivalents.

The appearance of the new stylistic elements is attributable to a number of things. The infusion of well-trained builder-architects did much to change the picture of Mormon architecture. Obed Taylor, for example, was instrumental in introducing Gothic Revival / Victorian Gothic forms to Utah; his design for the Assembly Hall on Temple Square was a pivotal monument. (C. Mark Hamilton, Nineteenth-century Mormon architecture and city planning, page 85)


(Elevation by Richard W Jackson, Places of Worship, page 106)

Death of Obed Taylor, Esq., Architect
We regret to announce to our readers the death of Brother Obed Taylor, the talented architect of this city. He died at his residence in this city at one o'clock p.m., to-day. He was undoubtedly one of the most able men in his line of business that ever drew plans for a building in this city. He was a native of Canada, but joined the Church in San Francisco, where he was baptized by the late Apostle Parley P. Pratt in early days. He was a quiet, unassuming man, kind and generous in soul, and active in the accomplishment of good. Few were acquainted with him, owing to his natural reticence, but by those who were, he was as much beloved for the nobility of his character, as he was admired for his eminent ability. Among the monuments of his architectural genius, is the beautiful design of the Salt Lake Assembly Hall. Of his private deeds of benevolence and charity, the world will never know the half. His death is a great loss to the community which, in common with his host of friends, we unite in deeply deploring. The funeral will be held at the late residence of the deceased, 18th Ward, to-morrow (Sunday) at 4 p.m. Friends of the family are invited to attend. (Deseret News 2 Aug 1881)

The Late Mr. Obed Taylor - Funeral Services
As an architect he long since demonstrated his superior ability, end in this respect, in his death, the community at large suffer a severe loss. The Salt Lake Assembly Hall is a sample of his skill in that line, and although Obed has been summoned from our midst, that structure alone will always keep his name in the fond remembrance of this people. He has designed and completed many beautiful buildings in this city, and some are now in course of erection, the drawings of which have only recently left his office. Amongst these may be mentioned the New Deseret University and the New Opera House, both of which buildings, now in course of erection, will still further testify to the ability of the deceased, and as public buildings will be ornaments to the city, which, as he said in the outstart, he had come to help build up. (Deseret News 2 Aug 1881)

The Eighteenth Ward Chapel
A Handsome and Creditable Structure Nearly Completed
With the exception of a few trifling details, the interior of the Eighteenth Ward Latter-day Saints’ Chapel is finished, and the first religious services will be held in it to-morrow evening, beginning at half-past six. President Joseph F. Smith will preach the discourse on the occasion.

The body of the building is brick, and the foundation granite, and is semi-gothic in style, after a design by the late Obed Taylor. It has sixteen abutments and the height of the tower, from the ground to the summit of the spire is 76 feet. The site is “beautiful for situation,” rendering it an attractive point for the eye to rest upon from any part of the city.

The body of the interior is 50 x 80 feet, and 18 feet 6 inches high to the square, with the ceiling rising till it reaches the middle, where it is 23 feet 6 inches from the floor. The ceiling is thrown into squares by beams, which are neatly grained in imitation oak, while the interiors of the squares are elegantly paneled in delicate, subdued water-color tints, the walls being plain, and of a tint which has an appropriate blending with those of the ceiling.

In the east end of the building the gallery is situated, in the rear part of which is a recess formed by the interior of the tower, at the opening of which is an elliptic arch, nicely grained in imitation of sienna marble, as are also the two pillars supporting the gallery.

The stand is large, occupying the whole width of the hall, and is ornamented with a handsome breastwork, with banister extensions on each side. The top is tastefully upholstered with deep crimson plush, and the floor of the platform appropriately carpeted; Besides seats of the usual style, half a dozen large chairs occupy the space. The north end of the stand is arranged for occupation by the organ and choir, of which Brother H.G. Whitney is the capable conductor.

The chapel is lighted by twelve large windows. The whole of the woodwork, including the wainscoting, which protects the lower part of the walls, is grained in imitation of oak, of a deep rich tint. The seats, which are set off with ornamental arms at the ends, are in plain paint for the present, but it is the intention to have them grained at some future time, and the aisle running up the center of the hall, is covered with matting.

Besides the main body of the interior there is a vestibule, 8 x 7 ft. being the interior square of the tower.

There are a number of conveniences about the building that would take too much space to name. The surroundings are not completed, such as fencing and other details.

The brickwork was done by W. Tuddenham, the foundation by John Worthen, the woodwork by Acting Bishop R. Patrick; the plastering, by James Coult; the painting, by W.C. Morris, and the calcimining, by R. Simpson. All of the work has been well and faithfully done, and the construction as a whole has been under the direct superintendency of Brother Patrick from its beginning, to whose untiring exertions its existence is more due than to anybody else’s.

The Saints of the Ward have contributed liberally, toward the erection of the building, and now they have a house not surpassed in beauty or solidity by any in Utah of similar size. Besides the general contributions, the Sisters of the Relief Society were at the expense of the upholstery adornment of the stand.

When completed, the entire structure will cost in the neighborhood of $6,500.
Ground was broken for the building on the 12th of June, 1880. The building committee appointed were: Robert Patrick, W.B. Barton, Thos. Latimer (deceased), Feramorz Young (deceased), E.R. Snow Smith, Thomas W. Jennings, N. Twiss Young. (Deseret News 26 Jul 1882)

Handsome New Chapel (1902 renovation)
Eighteenth Ward Hold New Year’s Meetings in Enlarged Building
The improvements to the Eighteenth ward chapel, which have been going forward for the past seven months, have now been completed, and meetings will be resumed in the chapel tomorrow; the first session will be the regular fast meeting at 2 o’clock, and in the evening the conjoint session of the two Improvement associations will occur.

The enlarged chapel, which is now one of the largest ward meeting houses in the city, has been improved at a cost between $8,000 and $9,000, and its seating capacity has been increased to 650. The building is now in the form of a cross, an ante-room, and the lavatories being built on the north side. It contains 70 electric lights, and is heated by steam. The entire work of remodeling the building and raising the funds was placed in the hands of a special committee of twelve with the ward bishopric at its head. The active work of construction and the supervision has been in the hands of the chairman of the building committee, Robert Patrick, Sr., his assistants being John T. Caine and John Nicholson. The architect employed was David C. Dart.

The building was lighted up on Friday evening and all who beheld it were profuse in their expressions of praise over its handsome appearance. (Deseret News 4 Jan 1902)

Demolition and Removal Schedule:
The site shall be completely cleared of all buildings, walls, fences, trees, pavements etc. all as noted on the drawings and as specified. However the owner intends to continue use of the Existing chapel, Whitney hall and existing house #6, therefore the construction of this project shall be in two phases as follows: construct the new ward and stake building and at the completion of this part of the project the existing Chapel, Whitney hall and house #6 and adjoining other items shall be demolished and the parking area etc. shall be constructed. (Site Plan Sheet A-1 ‘As-Built’ Drawing dated 17 Sep 1973 William F Thomas, Architect)


(Existing site drawing by post author. Information obtained from Site Plan Sheet A-1 'As-Built' Drawing dated 17 Sep 1973 William F Thomas, Architect, PFD As-Built Catalog)

The Site plan above shows locations of six existing homes, two existing garages, the 18th Ward Chapel and Whitney Hall. Also shown are walls, fences, sidewalks, and trees. The original rectangular chapel size is indicated with hatching. Later expansion and connection to the Whitney Hall account for the larger size. Below is a current image of the site. All of these structures were demolished to make room for new meetinghouse. Fortunately the original Chapel was preserved and moved to a new location.


(Aerial image of site from Google Maps 2009)

Eighteenth and North Eighteenth Ward Building (1972)
Built in 1972, this stake-sized building is also similar to a Freeman (FR 68-010) standard plan in room arrangement except it is larger. It is also provided with a lower level at the rear of the building due to the slope of the land. Parking is on the south side of the building and also across the street. William F. Thomas was the architect. Its location is on the north half of the block where the pioneer-built Eighteenth Ward building and the adjacent Whitney Hall were built. This old meetinghouse is the one that was demolished carefully and rebuilt as nearly as possible in its original form across from the Utah state capitol building. (Richard W Jackson, Places of Worship, page 350-351)

Work to begin soon on chapel restoration (1979)
Photo – Old 18th Ward building served early leaders.
Caption – Beautiful and stately 18th Ward chapel will rise again at location across the street from Utah State Capitol.
Reconstruction of one of Salt Lake City’s earliest ward buildings – the historic 18th Ward chapel – will begin in a few weeks, according to Steven T. Baird, architect. “We’re wrestling with a few problems such as bids being higher than we expected,” he said. “Then we’ll get started.”

The building, which would be 98 years old this year, once served the families of early Church leaders including President Brigham Young, Heber C. Kimball, his counselor, and Presiding Bishop Newel K. Whitney. All three men had died, however, before the chapel was constructed – President Young, only four years earlier.

Brother Baird said the chapel’s new location will be on state-owned property at East Capitol Street and Third North. The original site was at Second Avenue and A Street. The structure was dismantled six years ago to make room for the new Salt Lake Ensign Stake Center and combined 18th and North 18th Ward chapel. A singles ward also meets in the building.

The architect said the reconstructed chapel will appear smaller than some people think it should be since they will remember it with attached cultural hall and classrooms. Its original size was only 34 by 64 feet and included a balcony. The rostrum was in the opposite end.

Ovid Taylor, pioneer architect, designed the original chapel, but it is not known who supervised its construction. The same architect also designed the old Coalville Tabernacle and the Assembly Hall on Temple Square.

Brother Baird directed dismantling operations in 1963. [actually 1973] He and his crew code-numbered each handmade brick and every other part for easy reconstruction later. He does not anticipate any problems restoring the structure to its original state and expects it will take about seven months to do the job.

“The building will have one feature not found in the original – a lower level. The new space will be divided between a multi-purpose room where meetings can be held – and a library on important Utah pioneers. Restrooms will also be located on this floor, the architect said.


(You can see the entry to the new lower level beneath the back door as described above. Photo by post author 29 May 2009)

The tower and pews from the old building were saved along with other items and they will be put into their proper places as the reconstructed building goes up. Not available is the original organ. However, another one from the same time period has been acquired.

The 1975 Utah Legislature authorized placement of the chapel at the new site. When the project is completed, the building will be donated to the state for non-sectarian uses.

Brother Baird, who specializes in restoration work, said cost of the project will be about $300,000 of which $240,000 has already been donated by M. Kenneth White and his wife, Ada Marie. They are members of the Grandview 1st Ward, Salt Lake Wilford Stake.

“The Whites have no connection with the old 18th Ward, they just felt this was a good project,” the architect said. The Community Memorial Chapel Foundation is raising the remainder.

The architect said his firm has handled a number of other restoration projects including the Promised Valley Playhouse, the Capitol Theater and the ZCMI façade, all in Salt Lake City. The firm has also restored homes in Nauvoo, Ill.

He said he has a special feeling for the pioneer buildings still in existence around Utah. “I know it’s impossible to save everything, but we must save some of them to preserve our heritage.” (Deseret News 12 May 1979)

Utah State Historical Society Images
Image of Chapel - picture taken after the addition. Note that there are no crenelations at the front roof gable. These must have been removed during the 1902 renovation. They were later added after reconstruction on Capitol Hill.
Image of Chapel adjacent to Whitney Hall
Interior of chapel showing balcony and stairwell
Image of stairwell leading to the balcony


Street view of current site

View Larger Map

newhouse’s new business district

Samuel Newhouse (1853-1930) was born on 14 October 1853 in New York City. In 1896 he moved to Utah and became one of the wealthiest of Utah's mining magnates. At his peak, he occupied four residences: a home at 175 East South Temple in Salt Lake City which he renovated as a colonial style mansion in about 1905; an estate on Long Island; a chateau outside Paris, France; and a mansion in London, England.


(Samuel Newhouse - 17 Apr 1909 - Salt Lake Herald)

“Newhouse liked living in Salt Lake City, although his wife preferred living outside of Utah. In 1907 he launched a significant building program design, in Salt Lake City. Its purpose was to shift the city's center from the Temple Square area to Exchange Place between 300 and 400 South streets and between Main and State streets, about four blocks south. In 1907 construction began on the Boston and the Newhouse buildings, the city's first skyscrapers. Just east of the two buildings, Newhouse donated land for construction of the Salt Lake Stock Exchange and Commercial Club buildings. Exchange Place was to be a little ‘Wall Street’ with a grand hotel, the Newhouse Hotel, and would be constructed between 1909 and 1915 across Main Street on the southwest corner of Main and 400 South. Newhouse was also involved in the development of the exclusive residential area of Federal Heights in the northeast section of Salt Lake City.” (Biography at University of Utah Marriott Library Special Collections)

“Newhouse turned his attention toward the development of urban real estate, and erected the Newhouse Hotel, Boston Buildings, and some 30 other important business structures in Salt Lake City. He also conceived and built the famous Flatiron Building in New York City.” (Leonard J Arrington and Gary B Hansen, The Richest Hole on Earth; A History of the Bingham Copper Mine, p. 28) The Flatiron building was built on a triangle-shaped site and has become an icon in NYC. It was the world’s first steel frame skyscraper, and the Boston and Newhouse buildings built in 1909 would be Salt Lake’s first skyscrapers.

“Silver paid for the buildings that comprise the Exchange Place Historic District at the south end of Main Street near Fourth South, all of which were built around 1910 by non-Mormon mining men, in particular Samuel Newhouse, in an effort to construct a gentile commercial district at the south end of the central business district to counterbalance the concentration of Mormon establishments at the north end of the city.” (Silver in the Beehive State by John S. McCormick, Beehive History 16)

To develop and design this new business district, Newhouse hired famous Chicago/New York architect Henry Ives Cobb.


(Henry Ives Cobb - 11 Dec 1906 – Salt Lake Herald)

“Mr. Cobb was supervising architect of the recently completed federal building in Chicago. The Chicago Athletic association building, the fisheries at the World’s fair, the Chicago opera house, Newberry library, the St. Charles Roman Catholic buildings, the Cook county (Ill.) Abstract building and the Ownings building, all of Chicago, are among his designs in the central west. In New York Mr. Cobb has recently completed the famous All-day and All-night bank opposite Sherry’s and Delmonico’s, and a magnificent office building above Forty-second street.

Mr. Cobb was born in Brookline, Mass. He is a graduate of the literary and scientific courses at Harvard, and received his preliminary education in architecture at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and in Europe. Later he studied in the office of an eminent Boston architect. In 1881 he designed the Union club house in Chicago, and moved from Boston to that city. He served as one of the national board of architects of the World’s Columbian exposition, and later was made supervising architect of the University of Chicago. For the past few years Mr. Cobb has resided in New York.” (11 Dec 1906 – Salt Lake Herald)

Interestingly, Cobb already had a unique family past linking him to Salt Lake City. Henry Ives Cobb's grandmother, Augusta Adams Cobb, controversially abandoned her husband, Henry Cobb, and seven of her nine children in 1843, and married Brigham Young as a plural wife. (Wikipedia entry 27 May 2009) Augusta Adams was baptized into the LDS church near Boston by Samuel H. Smith on June 29, 1832. She left in Sep 1843 for Nauvoo with Brigham Young and two of her children, leaving her husband and other children. On this trip, her youngest son, Brigham, died while her seven year old daughter, Charlotte Ives Cobb survived the trip. Three weeks later Augusta was married to Brigham Young in Nauvoo. In 1847 the divorce proceedings took place which made headlines as a polygamous/polyandrous divorce trial. Her previous husband, Henry Cobb, won custody of the children.


(Augusta Adams Cobb Young)

Another son of Augusta, James T Cobb, came to Salt Lake out of concern for his mother and sister. He ended up joining the LDS Church and remaining in Utah. Even after his eventual disaffection with the LDS Church he remained in Salt Lake City. The daughter, Charlotte, was married to John A Kirby, one of the wealthiest men of Salt Lake when she died on 24 Jan 1908. She was author of the first petition for woman's suffrage in Utah and took a leading part in winning for the women of Utah the right to vote.

So Henry Ives Cobb had his uncle James, his aunt Charlotte, and at least three of his first cousins living here in Salt Lake when he came to meet with his client, Samuel Newhouse, beginning in 1906. Additionally, his grandmother was buried here with Brigham Young. However, Henry's father, Albert, who was 13 years old when his mother left him for Nauvoo, apparently never forgave her for what she did. This would likely have influenced the feelings of his son, who would later design a significant portion of Salt Lake City. I have not been able to find if Henry and these family members were on speaking terms or had any interactions with each other during his many visits to Salt Lake, although it appears unlikely.


Architect Is Here
Henry Ives Cobb, Mr. Newhouse’s New York architect, arrived from the east last night. He was met at the depot by Mr. Newhouse and escorted to the Knutsford hotel, where he will remain during his stay in this city. Mr. Cobb is acquainting himself with the local situation today, but is doing no talking until he gets his bearings. (10 Dec 1906 - Deseret News)


Samuel Newhouse and Architect Cobb Hard at Work on Preliminary Plans.
‘It is almost too early to tell just what we are going to do,’ [Newhouse] declared. ‘We have gone over things pretty thoroughly today, getting dimensions of the property selected as sites for the proposed buildings.’

Asked if more than five new buildings would be constructed in the immediate future, Mr. Newhouse said: ‘I don’t know. We have to look pretty well into the future, and that may mean several more buildings that I at first anticipated. Mr. Cobb will remain here for some time.’

The architect himself had little to say. ‘We are just getting started,’ was his only comment on yesterday’s work. He is a quiet, unassuming man, his clean cut features and quick movements giving one the impression of ability for a tremendous amount of work in a short time. Mr. Newhouse and the architect lunched together at the former’s residence yesterday noon. Mr. Cobb is stopping at the Knutsford. (11 Dec 1906 – Salt Lake Herald)

Salt Lake is awaiting with interest the announcement of Henry Ives Cobb’s plans for the five or more office and club buildings to be erected on the half block adjacent corners at Main and Fourth South streets purchased by Samuel Newhouse. That they will be among the finest structures of their kind in the west is certain from the work Mr. Cobb has done in New York and other large American cities. He is one of the most prominent architectural engineers in this country, and it is expected his present trip to Salt Lake at Mr. Newhouse’s request will be productive of several splendid structures. (11 Dec 1906 – Salt Lake Herald)


Hotel Decided Upon.
Architect Henry Ives Cobb left last night for New York. On taking the train, Mr. Cobb said the only thing settled definitely is the 10-story hotel for the old Walker corner; and he has a mass of data from which to plan the two proposed streets through the south half of the block bounded by Main and State, Third and Fourth South streets, also the proposed office buildings, and very likely a Commercial club building. (14 Dec 1906 - Deseret News)


Plans For Eleven Big Sky Scrapers
Architect Henry Ives Cobb Brings Blueprints From New York City.
Fine Hotel For Lower Main.
Mr. Newhouse Spends Two Days Going Over the Propositions With the Eastern Expert.

After consultation all day yesterday and this morning, with Mr. Newhouse, Architect Henry Ives Cobb of New York will return east this evening, to send out an engineer to supervise the preliminary work of construction of the Newhouse and Boston blocks. The latter will be erected at the northeast corner of Main street and Exchange place, with the other building at the southeast corner, each building eleven stories high. The Newhouse will contain a bank and office rooms, and the other will be arranged for mercantile establishments and office suites.

Mr. Cobb brought with him general plans for the following proposed structures:

-Eleven-story hotel on former Walker corner, 181x165 feet.
-Eleven-story bank and office building on southeast corner of Main street and Exchange place, 80x150 feet.
-Eleven-story office building on northeast corner of Main street and Exchange place, 80x150 feet.
-Mining exchange building, probably eight stories high, 80x80 feet, on Exchange place, facing entrance to Cactus street.
-Six-story store and office building, 140x80, on Exchange place between Boston block and Mining Exchange building.
-Store and office building, eleven stories high, 80x150, northwest corner Exchange place and State street.
-Six-story store and office building, 140x80, on Exchange place between Mining Exchange building and structure at corner of State street and Exchange place.
-Eleven-story store and office building on southwest corner of Exchange place and State street – 100x100 feet.
-Six-story store and office building, 200x200 feet, at southeast corner of Exchange place and Cactus street.
-Six-story store and office building, 150x200 feet, at southwest corner of Exchange place and Cactus street.
-Power house and plant in the court of the latter structure, which will furnish light, heat and power for all ten buildings and any others Mr. Newhouse may put up later.

Cactus street is the north and south street to run through the center of the block from Fourth South street to Exchange place.

Mr. Cobb thinks the Hotel scheme will be started in three months.

It is proposed to have the lobby two stories high, furnished in bronze and marble, with restaurant, café, palm room, billiard, reading and writing rooms on the ground floor opening into the lobby. The second floor is to contain a balcony. Above is to be 50 bedrooms and 38 bathrooms on each floor, or 500 bedrooms and 380 bathrooms in all. The hotel will be ready in two years. (21 Feb 1907 - Deseret News)


New Business District now Developing
With the announcement that within a few weeks work on the handsome new Commercial club building will be begun in the Newhouse district, comes the assurance that the decision of the members of the Commercial club in deciding on this site for their building makes the future of this section of the city as a business district certain. This does not mean that upper Main street will suffer materially because of the establishing of a new business district. The probabilities are that the growth of the town will be sufficient to warrant an enlarged district.

Situated as it is, the property recently acquired and improved by Samuel Newhouse offers a strategic business value. It is located in a block that is midway between the federal and the city and county buildings, in a location that offers a regular avenue of trade and a natural business importance.

In all, there are fifteen buildings which Mr. Newhouse plans to erect on his property in the new business district as rapidly as the growth of the city warrants.
Cactus street and Exchange Place, the streets of the new district, will be sixty-six feet wide, paved and lighted. This done, Mr. Newhouse will present them to the city. Exchange Place runs through the block from Main to State streets, and is flanked on either side by valuable Newhouse property. Cactus street runs from Fourth South street to Exchange Place.

It is the intention of Mr. Newhouse to put in a street similar to Exchange Place and Cactus street, directly south of the hotel. This street will be known as Walker street. Property owners to the west plan to cut through a street directly west of the hotel. This will make the new hotel in a block by itself. (12 Apr 1908 – Salt Lake Herald)


New Business District

(12 Apr 1908 - Salt Lake Herald)



(Aerial image of Business District - Google Maps 2009)

The Hotel was built, but later demolished. Now the entire hotel block is surface parking. The two eleven-story office buildings were built and are still standing. They are the Boston and Newhouse buildings. The Mining Exchange building was built and is still standing. The power house and plant was built and is still standing. The Commercial Club was built and is still standing, although Cobb lost out to a local firm on the design that was built. The Exchange buildings were never built. As best as I can tell, none of the stores, extension building, or theater were ever built.

Many of these buildings will receive future posts.

“Over-extension ultimately proved to be Newhouse's financial downfall. Money from his mines failed to finance his elaborate projects, and there was addition strain caused by World War I (WWI). It became very difficult to obtain loans from eastern U.S. and European sources. Samuel and Ida separated in 1914. The South Temple mansion was sold. From 1915-1919, Samuel resided at the Newhouse Hotel. He then sold his interest in the hotel and left for France, where he lived with his sister her chateau, outside Paris, which he had given to her. He died there, at the age of seventy-six, on 22 September 1930.” (Biography at University of Utah Marriott Library Special Collections)

dooly building

(Dooly building on the right shown in context with Hotel Ontario to the left. The Inland Architect and News Record, Nov 1891, Vol XVIII, No. 4)

The Dooly building (often called Dooly block) is one of the most significant architectural buildings built in Salt Lake. The building was designed by the Chicago firm of Adler & Sullivan, of which Louis Sullivan, of skyscraper fame, was the designer. This building design played a role in the development of the skyscraper. “And in the extruded arches of the 1890 Dooly Block, Sullivan recessed the spandrels, taking the piers almost straight from top to bottom. From here to the skyscraper was not a giant step.” (Louis Sullivan: His Life and Work, page 292) Designed in beautiful context with the Ontario Hotel, the two were to rise together. Fortunately, when the Ontario Hotel never materialized past the foundations, the Dooly building was actually completed in 1892. Located on 200 South and West Temple, the building met an early and unfortunate demolition in 1965.

Richard Nickel, a photographer from Chicago fought valiantly to save the Dooly building, but ultimately failed. He was, however, successful in documenting both this building and the Ontario hotel foundations in photographs which are in possession of 'The Richard Nickel Committee and Archive'. (They all Fall Down, page 85) As of today, I have been unable to obtain access to any of these images.

“Nickel fought any way he could. To Salt Lake City mayor J. Bracken Lee, Nickel protested plans to tear down Sullivan’s Dooly Block. ‘How many buildings of equal architectural merit do you have in Salt Lake City? Instead of being proud of this building, you ignore it. Instead of offering tax relief to the owner, or cleaning the neighborhood up, the city government is silent.’” (They All Fall Down, page 134)

But we're getting ahead of ourselves. First we need to look at the building from construction through to completion and then to demolition. The book 'Louis Sullivan: His Life and Work' compares the Dooly building design to that of the landmark Wainwright Building of St. Louis. “Wainwright an almost exact contemporary of the Dooly Block in Salt Lake City, in many ways a similar edifice, which Adler & Sullivan completed in December.” (page 286)

Presented below is a newspaper timeline of the Dooly building from the Salt Lake Tribune. From it we learn that Utah architect, Richard Kletting who designed the State Capitol, drew the construction documents for the building after it was designed by Adler & Sullivan. We also learn that the building will be home to a bank, post office, Alta club w/restaurant and fireplace, two elevators, and many offices. If only the images of the building weren't black and white, we would be able to see the beautiful red sandstone used, similar to that of the Wainwright building.


(Special Collections Department, J. Willard Marriott Library, University of Utah)

NEWSPAPER TIMELINE

The Dooly Building
Mr. Dooly expects to break ground for the new post office in a day or two. He is waiting for the completion of the plans of the street grade. (Salt Lake Tribune 13 Aug 1890)

R. Kletting has just completed the drawings and working plans for the Dooly building on Second South and West Temple streets to the order of Adler & Sullivan, the Chicago architects, who deputed him to do this work. The post office and the bank will be on the first floor, while the other five floors will be given over for business offices, about 180 in all. The contract will be given out in a short time. (Salt Lake Tribune 14 Sep 1890)

The Dooly Excavation
Excavating for the Dooly building will be finished within a few days. Work on the foundation has already begun. (Salt Lake Tribune 01 Oct 1890)

Photographs of the Dooly building have been made. They show that it will be a decided ornament to the town. (Salt Lake Tribune 07 Oct 1890)

The bids for the construction of the Dooly Block were opened yesterday. The Probst Construction Company are said to be the successful bidders. (Salt Lake Tribune 16 Apr 1891)

The contract was signed yesterday for the completion of the Dooly building with the Probst Construction Company to be completed in ten months. The building is to be of Diamond Creek stone, six stories high, two elevators and with all modern improvements. (Salt Lake Tribune 21 Apr 1891)

Work is progressing rapidly on the Dooly building. The stone columns for the first story are up and the second-joists will be down in a few days. The big steam derricks are constantly at work, the men are busy and the building will be pushed until []. (Salt Lake Tribune 17 Jun 1891)


(Construction of Dooly Building with Architects and Engineers. Used by permission, Utah State Historical Society, All Rights Reserved. Image #725.2/29963)

The Dooly Block
It is understood that the Papst Construction Company of Chicago have secured the job of finishing up the four lower stories of the Dooly building. The two upper stories will be contracted for later on. The building is the most pretentious in the Territory, and will cost $250,000 when ready for occupancy. (Salt Lake Tribune 23 Sep 1891)

The sixth story of the Dooly building is now going up, so that before snow flies everything will be under cover. (Salt Lake Tribune 30 Sep 1891)

The big boilers for the Dooly block have been lowered into the basement and they will soon have the furnaces finished around them and be ready for heating the building. Because of the cold weather, work of completing this building goes on much slower than the owners like it to do. (Salt Lake Tribune 24 Jan 1892)

The steam plant in the Dooly building was tested yesterday, so that steam can be turned on most any time this week. (Salt Lake Tribune 14 Feb 1892)

THE GREAT DOOLY BUILDING
It Is Approaching Completion and Is a Very Fine Structure
The great Dooly building is approaching completion, and citizens who have been over it speak highly of the interior arrangements. There are some 185 rooms in the building, with forty-five on the fourth floor and twenty-three on the upper floor where the Alta Club is to have its new home. A noticeable feature of the structure is that all of it is well lighted, including the ground floor apartments, and the rear rooms especially are commodious and well arranged. The Alta Club will have one of the finest dining-rooms in the West when the quarters are ready, one of the features being a great fire place, of the kind now so popular among the clubs of the country. The fittings of the building generally are of oiled oak, with high wainscotings and massive doors, though in part of the lower story marble will be used. The building is equipped with the latest improved elevators, and is steam heated. The plaster work is rough, and in tints of red and drab. When the building is completed it will be one of the finest structures in the entire West. (Salt Lake Tribune 06 May 1892)


(Special Collections Department, J. Willard Marriott Library, University of Utah)

The Dooly building contractor is now laying the iron rods and beams in front of the building so that the sidewalk may be laid at an early date. (Salt Lake Tribune 10 May 1892)

The vestibule of the Dooly building is about finished, and it is a grand affair with its handsome marble tiling floor, marble wainscotting, double sets of doors and the two elevators. (Salt Lake Tribune 03 Jun 1892)

There is much activity around the Dooly building where many lawyers and business people are moving into the building. (Salt Lake Tribune 05 Jun 1892)

It is stated that the elevators in the Dooly building will be in running order early next week. The painter is getting in his work at the new building now, and all the office doors are being handsomely lettered. (Salt Lake Tribune 17 Jun 1892)

The elevators in the Dooly building are making trial trips now. (Salt Lake Tribune 26 Jun 1892)

A number of persons with plenty of leisure time rode in the elevator at the Dooly building yesterday, but in a short time they will both be in first-class shape and will make quick trips. (Salt Lake Tribune 29 Jun 1892)


The building was included in the Historic American Buildings Survey which provides us valuable information. The two images below are the only I was able to find showing the back of the building. This gives us some clues as to the shape of the building plan. Two jogs are shown, giving essentially a 'W' shaped plan. This was most likely done to provide natural daylight to as much of the building interior spaces as possible.


(Demolition of Dooly Building, Jan-Feb 1965. Used by permission, Utah State Historical Society, All Rights Reserved. Dooly/Riser Photo Collection, Mss C 1532)


(Demolition of Dooly Building, Jan-Feb 1965. Used by permission, Utah State Historical Society, All Rights Reserved. Dooly/Riser Photo Collection, Mss C 1532)

Finally we have a 'funeral wake' article from the Salt Lake Tribune on its demolition, published on 30 Aug 1964:

Knell Tolls for Illustrious Dooly Building
By Robert H. Woody
Tribune Staff Writer

Hang down your head, Tom Dooly
Hang down your head and cry
Hang down your head, Tom Dooly
Cause your building’s gone bye and bye.

"A good building merits something more than the routine account when the death knell is sounded. Let’s just call this a wake for the Dooly Building at 109 W. 2nd South.

The designer was Louis Sullivan, famed Chicago architect. His credo – 'Form follows function' bent the direction of American architecture. His pioneering in use of steel for structural systems gave birth to the skyscraper. His apprentice, Frank Lloyd Wright, carried his own architectural torch in the world.

Mr. Sullivan came West in 1890 as the reputation of his firm was spreading nationwide. He had four western buildings on the boards: the Dooly Building – or Dooly Block as it was called; the Hotel Ontario which was to have been built just south of the Dooly Bldg., and then Opera House Blocks in Pueblo and Seattle.

The Hotel was never completed. It is said that Sullivan designed the lower part, which is now part of the Terminal Building. The top was someone else’s idea. Whatever, it also will be razed with the Dooly Building.

The building was named for John E. Dooly, one of the original owners and developers, a banker and livestock and real estate figure.

Its husky foundations were laid pyramid fashion. Red Butte sandstone cut from the hills behind Ft. Douglas was used for the façade. Inside a structural steel skeleton – a first for its time – supported the wooden floor joists. Sandwiched between the lower floors was cinder aggregate to serve both as fire protection and as sound barrier.

The Sullivan touch was throughout the building. Pier and lintel, and Roman arch and richly decorated cornice were uniquely his, whether in Chicago or Salt Lake City. Each column was hollow. This was for a flue for the potbellied stoves that kept tenants warm against January’s winds.

Distinguished tenants included the U.S. post office (on the bottom floor) and Alta Club (on the sixth floor).

The Architects who created the II Century Plan for downtown Salt Lake City put the building on their list as one worthy of preservation. Credit to the designer: It’s a sound building yet. But is it a great building? Will there be pickets bearing 'Save the Dooly Building' signs? It’s doubtful. It’s a good building, but not the most distinguished of Sullivan’s works. The identity with Sullivan is its most redeeming value.

Owner R. Verne McCullough spent $87,000 putting in a new elevator five years ago and $22,000 in a new heating system two years ago. But tenancy had dropped markedly since the heyday. Operations loss now ran between $15,000 and $25,000 yearly, said Mr. McCullough. The building had to go.

It’s just one of those sad facts of life."


(Demolition. Used by permission, Utah State Historical Society, All Rights Reserved. Image #725.2/5476)

If only Robert Woody, author of that last Tribune article, could see what is standing on the block in its place today...


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Present-day view of site: Shilo Inn Hotel instead of Dooly Building

canyon house

architect: Thomas Shafer (Grunsfeld Shafer Architects)
design: 1993-1996
construction: 1997-1999
general contractor: Lowell Construction
photography: Scot Zimmerman Photography
text source: GA Houses, Mar 1996, n. 48, p.108


Site plan from GA Houses, Mar 1996, n. 48, p.109

Site: The site is located at the mouth of the Little Cottonwood Canyon at the beginning of a scenic, canyon road which ascends to the Alta and Snowbird ski resorts. At the base of the Wasatch Mountain range, the site offers spectacular panoramic views up and down the canyon.


Floor plans from GA Houses, Mar 1996, n. 48, p.108

Program: A 6400-square-foot three-story single-family residence which must eventually accommodate "single," "married" and "family" stages of life while continually providing an intriguing living experience between the interior and exterior.


Model from GA Houses, Mar 1996, n. 48, p.109

Design solution: The design has been consciously stratified, both sectionally and geologically in order to heighten one's understanding of "place," either within the carved sub-terranean environment of thick walls and slot windows, or on the exposed "shelf" of the living room. The upper floor turns it back on the panoramic world, both concealing and securing its inhabitant in the privacy of the office and master bedroom suite.


Picture of foyer by Scot Zimmerman Photography

The "Pavilion" positions itself to embrace the panoramic views north to the Great Salt Lake, Antelope Island and Salt Lake City. Easterly views up Little Cottonwood Canyon reveal vibrant and rugged mountain vistas. The "shelf" provides an expansive and limitless base for the "Pavilion," spatially contained only by the form of its floating roof.


Elevation from GA Houses, Mar 1996, n. 48, p.109

The "Box," on the other hand, has been designed for semi-private spaces such as the kitchen and dining room on the first level and personal and professional privacy on the Upper level offering localized and framed views "up" the mountain. This upper level suite in direct response to the "individual" in both scale and detail, provides the secluded and tranquil area of the house. In contrast to the transparency of the "Pavilion," the more residential enclosure system of the "Box" is of cedar cladding with operable wood windows and doors.

The "Parterre" accommodates the programmatic requirement of an exterior living space for personal lounging and entertaining. A bi-level cedar deck provides for both winter and summer activities. Additional outdoor "rooms" have been developed within the interstitial spaces between the three components and the excavated "shelf." Formal entry requires ascension through a carved-out space between "Box" and "Pavilion."


Section sketch from Grunsfeld Shafer Architects website


Section from GA Houses, Mar 1996, n. 48, p.109

The profile and mass remains intentionally "horizontal" and low, contributing to a minimalist "bulk," burying nearly half of the living space below grade. This effort enables a particularly large volume to "appear" smaller and offers the user an opportunity to experience both the concealed and exposed environments within the house. Circulation through the house is noticeably effortless when moving "with" the mountain yet becomes consciously more difficult when one moves against the natural grade, either descending or ascending sectionally.


Picture by Scot Zimmerman Photography

ontario hotel

(Perspective of Ontario Hotel. From The Inland Architect and News Record, Nov 1891, Vol XVIII, No. 4)

"The new Hotel Ontario is the talk of the town. There are a few doubting Thomases, but the solidity of the names in the list of the incorporators make of the scheme an assured success. There is great wealth behind these incorporators, and a hotel is to go up corner of West Temple and Pierpont streets that will be an ornament, an honor and a convenience to the entire west. The promoters aver that there is to be no fooling over this thing; they are in for keeps, and that building is going up as soon as arrangements can be made to start." (Salt Lake Tribune 26 Dec 1889)


(Perspective of Ontario Hotel. From Salt Lake Tribune 01 Jan 1891)

The Hotel Ontario
A View of the Finest Hostelry in the Mountains

It Will Be Six Stories High and Will Have Every Modern Convenience and Comfort – A Strong Company Putting It Up

"Salt Lake City has been wisely termed the Mecca of the West. Her unlimited resources, but proximity to the great lake, added to the endless attractions and uplifting efforts of her people to please, she has attained a position in the galaxy of modern and flourishing cities that permits of no secondary comparisons.

The perspective view of the Hotel Ontario – the illustration of the most costly and magnificent structure of the kind ever designed for these intermountain regions – will clearly show to the intelligent [] the great work the West Side Hotel Company have before them.

The plans were drawn by those skilled architects of Auditorium fame, Adler and Sullivan of Chicago. Mr. H. Probst, the well known builder of Chicago and Kansas City, has been given the contract to mold and mature the foundation to completion.

The summer of 1890, marked by the influx of immigration and the subsequent marvelous growth of the city and environs, proved conclusively to the minds of our enterprising citizens that our present hotel facilities, large as they were, were inadequate to meet the demands of the traveling public. A stock company wasn’t once organized, and the beautiful plat adjoining the Dooly block on the corner of West Temple and Second South streets was purchased for a good round []. The work of excavating for the foundation commenced during the month of September, and at this writing is nearly completed. The estimated cost of which is about 350,000, a princely sum, sufficient to build a creditable and worthy block, without draining its own coffer.

The superstructure or building proper will furnish work and food for a small army of men for the next eighteen months to come. Here is an undertaking that demands far more than a passing glance to give it the credit which the promoters so richly merit.

The block, when completed, will cover 251 feet of ground on Pierpont avenue and 183 feet frontage on West Temple street. The foundation is solidly built of red sandstone – taken from the inexhaustible quarries that are being mined in the neighboring mountains. The superstructure will undoubtedly be built mainly of Kyune stone – a handsome and durable building stone taken from the great quarries at Kyune, []. Mountains of this stone can be found there, and the supply is said to be sufficient to meet the demands of the West for generations. These quarries are owned and operated by a syndicate of Salt Lake capitalists; another star in the horizon of Salt Lake enterprise. The sanitary conditions of the building will be as perfect as human ingenuity can make them, and the sanitary ordinances of the city will be strictly complied with. The hotel will have its own apparatus for laundry work, and a splendidly equipped plant with [] for making its own electric light. A complete system of fire escapes will be put in, and a double service passenger elevator, manned by the ever festive boy, whose sole delight is in spinning miraculous tales of escapage and elevator decorum, will be at your service. The dining room will be on the first floor at the southwest corner of the block. The ceiling will be twenty five feet in height, ornamented by costly stucco work. The main parlor, ordinaries, promenades and dining room will be finished with the finest of hard wood enameled Bathrooms and closets will form a convenient feature of a majority of the rooms. A system of electric alarm bells, with both call and return wires will be in vogue, with speaking tubes in all the main apartments. The specifications call for 200[] Incandescent and twenty six are lamps.

The better part of three-quarters of a million of dollars will be expended before the hotel will be ready for occupancy, and suffice it to say that it will be the most elegant, costly and finest equipped hotel plant between Chicago and the Pacific Coast." (Salt Lake Tribune 01 Jan 1891)


(Perspective of Ontario Hotel, first version, 1890. From 'Louis Sullivan: His Life and Work', page 253)

“Another project in May 1890 was the $300,000 Ontario Hotel for Salt Lake City, which, like the Cold Storage Exchange, consisted of two parallel blocks, here six stories high and seven bays long, under a broadly eaved hip roof. The major axes were connected by four-story arcades with two floors of open galleries (later reduced to one) over a triple-arched entry (one door, two windows) at the street, reminiscent of an Italian Renaissance palazzo. The galleries continued into the main masses as slightly bowed balconies in each of three open arches (later filled in), rising from the third to the fifth floor. The long façade around the corner featured two broad oriels turning into open porches under the eaves, and a rectangular reception canopy stretching across the sidewalk. With its red stone base flowing up the corners as quoins (removed in the second version), then crossing under the attic sill to frame the lightly tinted façade, and with handsome enfoliated trim on oriels, galleries, and attic, the Ontario Hotel was another example of Sullivan’s increasing mastery of surface organization. Whether hotel, warehouse, religious edifice, or office block, he had learned by 1890 to treat each situation individually, to find a mode of expression suitable to the nature of the particular case, to the solution of the particular problem. The horizontal, elongated, and harmoniously integrated Ontario Hotel was, like several of his recent buildings, almost pure in form, with simple shapes elegantly handled. Sullivan could now state the essence of the project in richly embellished but fundamentally reductionist terms.” (page 252-254, 'Louis Sullivan: His Life and Work,' by Robert Twombly, Viking, New York, 1986)


Frank Lloyd Wright apprenticed under Louis Sullivan during the design of the Ontario Hotel. Although I have found no plan or elevation drawings, they were apparently drawn by Wright, under the direction of Sullivan. In his autobiography, Wright stated, “The Auditorium finished, soon other work came on – Pueblo Opera House (since down), Salt Lake City Hotel, foundations laid, but never built – one of the office tragedies. I worked hard on the plans with the firm.” (page 125, 'An Autobiography: Frank Lloyd Wright', Horizon Press, New York, 1977)

Construction stopped for unknown reasons after the foundations of the hotel were laid. The hole in the ground sat for many years, until finally in 1897, a proposal was made for a new railroad building to be built on the existing foundations.


(Elevation of Oregon Short Line Railroad Building, built on foundation of Ontario Hotel in 1897. From Salt Lake Tribune, 06 Mar 1897)

"When the Short Line officers were looking around for suitable headquarters, the three gentlemen named quietly decided to erect a building on the foundation and walls of the projected Ontario hotel on West Temple street, just at the rear of the Dooly Block. They made their plans and submitted the proposition to the officers of the road, offering to arrange the second floor according to the requirements of the railroad people, at a rental which was placed low enough to make it a desirable offer.

The lease was signed yesterday, with other contracts and Mr. Mackintosh stated last evening that the building contracts would be let immediately and work started as soon as the full set of plans were accepted.

SIZE OF THE BUILDING
The structure will be known as the Oregon Short Line Railroad building. For the present it will be two stories high, but so built that it can be added to as occasion demands. Its frontage on West Temple street will be 132 feet and its depth 135 feet. The building in its ground plan is like the letter E facing west, the area-ways affording light for offices in each wing. Downstairs the space will occupied by store rooms for commercial purposes, but the entire upper floor, reached by a stairway from the main entrance, will be given over to the general offices of the railroad." (Salt Lake Tribune 06 Mar 1897)

Present-day: Shilo Inn parking garage instead of Hotel Ontario

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rural grain silo home

Montesilo is the name of a unique home, built in 2006, that utilizes two corrugated metal grain silos in Woodland, Utah adjacent to the Provo River. Designed to accommodate the owner, Earl Stein, as well as future grandchildren, two linked corrugated metal grain silos were arranged to allow the largest (27’ diameter) to have the greatest access to the Provo River, and the southern exposure to ensure passive solar heat gain during the winter. An electric mesh is embedded into the slabs of the lower floor as a first auxiliary heat source, and a propane-burning stove (manageable by internet) will provide the back-up. The metal grating and guard rail of the second level deck will provide shading into this great-room space during the summer months.

Awards:

• 2006 AIA Utah Peoples Choice Award
• 2007 AIA Western Mountain Regional Citation Award
  

-Owners blog showing entire construction process.
-Arch Daily article





Footings installed


Foundation walls


Concrete slab finish


Metal silo assembled out of the box. The top was assembled first and then jacked up to add section below.


Inner wall built adjacent to metal silo. Window/Door openings were then cut out.


I would have liked to see natural light preserved through the oculus as shown in this construction photo rather than framing over and enclosing the opening.


“Bed in a Box” concept at perimeter, each complete with stereo sound and flat screen monitor.


Kitchen and Stair


View from the Provo River

Images obtained from Gigaplex Architects.

nature and city in synagogue

Alfred Jacoby, one of the most famous Jewish architects in Germany, has designed his first synagogue in the United States and it was dedicated in Park City, Utah in the summer of 2008. Temple Har Shalom, meaning Mountain of Peace in Hebrew, was designed to coexist with nature in the midst of this high mountain desert. With the Jewish community in Utah being different from the congregations in Germany, "Instead of a discourse with history, in Park City Jacoby's discourse was with nature." The synagogue has clean, simple lines and sanctuaries full of natural light. The ceiling undulates, suggestive of the mountains on the other side of the stained glass windows. (source) "The floor-to-ceiling windows reveal beautiful vistas on two floors, which include a conference room and classrooms that will be available to the community." (source)

While Temple Har Shalom has a site ‘in nature’ on the periphery of Park City, the synagogues in Germany are more integrated with city life. German synagogues, in cities such as Aachen and Heidelberg, are noticeable and inviting, with large entrances "to invite you in, as a gesture," Jacoby said. (source)

It hasn't always been this way though. "In the years following the Holocaust, Jewish communities in Germany — made up of displaced Jews from other countries, since the German Jewish population had been decimated — began building synagogues to replace the ones destroyed by the Nazis. These new synagogues often were hidden away and were generally so nondescript they looked like cafeterias, says Jacoby...The idea, even three or four decades after the end of World War II, was to try not to be noticed. But in 1986, when Jacoby won an architectural competition to design a new synagogue in Darmstadt, he tried a different approach: ‘to show that Jews can be part of a city.’" (source)

In 2000, there was a wave of neofascist vandalism sweeping through Germany. "But the possibility of vandalism hasn't stopped him from designing synagogues that make their presence known. ‘I want them to be part of the urban fabric,’ he said, ‘to heal with architecture.’" (source) Being open and inviting to the community in a synagogue in Kassel included placing the sacred Torah scrolls inside of a glass box that could be seen by anyone walking or driving past the building.

"Ultimately, what this institution is about is relationships. Whether it's your relationship with God or a spiritual relationship or relationship with another human being, it's about relationships, enhancing relationships, and making the lives of Utahns better." (source)





















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