The Correspondence and Miscellaneous Papers of Benjamin Henry Latrobe (Series 4)
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Volume 1 4-1, 1784-1804
Benjamin Henry Latrobe; Edited by John C. Van Horne and Lee W. Formwalt
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This volume is the first of what will be three volumes of selected correspondence and miscellaneous papers of Benjamin Henry Latrobe (1764-1820), America’s first professional architect and engineer.
Of the 235 documents in this volume the majority are letters to and from Latrobe, interspersed with his pamphlets, newspaper articles, government reports, and scientific papers. The first section traces Latrobe’s formative years in England and Germany and his early professional career in England before his emigration to America in 1795. By 1800 Latrobe had designed the Virginia State Penitentiary, the Bank of Pennsylvania, and the Philadelphia Waterworks. In 1803 President Jefferson appointed him surveyor of the public buildings in Washington, and thereafter he began to take on more important commissions. Thus a great deal of this volume is given over to Latrobe’s work on the Capitol and the President’s House as well as his work as surveyor and engineer of the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal Company. In 1804 Latrobe accepted an appointment as engineer to the Navy Department and also began work on his monumental Baltimore Cathedral.
This book comprehends both Latrobe’s personal and professional beginnings and at least the genesis of the major works of his professional career.
Of the 235 documents in this volume the majority are letters to and from Latrobe, interspersed with his pamphlets, newspaper articles, government reports, and scientific papers. The first section traces Latrobe’s formative years in England and Germany and his early professional career in England before his emigration to America in 1795. By 1800 Latrobe had designed the Virginia State Penitentiary, the Bank of Pennsylvania, and the Philadelphia Waterworks. In 1803 President Jefferson appointed him surveyor of the public buildings in Washington, and thereafter he began to take on more important commissions. Thus a great deal of this volume is given over to Latrobe’s work on the Capitol and the President’s House as well as his work as surveyor and engineer of the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal Company. In 1804 Latrobe accepted an appointment as engineer to the Navy Department and also began work on his monumental Baltimore Cathedral.
This book comprehends both Latrobe’s personal and professional beginnings and at least the genesis of the major works of his professional career.
Published for The Maryland Historical Society
"An important undertaking. . . [which] will make the most significant Latrobe papers more readily available to scholars."—Harry M. Ward, North Carolina Historical Review
"The editors have continued the high standard which were set in the previous volumes. The reader has been furnished every assistance including a calendar of the papers, a chronology, an explanation of editorial method, and a detailed index. Editorial notes have been inserted where needed for background information or clarity and a number of letters from others have been added to give answers to Latrobe's queries or to supplement his replies. Many of his sketches and maps have been reproduced and full explanatory documentation has been furnished. the volume—and the entire publication when finished—will be an important addition to any academic library."—C.L. Grant, Journal of the Early Republic
"The Latrobe Papers have made it possible for him to provide probably the most important single source of impressions of the physical and social environment of America in his time."—Roger G. Kennedy, Pennsylvania Magazine of History & Biography
"Beautifully produced and meticulously edited. . . . The volume is full of fascinating material about the way the public water supply in London and Paris operated from a consumer's point of view, why there was much moonshine in American developments of the steam-engine, and a host of practical matters."—W.R. Ward, British Journal of 18th Century Studies
ISBN: 9780300029017
Publication Date: September 10, 1985
Publishing Partner: Published for The Maryland Historical Society
Publication Date: September 10, 1985
Publishing Partner: Published for The Maryland Historical Society
616 pages, 6 1/8 x 9 1/4
