RANDOLPH’S TIMELESS ARCHITECTURE

RANDOLPH’S TIMELESS ARCHITECTURE by Kazimir Cunningham

Randolph VT, Main Street

Randolph’s History Randolph was founded by a man named Experience Davis. He explored the area in 1775 after hearing about it from the Regis Indians, who referred to it as "level land" and "the joining of two rivers". By the end of the year he staked out 1500 acres to claim as his own. The location was originally Chartered by New York, as “Middlesex”,2and after the VT state government was organized in 1777, Aaron Storrs and 70 others requested to the Vermont Legislature for a charter to call the remaining part of Middlesex "Randolph" after Edmund Randolph, governor of Virginia, and it was granted.3In just 13 short years, the population of the town of Randolph according to the 1,790 census was 892 people and 10 years later it grew to 2,549 people.1

People came to Randolph attracted to its rich and loamy soil, the potential water power source of the river, and the vast forests. By 1800, Randolph became one of the most populated and prosperous towns of the state and many hoped that it would become the capitol of Vermont due also to its central location. In fact, it is traditionally said that the Main Street was made wide in preparation for this possibility (Interestingly enough, Randolph actually did become the state capitol for one day on July 15th 1957 during a civil defense test!1). Randolph continued to grow as an Agricultural town that produced a fair amount of crops, even in less than favorable conditions. The main produce included sweet corn and potatoes. Whole milk was a popular item produced by local farms and creameries as well as chicken eggs and maple syrup. The town thrived on its agricultural industry and in some years even led the state in production per acre.2

Randolph’s Train Service Randolph’s first train passed through in 1848 bringing business and liveliness to this area of town1 There still remains a functioning train station today

To counter these successes, Randolph also suffered setbacks time and time again. The winter of 1917-1918 was recorded to be 50 degrees below 0 the coldest winter in 50 years! Due to a coal shortage people started to use firewood. Floods ripped through the towns repeating to destroying all the dams and Mills along the river's edge, including some buildings and houses. Many fires erupted and destroyed farms, businesses, churches, and the business district of main street as well (1884). Much of the original architectural elements were lost. Residents also developed sickness including a polio epidemic in 1914 and influenza in 1918.1 (As I was taking this picture, I was curious as to whether the dark marks above the windows were remnant from the fires)

Despite these incidents however, the Randolph residents pressed on and rebuilt in the burn sites, giving it much of the look it has today. The Kimball library was donated by col. R.J. Kimball in 1900 and the Chandler music hall in 1907 by Chandler. The New Technical Institute opened with 70 students in 1957, and later became Vermont Technical College in 1962. In 1960 The Randolph Historical Society was started by the president, Harry H. Cooley; it is to his writings and research that much of this information is available.1 More than 4,853 people reside in Randolph today3; it remains a unique meeting place and an interesting historical environment!

Maps of Building Locations Randolph 2010 (maps.google.com)

Dudley Chase’s “Governor’s mansion” E Bethel Rd, Randolph Center, VT. Architect &Builder: AsaEgerton This photo was taken in 1910 (compliments of the Historical Society of Randolph)

Brief History: Dudley Chase, one of 15 children of Deacon Dudley Chase of Cornish, NH,5 came to Randolph around 1800, and acted as Randolph’s first Lawyer. In 1804 he had this house built by a carpenter named AsaEgerton, founder of a “School for Carpenters and Joiners” in town.1Dudley offered it as a governor’s Mansion, in the event that Randolph was selected to be Vermont’s state capitol.4Dudley Chase acted as a member of the State House of Representatives and Democratic Republican in the U.S. Senate (1813 – 1817). Among other achievements, he served as Chief of Justice of VT State Supreme Court (1817 – 1821), Anti Jacksonian to U.S. Senate (1825 – 1831) and he “engaged in agricultural pursuits”. He died in 1846 and is buried in the old Randolph cemetery.6 A later owner, J.K. Parish and his family lived in this home for 90 years.4 It became the Parker Walling residence among others. It now belongs to a couple from New Jersey, and is undergoing minor renovations.

Salmon P Chase It is an interesting note that Dudley’s nephew, Salmon P. Chase spent time in the Dudley residence. He later served as treasurer of the United States and “was responsible for having ‘in God we trust’ placed on our currency”.4 (No known photos exist of Dudley chase but according to Harriet Chase, Curator of Randolph’s Historical society museum, he most likely looked similar to his nephew) Below: pegs that we found at the Randolph historical museum taken out of the post and beam barn that used to be on site (170 years old)

Neoclassicism/ Renaissance Revival The front of this house facing the street, has some stately architectural elements Many features bear striking resemblance to Thomas Jefferson’s Virginia State Capitol (below) especially the detailed cornice (panoramio.com)

Use of Classical elements: Building Symmetry vertical pilasters mimic Corinthian columns pronounced detail of the roofline and the triangular pediment at the center, repeated at the entrance. Decorated Frieze below door pediment Roman arch with keystone at center window (storm door added later. Also notice that the shutters were removed)

Interior Views: (unfortunately the owners have not been home so I could not go inside of the house however I did find some images of what it looked like inside back then)

Changes made and durability There is a porch addition in the back of the house Note: the triangular roof space is made to resemble the front All detail including the columns are made of wood, there is evidence of rot at the hip of the roof where there is a lot of water traffic

In Conclusion… This Building is the “bow tie” of Randolph. It is well taken care of and speaks security, stability, prosperity, and class. It is has a cozy safe feeling about it like a little one would feel under the arm of a father. At the same time it is not so radical that it does not fit into its surroundings. It has traditional horizontal wood siding and chimney (and had shutters) which warms it up to and sits it nicely in the residential neighborhood.

Methodist Church East Bethel Rd, Randolph Center, VT Photo courtesy of Harriet Chase, Randolph Historical Society

Brief History: In 1836 the Church of Equal Rights was built on this site to serve the Methodists, Universalists, and the Christians. The town contributed funding the project in the exchange that it could hold the annual March town meetings in the basement area of the church.1 The owners sold the building at an auction to the highest bidder, who turned out to be the Methodists, however the church went up in flames in 1880. The following year a new Methodist Church was resurrected on the same site, and for a while it flourished, but soon people stopped attending, and regular services ended in 1930.4 In 1954 it was dedicated as a Masonic temple and the bell in the tower was sold to a Lutheran church in Rhode Island in 1957.1 Unused for years, the building was purchased from the Troy conference in 1966 by Mr. and Mrs. Charles Stocker, who intended on converting it to a summer home4 but made no drastic renovations. It now belongs to a man who introduced himself as Peter Paul, from Connecticut, who is renovating it at great length into a unique dwelling.

Evolution of the Church Site • Church of Equal Rights 1836-1880 • New Methodist Church circa 1880 • Recent (Note how the rounded Roman arches of the Church of Equal rights compare to the Gothic pointed arches of the Methodist replacement)

Gothic Revival Center tower at entrance Lancet windows Use of the pointed arch at door and above Roof detail: -Decoration at edge and with shingles on tower -Original Slate shingles

Durability The building has held up well structurally with only some surface rot in places. The current owner is in the process of stripping the exterior for new paint Here we can see that the paint is coming off but no real evidence of serious rot. The stained glass has also been replaced where it is not colored

Interior Right looking aft: The interior includes centrally located large open space with a lightly coffered ceiling recently repainted Below right looking forward: The old wall was stripped and is being refaced with rough lumber for a rustic look. The open doors to the right are from India. They lead to a bathroom with large windows flooding in the natural light Bottom looking aft: Loft, below it is a small isolated room

In Conclusion… The building stands out from its surroundings: it is rather ominous and brooding, however it wears the weight of its history on the outside promoting a feeling of interest, like it has some tale to tell through motionless expression. It was well built and cared for, it is structurally intact, and will make a most unique dwelling place.

Randolph National Bank North Main Street, Randolph, VT

Brief History: This Bank was founded In 1876 as the first Randolph bank by William Dubois, a VT State Treasurer for 8 years.1 His Name “Dubois” is ornamented in Granite within the brick above the entranceway to the bank. It is a small building, with a “false front” at the front and back which largely increases the appearance in the size of the building, and hides its roof’s simplicity with the complexity of the curvature seen from the front of the building. It is now owned by Carol Bushey, and operates as the Frankenburg Insurance Agency. It still houses its original safe, being that owners have had no success in moving it. It also has original counter tops, making the interior layout seem much like it would have been over a hundred years ago. (Right: a copy of a section of an advertisement page in the inside cover of a magazine called “Picturesque Randolph” dated 1899 published by L.P. Thayer)

Exterior : Top: The bank has not undergone many significant changes and remains very similar to the way it was in the 1870’s and early 1900’s. Bellow right: The old 2nd Empire building to the left of the bank had burned and evidence can be seen in the contrast of the new brick verses the old brick of the bank (note the ice guard added at the roof’s edge on the side) Bellow: (notice the metal pole used to help support the height of the false front)

The Safe: Right: the original Safe in its original location Below: The basement was actually built to support the safe as can be seen in the jutting portion of this photo, a solid foundation for the gross load above

Interior: Original trim and woodwork at the counter, doors and windows7 Bellow: Old Calendar prints were put in as a wallpaper in the 1950’s7

In Conclusion… This building fits in well with the other prominent brick buildings flanking Main Street. It is small, sturdy, and compact; built to withstand the test of time. It advertises a feeling of elegance, professionalism, and durability. It was built to best use its space to serve its function, which is proved successful by the unchanged layout existing today.

Dubois and King28 North Main St, Randolph, VTArchitect: TruexCullins & Partners Architects, Burlington VT

Brief history: This location was originally the site of West Randolph High School, an Italianate building built in 1872. With the expansion of the area, the school soon became too small. Burlington Architect Charles H. Crandall designed plans for a much larger building. Construction began in 1911, and it became a well functioning High and Elementary school, however with the opening of new schools in the area the building eventually became vacant. The Randolph Area Community Development Corporation (RACDC) sought to find a purpose for the building. Dubois and king, a consulting engineering firm, expressed interest in moving their offices there. The original plan was to renovate the old building for use but after a close evaluation of the structure this notion became impractical and RACDC and Dubois and King partnered to take down the building and construct another in its place that better suited the demands of the office environment. The building was then demolished in 2003, but some of the original features of the old building were kept and are now displayed in the new building, including the dated cornerstone and the terra cotta panels from the front of the school. The new building was completed in 2004 and incorporates an energy efficient design. 8

Site Evolution Old Randolph High (sketch) New building (photo taken 2010)

Building Context The antenna- looking feature photographed is a modern element that was incorporated to give the building a sense of height to match the surrounding steeples on neighboring buildings 10 (feature close-up)

Energy Efficient DesignExterior: There are sensors that work with the heating/cooling system that sense the outdoor temperature and use this air appropriately in maintaining the desired temperature conditions indoors 9 Use of a combination of insulation board and spray insulation in the exterior walls cut the heat loss in half compared to an average commercial building 9 Windows and their locations were built to maximize daylight in the building 9 Fiberglass triple pane windows reduce energy consumption and operating cost 9

Energy efficient designInterior: Reflective light louver fixtures reflect daylight into the interior space 9 Fiberglass triple pane windows: Reduces energy consumption and operating cost 9 Thin shades let in light and energy while reducing the sun’s glare, and still preserving an outside view 9 The Lighting system throughout the building is designed to sense the amount of natural light in the room and adjust its brightness accordingly, conserving energy 9 There are only 8 light switches in the 24,000 square foot building, it uses motion sensors set to a timer 10

Natural light sources Right: Example skylight illuminates the receptionist’s desk directly below and floods the lobby area with light Note the “Randolph high and Graded School” sign hung here in the lobby (right) and the corner stone set into the wall (below); memoirs of history

In Conclusion… This building is functional and economical. By its very design it prioritizes the environment and energy efficiency. The building evokes an emotion of daring free spirit, curiosity, anticipation, and respect; respect for it’s history in the proudly displayed treasures, and respect for its context in the town with its unique architectural considerations.

CITATIONS: 1 Harry H. Cooley, Randolph, Vermont Historical Sketches, ed. Miriam Herwig (The Randolph Town History Committee, 1978), (129-171) 2 “Historical Background,” Randolph and its activities, published by the Randolph chamber of commerce, Randolph, VT, 5 3 Wikipedia, Randolph, http://www.answers.com/topic/randolph-vermont (2010) 4Wes Herwig, Early Photographs of Randolph, Vermont (1855–1948), (41 & 45) 5 Harriet Chase, Curator and Historian for Randolph’s Historical Society, interviewed for this project, Randolph, Vermont December 2010. 6Biographical Directory of United States Congress, http://www.bioguide.congress.gov (2010) 7Agency worker, interview held at the Frankenburg Insurance Building, Randolph, Vermont, November 2010. 8Liz Pritchard (Liz Pritchard Associates, Montpelier, VT), (Historical research by The Rest Shadow & Light Studios, Burlington, VT) 9Mark Miller, Director of Business Development and Marketing, “Sustainable Design Feature,” Displayed documents in the Dubois & King Building, Randolph VT 10Richard Goodall, Vice president at Dubois and King, interviewed for this project, Dubois & King building, Randolph, Vermont. November 2010 • Other Citations: Older Train Station photo: http://www.cardcow.com/viewall/67880/ Newer Train Station photo: en.wikipedia.org Picture of Sketch of Randolph High School: displayed in the Dubois and king Building lobby Old picture of Randolph National Bank: Courtesy of Randolph Historical Society • Note: All other pictures were taken by the author, Kazimir Cunningham, unless otherwise noted

RANDOLPH’S TIMELESS ARCHITECTURE