Emlen T. Littell

Emlen Trenchard Littell (February 12, 1838 – March 4, 1891) was an American architect known for designing Gothic Revival style churches.

Early life and education Littell was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He was the son of Mary Graff Emien and Dr. Squire L. Littelll. They advertised that they were successors to John W. Priest, a founding member of the American Institute of Architects who died in 1859; Congdon had previously served as Priest's assistant. Their office was located at 335 Broadway. In 1867, he formed a practice with Henry Hobson Richardson in the Trinity Building at 111 Broadway in Manhattan. However, Richardson left after a few months to form another partnership. There, he had a partnership, Littell & Smith, with Douglas Smyth from around 1884 to 1886.

At the Fourth Church Conference in New York City on October 30, 1877, he presented a paper "The Church Architecture that We Need." During his presentation, he noted, "The building should declare its nature at first sight, not only showing that it is intended for a place of worship, it should distinctly impress upon the minds of beholders that it is a church, belonging to the lineage of the Anglican Church, and could by no possibility have been designed for any other use. …And it should be a landmark, so set and built that even in the midst of a crowded city it cannot be passed by unwittingly. In the city or undulating country, the lofty spires should mark its location, breaking the skyline with their sharp, cross-surmounted peaks." The Church of the Incarnation is "a significant example of Gothic Revival architecture". It was featured in the 42nd annual exhibition of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in 1865. The Zion Church rectory was also a Gothic Revival structure that feature blocks of bluestone that were eighteen by twenty inches, bay windows decorated with brown stone, and porch shafts of Nova Scotia stone. Planned as a Gothic style cathedral for a northern diocese, St. John's featured local dark-blue sandstone with trim of light-buff Ohio freestone, Tiffany stained glass windows, and a roof of red, purple, and green Vermont slate. The church had a canopied entrance, chancel, nave, organ chamber, sacristy, and tall tower connected to an open stone parapet. The latter project was in association with Philadelphia architect Charles Marquedent Burns who served as the decorator. Littell designed St. Timothy's to look like "a handsome country parish church within a walled churchyard." In 1863, Littell designed St. James' Memorial Church in Titusville in Crawford County, Pennsylvania. He donated his work as a contribution to the memorial fund. His 1875 Christ Episcopal Church in Blacksburg, Virginia was the first church in the United States "to reject the simple nave plan in favor of a side entry, chancel, and pointed windows." In 1880, he designed a memorial tower and spire to add to St. John's Episcopal Church in Hagerstown, Maryland.

Residential In April 1880, Littell designed an apartment building and four houses for 54th Street, between 6th and 7th Avenue in New York City. This $60,000 project incorporated brick, stone, and terra cotta.

Commercial In May 1881, he designed a three-story brick stable at 41st Street in New York for Francis H. Weeks. The $35,000 stable project also included a tennis court. His other commercial projects include the Jefferson Market in New York City.

Government Littell designed the Battle of Monmouth Monument for Freehold, New Jersey, with New Yorkers Douglas Smythe and sculptor James E. Kelly. Construction of this ninety-foot tall monument started at the 100 anniversary of the battle on June 28, 1878, but construction would continue for six years, with its dedication on November 13, 1884.

May 1, 1860, Littell was elected a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects (AIA). He served as secretary of AIA in 1862 and 1863, served on the committee on education, and was also an ex officio vice president of AIA following his service as chapter president. In 1876, he presented the paper, "Club Chambers and Apartment Houses" at the eight annual convention of AIA.

He was also a founding member of the New York Chapter of AIA in 1867 and served as the group's president for three terms, from 1879 to 1884 and from 1890 to his death in 1891. He donated books to the group's library, including a complete set of Canina.

The American Association of Architects appointed Littell to serve on the Willard Architectural Commission, helping to select architectural items for the collection at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Other members of the commission were Napoleon Le Brun and Alfred J. Bloor.

Littell died at his home at 40 East 44th Street in New York City at the age of 53. 1863 St. James Memorial Church Titusville, Pennsylvania 1872 St. John's Episcopal Church Canandaigua, New York 1880 St. John's Episcopal Church memorial tower and spire Hagerstown, Maryland St. Paul's Church Englewood, New Jersey 1873 St. Paul's Episcopal Church Poughkeepsie, New York National Register of Historic Places 1881 St. Stephen's Episcopal Church Terrace Street, Manayunk, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 1876 Zion Church Rectory Madison Avenue 1872 Zion Episcopal Church Palmyra, New York Palmyra Village Historic District, National Register of Historic Places