John Rochester Thomas

John Rochester Thomas (June 18, 1848 – August 28, 1901) was an American architect credited in his time with being the nation's most prolific designer of public and semi-public buildings.

His work was characterized by originality, moderation and dignity, according to The National Cyclopaedia of American Biography of 1899: "Judged by the artistic quality of his work and by his achievements in accomplishing repeatedly what others have declared impossible, he well deserves the title of America's leading architect."

Among his works are college buildings, prisons, armories, dozens of churches, and New York's Surrogate's Courthouse, his early 20th century Beaux Arts masterpiece based on his award-winning plan for a new city hall for New York City which was never constructed.

Early life Thomas was born in Rochester, New York on June 18, 1848, where he was educated in the city's schools until 1862, when his father's business failure obliged him to seek employment.

He decided to become an architect and entered the office of Merwin Austin of Rochester, subsequently pursuing a university course under the direction of Martin Brewer Anderson, president of the University of Rochester. After spending some time studying the architecture of European countries, Thomas entered professional practice in Rochester in 1868.

In 1877 he married Julia Hortense. They had four daughters and one son.

Churches More than 150 churches have been erected from his designs. Some of his city churches, such as the now-demolished Calvary Baptist Church on West 57th Street and the Reformed Low Dutch Church of Harlem (1887; now Ephesus Seventh Day Adventist Church) on Lenox Avenue at 123rd Street in Harlem, New York, are highly picturesque. He also designed the First Baptist Church of Lynchburg, Virginia.

Surrogate's Courthouse

In February 1896 the Municipal Building Commission of New York City awarded first prize to Thomas, out of over 130 designs submitted to them from all over the world for a new municipal building, involving an outlay of $25,000,000. The prize included his employment as architect for the building. The terms of the competition were made purposely attractive in order to attract the best architectural talent, and were prepared by a body of experts composed of Richard M. Hunt, William R. Ware of Columbia College, and Edward H. Kendall. The state legislature subsequently forbade the city authorities to remove the old city hall, thus preventing the erection of the contemplated building. This action led to a proposal for the erection of a new Hall of Records on an adjoining site, budgeted at $5,000,000, intended in its construction and art details to be equal to the best that could be produced.

Publications In November 1883 Thomas read a paper on "Church Architecture" before a conference of clergymen in Boston. This was followed in October 1891 by The History of Prison Architecture, read before the National Prison Association of the United States at its annual congress at Pittsburgh, which was universally adopted as the standard. An article on proposed legislation restricting the height of buildings in New York City was read before the New York Chamber of Commerce in 1896.

Although still a resident of New York City, he died at Westminster Park, New York, in the Thousand Islands, on August 28, 1901.