Vivian B. Smith

Ocean City City Hall in Ocean City, New Jersey, designed by Smith & Henderer in the Beaux-Arts style and completed in 1915. Vivian B. Smith (July 8, 1886 – December 6, 1952) was an American architect from Atlantic City, New Jersey.

Life and career Smith was born July 8, 1886, in Ocean City, New Jersey, to Lewis S. Smith and Hannah (Holmes) Smith. After his schooling, he went to Philadelphia, where he worked for Charles L. Hoffman and other architects.

In 1907, he returned to the coast to work for architect Harvey J. Shumway, an architect who had practiced in Atlantic City since 1895. After Shumway's death in December 1909, Smith opened his own office in Atlantic City in January. Though best known for his hotels and public buildings, Smith's largest work was the designing and supervision of Belcoville in Weymouth Township in 1918. This was a planned community of five thousand people for workers of the Bethlehem Loading Company, a World War I-era munitions plant operated by Bethlehem Steel. He was the first Atlantic City architect to be a member of the organization. and second to Josephine Cross. He had a son with his first wife, and two daughters with his second.

Legacy Smith's buildings were designed in the popular revival styles of the day, including the Beaux-Arts, Colonial Revival, and Gothic Revival styles. He also adopted more eclectic styles for some buildings, like the Spanish Colonial Revival for the Flanders Hotel and Music Pier in Ocean City or the Venetian Gothic for the Freeman Building in Atlantic City. These were uncommon in the northeast, where they usually appeared at resorts.

At least five buildings designed by Smith have been listed in the United States National Register of Historic Places.

Architectural works Ocean City City Hall, 861 Asbury Ave, Ocean City, New Jersey (1914–15, NRHP 1997) Breakers Hotel, S New Jersey Ave, and Boardwalk, Atlantic City, New Jersey (1915–16, demolished 1974) Belcoville Fire Station, 1201 Loretta Ave, Belcoville, New Jersey (1918) Segal Building, 1200 Atlantic Ave, Atlantic City, New Jersey (1920, NRHP 1984) Flanders Hotel, 719 E 11th St, Ocean City, New Jersey (1922–23, NRHP 2009) Freeman Building, 1516 Atlantic Ave, Atlantic City, New Jersey (1922) Ocean City High School, 550 Atlantic Ave, Ocean City, New Jersey (1924, demolished 2005) Ocean City Music Pier, 825 Boardwalk, Ocean City, New Jersey (1929)

Gallery of architectural works