Muhlenberg Brothers
Muhlenberg Brothers was one of the dominant architecture/engineering firms in Reading, Pennsylvania during the first half of the 20th century, founded by a member of the Muhlenberg political dynasty.
History[edit]
It was established in 1892 by Charles Henry Muhlenberg IV (1870–1960), who graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and apprenticed under the architect Frank Furness.[1] His brother, Frederick Hunter Muhlenberg II (1865–1933), attended both Lafayette College and MIT. The founder's son, Charles Henry Muhlenberg V (1899–1985), who attended the University of Wisconsin and MIT (and played a role in the spread of the Monopoly board game[2]), joined the firm in 1923. Frederick Hunter Muhlenberg II left the firm in the mid-1920s to go into partnership with his nephew, Frederick Augustus Muhlenberg II, operating as Muhlenberg & Muhlenberg.
Its main offices were located at 113-A South Fourth Street in Reading. It established a branch office in Pottsville, Pennsylvania, and one in St. Petersburg, Florida in the 1920s.[3] By 1937, Frederick H. Muhlenberg II had died, Charles H. Muhlenberg IV was listed as a consultant, G. Russell Steininger was no longer part of the firm, and Charles H. Muhlenberg V and Frederick R. Shenk were the principals.[4] The firm continued until about 1965, when Shenk formed Frederick R. Shenk & Lee V. Seibert.[5]
Work[edit]
Muhlenberg Brothers designed both residential and commercial works, and large projects such as office buildings, churches and factories. Among the commissions were a vaudeville theater, a number of public school buildings, and much of the campus of Albright College. G. Russell Steininger, landscape architect, was a principal in the firm by 1929. A number of the firm's works are listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.[6]
The Historical Society of Berks County owns two portfolios of photographs of Muhlenberg Brothers buildings, from 1929 and 1937, along with hundreds of blueprints from the firm.
Selected works[edit]
Houses[edit]
- W. W. Kline House (1905–07), 200 Wilson Street, West Lawn, Pennsylvania. Featured in The Architectural Review, Volume 14 (1907), pp. 84–85.[7]
- Frederick H. Muhlenberg II House (1907), 1020 Centre Avenue, Reading, Pennsylvania. The architect's own house.[8]
- Alterations to Harbster House (c. 1910), 742 Centre Avenue, Reading, Pennsylvania. Frank Furness designed the house (c. 1886).[9] Charles H. Muhlenberg IV may have worked on the original house while in Furness's office.
- Charles H. Muhlenberg IV House (1926), 1221 Garfield Avenue, Wyomissing, Pennsylvania. The architect's own house.
- John M. Frame House (1927), 901 N. Third Street, Reading, Pennsylvania.[10] Designed by Frederick H. Muhlenberg II.
Churches[edit]
- Rectory (1893) and Parish Hall (), St. Paul's Roman Catholic Church, 151 N. Ninth Street, Reading, Pennsylvania.[11]
- Holy Spirit Lutheran Church (1922), Fourth & Windsor Streets, Reading, Pennsylvania.[12]
- First Church of Christ Scientist (1925), Centre Avenue & Greenwich Street, Reading, Pennsylvania.
- First Presbyterian Church (), 200 North Ninth Street, Ashland, Pennsylvania. Now First United Methodist Presbyterian Church.[13]
- Immanuel United Church of Christ (1955–59), 99 S. Waverly Street, Shillington, Pennsylvania.[14]
Schools and cultural institutions[edit]
- Young Women's Christian Association (1921–22, demolished), 215 North Sixth Street, Reading, Pennsylvania.[15]
- McAdoo High School (1927–28, demolished), Sherman Street, McAdoo, Pennsylvania.[16]
- Tyson-Schoener Elementary School (1928), 315 S. Fifth Street, Reading, Pennsylvania.[17] Charles H. Muhlenberg V designed the building. His sister, Virginia Muhlenberg Steininger, created the decorative tiles.
- Historical Society of Berks County (1928–29), 940 Centre Avenue, Reading, Pennsylvania.[18]
- 13th & Union Elementary School (1929), 13th & Union Streets, Reading, Pennsylvania.[19] In 1936, Muhlenberg Brothers added the north wing and gymnasium.
- Cressona High School (1929), 45 Wilder Street, Cressona, Pennsylvania.[20] Now Blue Mountain Elementary School Cressona.
- Wyomissing Public Library (1930–31), 9 Reading Boulevard, Wyomissing, Pennsylvania.[21]
- William Jeanes Memorial Library (1935), Butler Pike, Plymouth Meeting, Pennsylvania.[22] Built on the grounds of the Plymouth Friends Meetinghouse. A new Jeanes Library was built in Whitemarsh Township, Pennsylvania in 1971.[23]
- St. Clair High School (1937–38), South Mill & Nichols Streets, St. Clair, Pennsylvania.[24] Now St. Clair Area Elementary School.
- Wyomissing High School (1937–40), 630 Evans Avenue, Wyomissing, Pennsylvania.
- Visitor center and library (1940–41), Landis Valley Museum, 2451 Kissel Hill Road, Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
- Expansion of Muhlenberg High School (1949–51), 400 Sharp Avenue, Laureldale, Pennsylvania.[25]
- Albright College, Reading, Pennsylvania:
Other buildings[edit]
- Daniel F. Ancona Building (c. 1899), 604 North Fifth Street, Reading, Pennsylvania.
- Red Men Hall (1900), 831-33 Walnut Street, Reading, Pennsylvania. NRHP-listed.[6]
- Farmers National Bank (1909), Penn Street, Reading, Pennsylvania.
- Hippodrome Theatre (1910, demolished 1970s), 751-57 Penn Street, Reading, Pennsylvania.[29] Built as a vaudeville house, it was later expanded into a 1,228-seat movie theater.
- Reading Armory Drill Hall (1910–11), Rose & Walnut Streets, Reading, Pennsylvania.
- Alterations to Reading Hospital (1910–13), Front & Spring Streets, Reading, Pennsylvania.[30]
- C. K. Whitner Department Store (1911), 438-44 Penn Street, Reading, Pennsylvania.[31]
- Carpenter Steel Company, Annealing Building (1915), River Road & Exeter Street, Reading, Pennsylvania.[32]
- Bank of Hamburg Savings & Trust Co. (1923), 52-54 South Fourth Street, Hamburg, Pennsylvania. Part of Hamburg Historic District.
- Masonic Building (1925), 4 South Second Street, Pottsville, Pennsylvania.[33][34]
- City Bank and Trust Company (1937–40, demolished), 538 Penn Street, Reading, Pennsylvania.
- Thomas A. Willson & Company, Building 2 (1946), 201 Washington Street, Reading, Pennsylvania.[35] NRHP-listed.[6] Now GoggleWorks Center for the Arts.
-
Red Men Hall (1900), Reading, Pennsylvania. -
William Jeanes Memorial Library (1935), Plymouth Meeting, Pennsylvania.
Notes[edit]
- ^ Charles H. Muhlenberg obituary from The Reading Eagle, December 12, 1960.
- ^ "The Landlord's Game: Lizzie Magie and Monopoly's Anti-Capitalist Origins (1903)". The Public Domain Review. Retrieved 26 Dec 2023.
- ^ "Muhlenberg Bros. Registered Architects," The Palm Beach Post, December 4, 1925, p. B-4.
- ^ Selections from the Work of Muhlenberg Brothers, Registered Architects (New York, Architectural Catalog Co., 1937).
- ^ "Frederick R. Shenk & Lee V. Seibert". The American Institute of Architects. Archived from the original on 10 July 2013. Retrieved 10 Jul 2013.
- ^ a b c "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
- ^ Kline house from The Architectural Review.
- ^ "To Erect a Handsome Home on Centre Avenue". Reading Eagle. 17 Mar 1907.
- ^ George E. Thomas, et al., Frank Furness: The Complete Works (New York: Princeton Architectural Press, revised edition 1996), p. 258.
- ^ Frame House from Centre Park Historic District.
- ^ St. Paul's R. C. Church from GoReadingBerks.
- ^ Holy Spirit Lutheran Church
- ^ First United Methodist Presbyterian Church Archived 2013-07-04 at archive.today
- ^ Immanuel History Timeline Archived 2016-03-04 at the Wayback Machine from Immanuel United Church of Christ.
- ^ Reading YWCA from eBay.
- ^ McAdoo High School
- ^ Tyson-Schoener School[permanent dead link]
- ^ About Berks County Historical Society. Archived 2011-03-02 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ 13th & Union Elementary School[permanent dead link]
- ^ Blue Mountain Elementary School Cressona
- ^ Wyomissing Public Library History. Archived 2013-07-05 at archive.today
- ^ History from Jeanes Library.
- ^ About Us from Jeanes Library.
- ^ St. Clair High School from Saint Clair Then and Now.
- ^ Muhlenberg School District History. Archived 2013-07-04 at archive.today
- ^ Teel Hall from Historic College Architecture Project.
- ^ Hall of Science from Historic College Architecture.
- ^ Albright College Chapel from Historic College Architecture Project.
- ^ Reading Hippodrome from Cinema Treasures.
- ^ Sweet's Catalogue of Buildings Construction (1913), p. 459.
- ^ Whitner's from GoReadingBerks.
- ^ Carpenter Steel Mill from Google.
- ^ Pottsville Masonic Building from Seth Gaines via Flickr.
- ^ "Pottsville Masons to erect 5-story temple, Reading men the architects," The Reading Eagle, March 22, 1925.[1]
- ^ Shelby Weaver Splain & Doug Scott, Thomas A. Willson & Company, NRHP Registration Form (2006), p. 5: https://gis.penndot.gov/CRGISAttachments/SiteResource/H080622_01H.pdf
References[edit]
- "Reading's Architects," The Reading Eagle, December 8, 1895, p. 4.
- Selections from the Work of Muhlenberg Brothers, Registered Architects, Landscaping (New York: Architectural Catalog Co., 1929).
- Selections from the Work of Muhlenberg Brothers, Registered Architects (New York, Architectural Catalog Co., 1937).
- Architecture & Design Magazine, 5 (August 1941): entire issue devoted to the work of Muhlenberg Brothers.
External links[edit]
- Muhlenberg Brothers from Philadelphia Architects and Buildings.
- Frederick Hunter Muhlenberg II papers at Massachusetts Institute of Technology.