George Meacham
Encyclopedia
George Frederick Meacham (July 1, 1831 - December 4, 1917) was an architect in the Boston
, Massachusetts
area active in the 19th century. He is notable for designing Boston's Public Garden; the Massachusetts Bicycle Club
; and churches, homes, and monuments in greater Boston and elsewhere in New England.
, to Giles Meacham and Jane Meacham. He graduated from Harvard College
in 1853. After college he worked as a civil engineer for the Jersey City Water Works.
By 1855 he returned to Boston and worked for an architecture firm there. He practiced as an architect from 1857 through 1891, and in that time produced numerous designs. People associated with the office of G.F. Meacham included Henry Martyn Francis, George Pyne, and Shepherd S. Woodcock.
Meacham married Mary Warren (d.1877) in 1859; they had two children who died very young. Several years after the death of his first wife, he married Ellen Louisa Frost in 1881.
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
area active in the 19th century. He is notable for designing Boston's Public Garden; the Massachusetts Bicycle Club
Massachusetts Bicycle Club
The Massachusetts Bicycle Club was a cycling club in Boston, Massachusetts.- Brief history :The club was founded on January 10, 1879. "We, the undersigned, hereby agree to organize ourselves into a bicycle club, to be called The Massachusetts Bicycle Club." Founders included Albert A. Pope, ...
; and churches, homes, and monuments in greater Boston and elsewhere in New England.
Biography
Meacham was born in Watertown, MassachusettsWatertown, Massachusetts
The Town of Watertown is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 31,915 at the 2010 census.- History :Archeological evidence suggests that Watertown was inhabited for thousands of years before the arrival of settlers from England...
, to Giles Meacham and Jane Meacham. He graduated from Harvard College
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
in 1853. After college he worked as a civil engineer for the Jersey City Water Works.
By 1855 he returned to Boston and worked for an architecture firm there. He practiced as an architect from 1857 through 1891, and in that time produced numerous designs. People associated with the office of G.F. Meacham included Henry Martyn Francis, George Pyne, and Shepherd S. Woodcock.
Meacham married Mary Warren (d.1877) in 1859; they had two children who died very young. Several years after the death of his first wife, he married Ellen Louisa Frost in 1881.
Selected designs
- Public Garden, Boston, Massachusetts (1860)
- Burial ground, Shirley, MassachusettsShirley, Massachusetts-Demographics:This article describes the town of Shirley as a whole. Additional demographic detail is available which describes only the central settlement or village within the town, although that detail is included in the aggregate values reported here...
(ca.1864) - South Congregational Church, New Britain, ConnecticutNew Britain, ConnecticutNew Britain is a city in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. It is located approximately 9 miles southwest of Hartford. According to 2006 Census Bureau estimates, the population of the city is 71,254....
(1865-1868) - Workers' lodgings, France (ca.1866).
- Soldiers' monument, Brighton, Massachusetts (1866)
- Completion of Merrill G. WheelockMerrill G. WheelockMerrill Greene Wheelock was an artist and architect in Boston, Massachusetts in the 19th-century. He served in the Massachusetts infantry in the American Civil War.-Biography:...
's design for the Masonic temple, Boston MA (1867) - Soldiers and Sailors Monument, Riverside Cemetery, Main Street, Fairhaven, MassachusettsFairhaven, MassachusettsFairhaven is a town in Bristol County, Massachusetts, in the United States. It is located on the south coast of Massachusetts where the Acushnet River flows into Buzzards Bay, an arm of the Atlantic Ocean...
(ca.1868) - Alterations to Charles Bowdoin Fillebrown house, Newton, MassachusettsNewton, MassachusettsNewton is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States bordered to the east by Boston. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the population of Newton was 85,146, making it the eleventh largest city in the state.-Villages:...
(ca.1874-1910). - Tremont-Street Mall curb and fence, Boston CommonBoston CommonBoston Common is a central public park in Boston, Massachusetts. It is sometimes erroneously referred to as the "Boston Commons". Dating from 1634, it is the oldest city park in the United States. The Boston Common consists of of land bounded by Tremont Street, Park Street, Beacon Street,...
, Boston, Massachusetts (ca.1875) - Addition to Newton Public Library (ca.1880), Newton, Massachusetts
- House, 10 Melville Ave., Dorchester, Boston, Massachusetts (1880)
- Channing Church, 75 Vernon Street, Newton, Massachusetts (1881)
- Massachusetts Bicycle Club, 152 Newbury St., Boston, Massachusetts (1884)
- Hartley Lord house, Kennebunk, MaineKennebunk, MaineKennebunk is a town in York County, Maine, United States. The population was 1,075 people at the 2000 census. Including Kennebunkport , the population totals 14,196 people...
(1884-1885) - Levi B. Gay house, 303 Franklin St., Newton, Massachusetts (1887)
- Eliot Church, Newton, Massachusetts (ca.1888)
Further reading
- Curb, stone or fence: what is the best plan for enclosing the Common? Hearing on the Subject in the City Hall, Yesterday. Boston Daily Globe, May 26, 1875. p.8.
- Roger G. Reed, George F. Meacham (1831-1917). A Biographical Dictionary of Architects in Maine, vol. 1, no. 5 (1984).