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William Halsey Wood And The Competition For The Cathedral Of St. John The Divine, Gayle Evans Brookfield

Wayne State University Theses

In the spring of 1888, the Trustees of the Cathedral of St. John the Divine gave a young Newark architect a splendid opportunity. Along with thirteen other architects, William Halsey Wood was invited to participate in the largest and most important architectural competition in America, If he won, Wood would have a "chance to immortalize himself" in his design for a Protestant Episcopal Cathedral in New York City. The competition, however, was stiff. As many as one hundred architects may have submitted plans and their work evinces the eclecticism of late nineteenth century American architecture. Wood's scheme, nevertheless, was singular, …