Background
Gilbert was born in 1859 in Zanesville, Ohio, the middle of three sons, and was named after the statesman Lewis Cass, to whom he was distantly related.
Gilbert was born in 1859 in Zanesville, Ohio, the middle of three sons, and was named after the statesman Lewis Cass, to whom he was distantly related.
Cass Gilbert attended school in Zanesville until the death of his father in 1868. At that time, his mother, Elizabeth Fulton Wheeler, apprenticed him to an architectural firm in St. Paul, Minnesota. There, he completed his education and trained as a surveyor. In 1878, Gilbert enrolled at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he studied architecture for one year.
Cass Gilbert began his architectural career at age 17 by joining the Abraham M. Radcliffe office in St. Paul. Gilbert later worked for a time with the firm of McKim, Mead, and White before starting a practice in St. Paul with James Knox Taylor. Together, Gilbert and Taylor pursued both institutional and residential work, but they were unable to succeed financially. The business partnership dissolved. His architectural work from this period included the Dayton Avenue Church, St. Paul (1888); St. Martin's by the Lake, Minneapolis (1888); and the Lightner House, St. Paul (1893).
His success convinced Gilbert that he was ready to compete in New York. Shortly after moving to New York, Gilbert was among those invited to submit plans for the U. S. Custom House.
He won the competition, but not without controversy. Other firms involved in the competition thought Taylor, then architect of the Treasury Building, in Washington, D. C. , had unfairly influenced the choice of his former partner.
His pursuit of the contract for the Woolworth Building, in New York, is just one example of his tenacious nature.
It was the tallest building in the world and it towered over the New York skyline for almost twenty years.
The building made Gilbert a celebrity and substantially increased the demand for his professional services.
In 1910, Gilbert was appointed to the National Commission of Fine Arts by President william howard taft.
He was reappointed for another term by President woodrow wilson in 1914.
Two symmetrical wings on either side of the central hall contained offices, libraries, and other Court functions.
Initially, the building was criticized for both its size and its exterior embellishment.
Charges of wasted space in the halls and corridors, and excessive seating in the courtroom, have diminished with time.
The building's exterior embellishment featured prominent legal figures and themes and was executed by some of the finest artists and sculptors of the day.
Time and improved sound technology have diminished this criticism.
This description could as easily be applied to the public buildings Gilbert designed.
Gilbert's work stayed true to the traditional themes that inspired him as a young man traveling in Europe.
Woolworth Building
Minnesota State Capitol
Gilbert believed strongly that architecture should serve the established political and social order; much of his work continues to serve its public purpose decades after its conception and completion.
Quotations: "Let us pay our architectural debts to the creators of the plan of Washington."
At various points in his career, he was an active member of the Architectural League of New York, Academy of Design, National Institute of Arts and Letters, Academy of Arts and Letters, Royal Institute of British Architects, Royal Institute of Canada, Architectural Society of Liverpool, Royal Academy of Arts, and French Legion of Honor.
Cass Gilbert was married to Julia T. Finch.