Miller House | |
---|---|
Alternative names | Argyle House |
General information | |
Architectural style | Chateauesque |
Location | Sheridan-Kalorama |
Address | 2201 Massachusetts Avenue N.W. |
Town or city | Washington, D.C. |
Coordinates | 38°54′42″N77°02′56″W / 38.911528°N 77.048835°W |
Completed | 1901 |
Design and construction | |
Architect(s) | Paul J. Pelz |
Miller House is a mansion on the Embassy Row section of Massachusetts Avenue in Washington, D.C. It has been described as "the finest surviving mansion" designed by Paul J. Pelz, the main architect of the Library of Congress. [1]
Designed by Pelz in the Northern Renaissance style, the house was built in 1900-01 for Commander Frederick Augustus Miller (1842–1909). Because Miller had been a U.S. Navy officer during the U.S. Civil War the house includes a number of maritime motifs, [2] [3] : 343 including the statue of a ship's cat on the ledge facing Massachusetts Avenue. [4]
The house was sold by Miller's widow in 1913 and changed hands several times afterwards. During most of the 1920s it was owned by Washington developer Harry Wardman or his business partners. In 1923–26 it was leased to the Costa Rican and Salvadorean Legations. Like many mansions in Northwest Washington, D.C., it was then divided into apartments during the Great Depression and rented as a boarding house. In the early 1960s it was owned by Oscar Cox, who in 1940–41 had been instrumental in drafting and administering the Lend-Lease Act. [5]
In 1984, the house's owner, Scott McLeod, started its renovation. During the works that same year, [3] : 342 a fire destroyed many of the house's internal features. [6] The owner decided to preserve and repair the exterior structure and to rebuild inside on a design by Richard Ridley, a local architect and author of the Washington Post 's Making Space column from 1982 to 1988. The project was completed in 1986 and won a Dupont Circle Conservancy Historic Preservation Award. [7]
In the early 21st century, the house has been managed by a condominium association under the name "Argyle House".
An integral part of the house is the former garage on 22nd Street, also built in 1900–01 and "apparently the first [automobile garage] in Washington," [3] : 342 actually intended for an electric car. From 1986 to 2009 it was used by Olga Hirshhorn, widow of entrepreneur and philanthropist Joseph Hirshhorn, to host part of her art collection. Hirschhorn named the 500-square-foot structure her "Mouse House", in playful reference to the house's cat statue. In 2009 the contents of the "Mouse House" were displayed at the Bruce Museum of Arts and Science in Greenwich, Connecticut [8] and then at the Baker Museum in Naples, Florida where they have since been donated to the permanent exhibition. [9]
In its January 2020 issue, Washingtonian included the rooftop cat sculpture as Ceramic Cat among its list of 93 "hidden gems" in Washington D.C., titled "Off-the-Beaten-Path Things to See and Do". [10]
Dupont Circle is a historic roundabout park and neighborhood of Washington, D.C., located in Northwest D.C. The Dupont Circle neighborhood is bounded approximately by 16th Street NW to the east, 22nd Street NW to the west, M Street NW to the south, and Florida Avenue NW to the north. Much of the neighborhood is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. However, the local government Advisory Neighborhood Commission and the Dupont Circle Historic District have slightly different boundaries.
Embassy Row is the informal name for a section of Northwest Washington, D.C., with a high concentration of embassies, diplomatic missions, and diplomatic residences. It spans Massachusetts Avenue N.W. between 18th and 35th street, bounded by Scott Circle to the south and the United States Naval Observatory to the north; the term is often applied to nearby streets and neighborhoods that also host diplomatic buildings, such as Kalorama.
There are many outdoor sculptures in Washington, D.C. In addition to the capital's most famous monuments and memorials, many figures recognized as national heroes have been posthumously awarded with his or her own statue in a park or public square. Some figures appear on several statues: Abraham Lincoln, for example, has at least three likenesses, including those at the Lincoln Memorial, in Lincoln Park, and the old Superior Court of the District of Columbia. A number of international figures, such as Mohandas Gandhi, have also been immortalized with statues. The Statue of Freedom is a 19½-foot tall allegorical statue that rests atop the United States Capitol dome.
Massachusetts Avenue is a major diagonal transverse road in Washington, D.C., and the Massachusetts Avenue Historic District is a historic district that includes part of it.
The Thomas Jefferson Building, also known as the Main Library, is the oldest of the Library of Congress buildings in Washington, D.C. Built between 1890 and 1897, it was initially known as the Library of Congress Building. In 1980, the building was named in honor of Thomas Jefferson, a Founding Father, the principal author of the Declaration of Independence, and the third U.S. president. In 1815, Jefferson's donation of his own book collection formed a core foundation for the library's collection.
Thomas Circle is a traffic circle in Northwest Washington, D.C., United States. It is located at the intersection of 14th Street, M Street, Massachusetts Avenue, and Vermont Avenue NW. A portion of Massachusetts Avenue travels through a tunnel underneath the circle. The interior of the circle includes the equestrian statue of George Henry Thomas, a Union Army general in the Civil War.
Sheridan Circle is a traffic circle and park in the Sheridan-Kalorama neighborhood of Washington, D.C. The traffic circle, one of two in the neighborhood, is the intersection of 23rd Street NW, Massachusetts Avenue NW, and R Street NW. The buildings along this stretch of Massachusetts Avenue NW are part of Embassy Row, which runs from Scott Circle to Observatory Circle. Sheridan Circle is a contributing property to the Massachusetts Avenue Historic District and the Sheridan-Kalorama Historic District, both listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). In addition, the equestrian statue of General Philip Sheridan is 1 of 18 Civil War Monuments in Washington, D.C., that were collectively listed on the NRHP.
The Embassy of the Philippines in Washington, D.C. is the diplomatic mission of the Republic of the Philippines to the United States. It is located at 1600 Massachusetts Avenue, Northwest, Washington, D.C. It predates the independence of the Philippines, and is the oldest Philippine legation overseas, though the distinction of the first Philippine embassy proper overseas, belongs to the Philippine Embassy in Tokyo.
The Sixteenth Street Historic District is a 1.25-mile (2.01 km) linear historic district in Washington, D.C., that includes all structures along 16th Street NW between H Street and Florida Avenue. The district's southern boundary is bordered by Lafayette Square, just north of the White House, and Meridian Hill Park on its northern boundary. It includes an eclectic mix of architectural styles on one of the city's most historic and important numbered streets including single and multi-family residential buildings, embassies, hotels, churches, and office buildings.
The Embassy of Turkey in Washington, D.C. is the diplomatic mission of the Republic of Turkey to the United States. It is located at 2525 Massachusetts Avenue, Northwest in the Embassy Row neighborhood.
The Sulgrave Club is a private women's club located at 1801 Massachusetts Avenue NW on the east side of Dupont Circle in Washington, D.C. The clubhouse is the former Beaux-Arts mansion on Embassy Row built for Herbert and Martha Blow Wadsworth and designed by noted architect George Cary. During World War I the Wadsworth House was used as the local headquarters for the American Red Cross.
Brevet Lt. General Winfield Scott is an equestrian statue in Washington, D.C., that honors career military officer Winfield Scott. The monument stands in the center of Scott Circle, a traffic circle and small park at the convergence of 16th Street, Massachusetts Avenue and Rhode Island Avenue NW. The statue was sculpted by Henry Kirke Brown, whose best-known works include statues of George Washington in New York and Nathanael Greene in Washington, D.C. It was the first of many sculptures honoring Civil War generals that were installed in Washington, D.C.'s traffic circles and squares and was the second statue in the city to honor Scott.
The Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia in Washington, D.C. is the diplomatic mission of the Republic of Indonesia to the United States. It is located at 2020 Massachusetts Avenue, Northwest, Washington, D.C., in the Embassy Row neighborhood.
Paul Johannes Pelz was a German-American architect, best known as the main architect of the Library of Congress in Washington D.C.
General Winfield Scott Hancock is an equestrian statue of Winfield Scott Hancock, by Henry Jackson Ellicott together with architect Paul J. Pelz. It is located at Pennsylvania Avenue in United States Navy Memorial Park at the northwest corner of 7th Street, Northwest, Washington, D.C.
The James G. Blaine Mansion, commonly known as the Blaine Mansion, is a historic house located at 2000 Massachusetts Avenue NW, in the Dupont Circle neighborhood of Washington, D.C. The imposing house was completed in 1882 for James G. Blaine, a Republican politician from Maine who served as Speaker of the House, and later as a US Senator and US Secretary of State. He was also a presidential candidate who was narrowly defeated by Grover Cleveland in the 1884 United States presidential election.
Nathan Corwith Wyeth was an American architect. He is best known for designing the West Wing of the White House, creating the first Oval Office. He designed a large number of structures in Washington, D.C., including the Francis Scott Key Bridge over the Potomac River, the USS Maine Mast Memorial, the D.C. Armory, the Tidal Basin Inlet Bridge, many structures that comprise Judiciary Square, and numerous private homes—many of which now serve as embassies. He also co-designed the Cannon House Office Building, the Russell Senate Office Building, the Longworth House Office Building, and an addition to the Russell Senate Office Building.
Olga Hirshhorn was an American collector of 19th and 20th century art and supporter of art museums.
The Sheridan-Kalorama Historic District is a neighborhood and historic district located in the northwest quadrant of Washington, D.C. The boundaries of the historic district include Rock Creek Park to the north and west, P Street to the south, and 22nd Street and Florida Avenue to the east. On the southwestern edge of the neighborhood is a stretch of Embassy Row on Massachusetts Avenue. The other neighborhood and historic district that lies to the east of Sheridan-Kalorama is Kalorama Triangle Historic District. The two neighborhoods are divided by Connecticut Avenue. For many years both neighborhoods were geographically connected before the stretch of Connecticut Avenue was installed toward the Taft Bridge. Oftentimes, both neighborhoods are simply called "Kalorama" or "Kalorama Heights".
Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States, has a unique and diverse architectural history. Encompassing government, monumental, commercial, and residential buildings, D.C. is home to some of the country's most famous and popular structures designed by some of the leading architects of their time. The popularity of the city's buildings is reflected in the findings of a 2007 poll of Americans by the American Institute of Architects, which found that six of the top 10 most popular U.S. structures were located in Washington, D.C. Overall, the poll found, 17 of the top 150 most popular structures were located in the capital.