The chapel was donated by Cleveland industrialist William Gwinn Mather, who graduated from Trinity College in 1877. The $500,000 gift (equivalent to $7,245,000in 2024)[1] was announced at the winter meeting of the college's board of trustees on December 2, 1927.[2]
Architect Philip H. Frohman of the firm Frohman Robb and Little was hired in the summer of 1928[3] to design the structure.[4]
Ground was broken on February 1, 1930.[3] Shortly before, college administrators discovered a crate of stones donated to Trinity College in the early 1880s by an alumnus. It was decided that these stones would be worked into the fabric of the new chapel. The pieces of stone included:
A piece of Roman tile from the Chapel of St. Pancras and a piece of Caen stone, both from from St. Ethelbert's Tower at the Abbey Church of St. Peter, St. Paul, and St. Augustine at the Missionary College of St. Augustine in Canterbury, England;
A piece of carved stone from Canterbury Cathedral in Canterbury, England;
The chapel's main altar was a gift from Katherine L. Mather, sister of Willam G. Mather, and carved from a cream-colored Texaslimestone. A tiny fragment of worked stone, taken from the Temple Mount in Israel in 1855, was placed in the carved foundation stone at the front of the altar when it was laid on April 14, 1932.[6]
The main contractor which erected the chapel was the R.G. Bent Co. of Hartford. Ironwork was provided by the Bradley & Hubbard Co. of Meriden, Connecticut, and the specialty wrought iron by The Iron Craftsmen of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.[5] Earl Edward Sanborn, who provided stained glass for Washington National Cathedral and the Boston College Library, designed and manufactured the initial stained glasswork.[7]
The chapel was consecrated on June 19, 1932.[5] Mather insisted that the chapel be left purposefully incomplete at the time of its consecreation. This would allow others to donate furnishings, stained glass, stone and wood carving, and other decorative elements.[5]
As constructed
The exterior is Gothic Revival in style, intended to reflect the English Gothic practice of the 13th century.[3] The stucture is completely masonry construction, set on bedrock, with foundation walls 6 feet (1.8m) thick. The exterior is of Indiana limestone, and the roof of slate.[5] The lintels over the doorways leading into the chapel are carved with images of the workmen who built the structure.[5]
The crypt is Normanesque Revival in style.[3] Seven layers of brick support the crypt ceiling. The crypt contains a Normanesque small chapel as well.[5]
The interior of the chapel is clad in limestone covered with plaster, with the floor of flagstone. The roof is supported by specially carved wooden trusses; no concrete or steel beams were used. The ceiling is 65 feet (20m) above the floor of the nave.[5] As seen from the outside, the arches, transoms, mullions, and frames of the windows are in the Gothic Revival Style, but from the interior they are carved to look Normanesque.[5] As one exits the chapel, one can see the lintels over the doorways are carved to depict monks studying Holy Scripture.[5]
The large stained glass window in the east was a gift of William G. Mather. The rose window in the west was, at the time of consecration, made of clear leaded glass. Only four other stained glass windows were made for the chapel. One was donated by the workmen who constructed the church; one was given by alumnus and architect Henry W. Wright; and one window was donated by the Class of 1930 and another by the Class of 1892.[5]
North of the nave is the Friendship Chapel. There are four stained glass windows here:
The "Last Supper Window" was donated by Mary C. Henney
The "Aeneas and Achates Window" was donated by college president Remsen Ogilby
The "Damon and Pythias Window" was donated by Frank Langdon Wilcox
The "David and Jonathan Window" was donated by the Alphs Chi Rho fraternity.[5]
The Trinity College Chapel tower is 165 feet (50m) tall. The carillon, donated by Rev. John Fields Plum, consists of 30 bells manufactured by John Taylor and Company of England.[5]
The organ, Skinner opus 851,[8] is an 8,000 pipe,[5] French-style[9]Aeolian-Skinner built by G. Donald Harrison.[10] It was the first time Harrison had complete control over an organ from the factory stage to the finishing installation.[8]
The organ was donated by Dr. Dwight Wallace Tracy.[5]
Gallery
Trinity College Chapel
Trinity College Chapel
Trinity College Chapel
View from the organ loft
Trinity College Chapel
References
↑"Chapel at Trinity to Cost $500,000 Donor Announces". Hartford Courant. December 23, 1927. p.1.
↑"Trinity Adds to Fee, Gets New Chapel". Hartford Courant. December 4, 1927. p.18.
12345"Ground Broken for Chapel on Trinity College Campus". Hartford Courant. February 2, 1930. pp.23–24.
↑"Philip H. Frohman, 1887-1972". Progressive Architecture. December 1972. p.75.
12345678910111213141516"Trinity Chapel Consecrated for College Worship". Hartford Courant. June 19, 1932. p.29.
↑"Stone from Temple of Solomon Placed in Trinity Chapel". Hartford Courant. April 15, 1932. p.20.
↑"Stained Glass Artist Dies". The Baltimore Evening Sun. July 26, 1937. p.26; "Stained Glass Artist Engaged by Trinity Dies". Hartford Courant. July 27, 1937. p.4.
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