James Murphy (architect)

Irish-American architect (1834–1907)

James Murphy

St. Patrick's, Norwich (1873)

Born| 1834

County Tipperary, Ireland

Died| 1907

Cambridge, Massachusetts

Nationality| American
Known for| Architect of at least 45 catholic churches

James Murphy, FAIA, (1834–1907) was an Irish-American architect active in late-nineteenth- and early twentieth-century New England, who designed numerous Roman Catholic churches and related structures.

## Early life and career[edit]

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Murphy was born in 1834 in County Tipperary, Ireland. In 1852, he emigrated to the United States along with his brother Michael. Soon after his arrival, he entered the Brooklyn, New York, firm of Patrick C. Keely as an apprentice. Keely was already an established architect specializing in ecclesiastical design. Eventually, Murphy became a partner in the firm, operating as Keely & Murphy. Murphy would later marry Keely's sister-in-law.

## Architectural practice[edit]

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By the mid-1860s, the duo opened a branch office in Providence, Rhode Island. In 1875, the partnership was dissolved and Murphy established his own practice.[1] Murphy continued to specialize in church design for the ever-growing number of Roman Catholic parishes during the late nineteenth century, particularly in the southern New England area of Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut.

In the 1880s and 1890s, Murphy employed his nephew, Ambrose J. Murphy, who would later partner with Frank R. Hindle. Some time around 1900, Murphy established a new office in Boston, Massachusetts.

In 1870, Murphy joined the American Institute of Architects, and was elevated to Fellowship in 1885.[2]

## Personal life[edit]

James Murphy married Patrick Charles Keely's sister-in-law. Murphy had a brother, Michael Murphy, with whom he emigrated to America. The architect, Ambrose J. Murphy, was his nephew. Murphy died April 18, 1907, at the Holy Ghost Hospital (Cambridge, Massachusetts) in Cambridge, Massachusetts.[3]

## Legacy[edit]

Ambrose J. Murphy continued James Murphy's firm after 1907. He entered into partnership with Frank R. Hindle to form the firm of Murphy & Hindle, which practiced architecture in Rhode Island until the 1940s. That firm also specialized in church design.[4]

## Architectural works[edit]

### Churches[edit]

* 1862 - St. Bridget, 455 Plymouth St, Abington, Massachusetts[5]
* 1864 - St. Gregory, 2223 Dorchester Ave, Dorchester, Massachusetts[6]
* Demolished
* 1864 - St. Mary, 540 Broadway, Providence, Rhode Island[7]
* 1866 - St. Mary, 134 Norfolk St, Cambridge, Massachusetts[8]
* A Keely & Murphy project
* 1867 - St. John, 72 S Main St, Concord, New Hampshire[9]
* A Keely & Murphy project
* 1867 - St. Mary, 669 West Ave, Norwalk, Connecticut[10]
* 1868 - Immaculate Conception, 11 Prospect St, Marlborough, Massachusetts[11]
* 1868 - St. Michael, Prairie & Oxford, Providence, Rhode Island[12]
* Replaced in 1915, burned 1970s
* 1869 - Our Lady of Mercy, 500 Main St, East Greenwich, Rhode Island[13]
* Demolished
* 1869 - St. Bernard, 240 Water St, Fitchburg, Massachusetts[14]
* 1870 - St. Joseph, 264 Washington St, Somerville, Massachusetts[15]
* 1870 - St. Mary, 5 Hillhouse Ave, New Haven, Connecticut[16]
* 1870 - St. Patrick, 7 East St, Whitinsville, Massachusetts[17]
* Demolished
* 1871 - Holy Trinity, 133 Main St, Greenfield, Massachusetts[18]
* 1871 - St. John, 17 Chestnut St, Peabody, Massachusetts[19]
* 1871 - St. John, 352 Atwells Ave, Providence, Rhode Island[20][21]
* Demolished in 1992
* 1872 - St. John, 63 Church St, Slatersville, Rhode Island[22]
* 1873 - Our Lady Help of Christians, 573 Washington St, Newton, Massachusetts[23]
* 1873 - St. John, 279 Atlantic St, Stamford, Connecticut[24]
* 1873 - St. Patrick, 213 Broadway, Norwich, Connecticut[25]
* Cathedral status in 1952
* 1874 - Sacred Heart of Jesus, 166 Cross St, Gardner, Massachusetts[26]
* Burned in 1889
* 1875 - Notre Dame du Sacre Coeur, 222 E Main St, North Adams, Massachusetts[27]
* 1875 - St. Joseph, 115 Union St, Lynn, Massachusetts[28]
* 1878 - St. Mary, 90 7th St, Turners Falls, Massachusetts[29]
* 1880 - St. Patrick, Main & Park, Williamstown, Massachusetts[30]
* Demolished
* 1881 - St. Francis, 318 Church St, Naugatuck, Connecticut[31]
* 1881 - St. Mary, 30 Bartlett St, Westfield, Massachusetts[32]
* 1881 - St. Thomas, 2 E Main St, Huntington, Massachusetts[33]
* 1882 - St. Mary, 239 Greenwood Ave, Bethel, Connecticut
* 1885 - St. Louis, 440 Bradford Ave, Fall River, Massachusetts[34]
* Demolished in 2010
* 1885 - St. Mary, 103 Pine St, Pawtucket, Rhode Island[35]
* 1888 - Holy Rosary, Mosher & West, Holyoke, Massachusetts[36]
* Demolished
* 1888 - Sacred Heart, 387 Chestnut St, Springfield, Massachusetts[37]
* 1889 - Holy Trinity, 134 Fuller Ave, Central Falls, Rhode Island[38]
* Demolished
* 1889 - St. Edward, 997 Branch Ave, Wanskuck, Rhode Island[39]
* 1889 - St. Margaret, 1098 Pawtucket Ave, Rumford, Rhode Island[40]
* Burned in 1988
* 1889 - St. Patrick, 170 Thompson St, Bridgeport, Connecticut[41]
* Completed by Dwyer & McMahon in 1910
* 1890 - St. Patrick, 220 Bates St, Lewiston, Maine[42]
* 1892 - St. Edward, 458 Main St, Medfield, Massachusetts[43]
* Demolished
* 1892 - St. Patrick, 46 E Central St, Natick, Massachusetts[44]
* 1896 - Holy Name, 99 Camp St, Providence, Rhode Island[45]
* 1896 - St. Mary, 17 Waterville St, North Grafton, Massachusetts[46]
* Burned in 1948
* 1896 - St. Thomas, Columbia St, Adams, Massachusetts[47]
* 1902 - St. Peter, 16 Russell St, Great Barrington, Massachusetts[48]

### Other buildings[edit]

* 1872 - St. John Rectory, 63 Church St, Slatersville, Rhode Island[49]
* 1881 - St. Michael Hall and School, 260 State St, Springfield, Massachusetts[50]
* Demolished
* 1883 - St. Bernard Rectory, 240 Water St., Fitchburg, Massachusetts[51]
* 1898 - Tyler School, Plain & Maple, Providence, Rhode Island[52]
* The cathedral school, demolished

## See also[edit]

* Patrick W. Ford, a contemporary church architect.

## References[edit]

1. ^ St. Patrick's (accessed 17 January 2011)
2. ^ James Murphy, AIA Historical Directory of American Architects.
3. ^ RIHS, Murphy, Hindle and Wright Architects Records (Accessed 17 January 2011)
4. ^ Dr. Kevin F. Decker, Department of History, State University of New York at Plattsburgh
5. ^ Hobard, Benjamin. History of the Town of Abington. 1866.
6. ^ Shand-Tucci, Paul Douglass. The Gothic Churches of Dorchester. 1973.
7. ^ Woodward, William McKenzie. Providence: A Citywide Survey of Historic Resources. 1986.
8. ^ Lord, Robert H., John E. Sexton, and Edward T. Harrington. History of the Archdiocese of Boston in the Various Stages of its Development. 1944.
9. ^ History of the Catholic Church in the New England States. 1899.
10. ^ "Saint Mary Roman Catholic Church, Norwalk (1870)". historicbuildingsct.com. 25 Dec. 2014.
11. ^ "Immaculate Conception Roman Catholic Church" http://mhc-macris.net/. Massachusetts Historical Commission, n. d. Web.
12. ^ Saint Michael's Roman Catholic Church Complex NRHP Nomination. 1975.
13. ^ "History". http://www.o[permanent dead link]lmparish.org/. 2012.
14. ^ "Saint Bernard's Roman Catholic Church" http://mhc-macris.net/. Massachusetts Historical Commission, n. d. Web.
15. ^ "Saint Joseph's Roman Catholic Church" http://mhc-macris.net/. Massachusetts Historical Commission, n. d. Web.
16. ^ Brown, Elizabeth Mills. New Haven: A Guide to Architecture and Urban Design. 1976.
17. ^ History of the Catholic Church in the New England States. 1899.
18. ^ "Holy Trinity Roman Catholic Church" http://mhc-macris.net/. Massachusetts Historical Commission, n. d. Web.
19. ^ Hurd, D. Hamilton. History of Essex County, Massachusetts. 1888.
20. ^ Conley, Patrick T. and Matthew J. Smith. Catholicism in Rhode Island: The Formative Era. 1976.
21. ^ Greene, Welcome Arnold. The Providence Plantations for 250 Years. 1886.
22. ^ Slatersville Historic District NRHP Nomination. 1973.
23. ^ "Our Lady Help of Christians Historic District" http://mhc-macris.net/. Massachusetts Historical Commission, n. d. Web.
24. ^ History of the Catholic Church in the New England States. 1899.
25. ^ Staley, Patricia F. Norwich in the Gilded Age: The Rose City's Millionaires' Triangle. 2014.
26. ^ History of the Catholic Church in the New England States. 1899.
27. ^ "Notre Dame Roman Catholic Church" http://mhc-macris.net/. Massachusetts Historical Commission, n. d. Web.
28. ^ "Saint Joseph's Roman Catholic Church" http://mhc-macris.net/. Massachusetts Historical Commission, n. d. Web.
29. ^ History of the Catholic Church in the New England States. 1899.
30. ^ History of the Catholic Church in the New England States. 1899.
31. ^ Gagliardi, Ron. Images of America: Naugatuck Revisited. 2004.
32. ^ Lockwood, John H. Westfield and Its Historic Influences, 1669-1919: The Life of an Early Town. 1922.
33. ^ Cooke, Rollin H. Historic Homes and Institutions and Genealogical and Personal Memoirs of Berkshire County, Massachusetts. 1906.
34. ^ "Saint Louis Church" http://mhc-macris.net/. Massachusetts Historical Commission, n. d. Web.
35. ^ Sanitary Engineer 17 Sept. 1885: 316.
36. ^ Engineering and Building Record 10 Dec. 1887: 31.
37. ^ "Sacred Heart Roman Catholic Church" http://mhc-macris.net/. Massachusetts Historical Commission, n. d. Web.
38. ^ Holy Trinity Church Complex NRHP Nomination. 1978.
39. ^ Woodward, William McKenzie. Providence: A Citywide Survey of Historic Resources. 1986.
40. ^ Norton, Paul F. Rhode Island Stained Glass An Historical Guide. 2001.
41. ^ Engineering and Building Record 26 Oct. 1889: 311.
42. ^ Historic Lewiston: A Self-guided Tour of Our History, Architecture and Culture. 2001.
43. ^ "Saint Edward's Roman Catholic Church" http://mhc-macris.net/. Massachusetts Historical Commission, n. d. Web.
44. ^ "Saint Patrick's Roman Catholic Church" http://mhc-macris.net/. Massachusetts Historical Commission, n. d. Web.
45. ^ Woodward, William McKenzie. Providence: A Citywide Survey of Historic Resources. 1986.
46. ^ History of the Catholic Church in the New England States. 1899.
47. ^ History of the Catholic Church in the New England States. 1899.
48. ^ American Architect and Building News 9 Aug. 1902: x.
49. ^ Slatersville Historic District NRHP Nomination. 1973.
50. ^ Donahoe's Magazine 1 Sept. 1881: 280.
51. ^ "Saint Bernard's Roman Catholic Rectory" http://mhc-macris.net/. Massachusetts Historical Commission, n. d. Web.
52. ^ Cady, John Hutchins. The Civic and Architectural Development of Providence, 1636-1950. 1957.

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