Wow! eBook
Transforming Norwood
Author(s): Heather Cole (Author)
- Publication Date: October 27, 2012
- Language: English
- Print length: 27 pages
- ISBN-10: B009Y7Q3ZQ
Book Description
William G. Upham (1880-1966) was a Harvard-educated architect who designed or renovated more than 50 public and private buildings throughout New England between 1911 and 1954, gaining recognition as a designer of Colonial, Georgian and Gothic Revival buildings. A Norwood, Massachusetts native and resident, Upham designed some of the most important and prominent buildings in town—including the town hall, post office, theatre and high school—many which remain standing today. Upham’s work in town was contemporary with that of Norwood’s first town planner, George F. Willett, and landscape architect Arthur A. Shurtleff (a protégé of Frederick Law Olmsted), and the work of the three men led the transformation of Norwood from a rather haphazardly developed farming village-turned-industrial city into what Willett later described as a “model New England town.” This transformation included the creation of Norwood’s first town plan and zoning regulations which called for, among other things, the construction new business buildings along Washington Street (several designed by Upham), the construction of new municipal buildings (designed by Upham) and the creation of a centrally-located town square (designed by Upham and Shurtleff). This report will identify and document the historical and architectural significance of the municipal and commercial buildings in Norwood that were designed by Upham and connect his work to that of colleagues Willett and Shurtleff.
