Howard Mortuary Chapel facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
|
|
Louisa Howard Chapel
|
|
(2009)
|
|
 Location in Vermont
Location in the United States
|
|
| Location | 455 North Ave. Burlington, Vermont |
|---|---|
| Built | 1882 |
| Architect | A. B. Fisher |
| Architectural style | High Victorian Gothic |
| NRHP reference No. | 99001272 |
| Added to NRHP | October 21, 1999 |
The Louisa Howard Chapel is a very old and special building in Burlington, Vermont. You can find it at 455 North Avenue, inside the Lakeview Cemetery. This beautiful chapel was built in 1882.
It was designed in a style called High Victorian Gothic by an architect named Alfred Benjamin Fisher. The land for the cemetery itself was planned by E. C. Ryer in 1871. Hannah Louisa Howard gave this chapel to the City of Burlington. Because of its history and design, the chapel was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1999.
Contents
What Does the Chapel Look Like?
The Louisa Howard Chapel is located inside Lakeview Cemetery. This cemetery is north of downtown Burlington, right between North Avenue and Burlington Bay. The chapel stands close to the road, just south of the cemetery's main entrance.
It is built from a special type of stone called Monkton quartzite, which is often called "redstone" locally. The stone is cut into smooth, flat blocks (called an ashlar finish). These blocks are laid in even rows, with gray limestone used for decoration.
The chapel has many features typical of the Gothic style. These include strong stone supports called buttresses along its sides. It also has tall, narrow windows with pointed tops, known as lancet-arched windows. The roof is very steep and made of purple slate.
On the east side, the roof rises to a small tower called a bellcote. This bellcote has a pointed arch opening, just like the windows.
Who Was Hannah Louisa Howard?
The chapel was built in 1882 thanks to Hannah Louisa Howard. She was the daughter of John Howard, who owned a very successful hotel. Hannah Louisa Howard was known as a philanthropist. This means she was a kind person who gave a lot of money to help others.
She especially focused on helping people in need in Burlington. Her gifts included support for the Home for Destitute Children. She also helped the Louisa Howard Mission and the Burlington Cancer Relief Association. She even provided scholarships for students who couldn't afford to go to the University of Vermont.
Alfred Benjamin Fisher, who designed the chapel, was one of the most important architects in Burlington at that time. The chapel is a great example of his work and the High Victorian Gothic style.
A Chapel's Journey: From Use to Restoration
The chapel was used for memorial services, like funerals, until the 1940s. After that, it was mostly used for storing caskets and fell into disuse.
In the early 1990s, a group called "Friends of the Chapel" started working to save the building. They began raising money to fix it up. Their goal was to restore the chapel and bring it back into use for services.
Many donations and grants helped pay for the big repairs. These included adding new heating and electricity. Workers also fixed the stone walls (called repointing stonework). The roof and windows were repaired, and the inside woodwork was repainted. They also fixed the plaster and repainted the beautiful stenciling inside the building.
All the restoration work was finished in 2006. The chapel was officially opened again on July 30 of that year, ready to be used once more.
See also
