Okto‘BAU’fest!

Part IV: The Queen’s Dictionary of Architectural Terms
Rundbogenstil

‘Bau’ is the German word for building. So in honor of Oktoberfest Zinzinnati (September 20 – 21), Queen City Survey is looking at some Germanic influences on Cincinnati, its history, and its built environment in a week-long series we are calling Okto‘BAU’fest!

Rundbogenstil

Noun: Literally translated as "round-arch style", this 19th Century German variation of Romanesque Revival architecture has come to mean in the United States nearly any revival style architecture with a repetition and preponderance of round arched and/or circular openings.

Old Holy Cross Church (1895)
1055 St. Paul Place
Architect: James Picket
Style: 2nd Renaissance Revival

Jackson Brewery (1859)
200 – 220 West McMicken Street
Architect: Unknown
Style: Romanesque Revival

A number of Cincinnati breweries show and showed elements of the style as well.

I would also say St. Francis Sereph Church, that we looked at in Part III, has elements of Rundbogenstil.

References:
Curran, Kathleen. "The German Rundbogenstil and Reflections on the American Round-Arched Style." The Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians, Vol 47, No. 4 (December, 1988) pp. 351 - 373.

Next – Part V: Fountain Square Fun

Okto'BAU'fest!

Part I: The Queen’s Dictionary of Architectural Terms
Fachwerk

‘Bau’ is the German word for building. So in honor of Oktoberfest Zinzinnati (September 20 & 21), Queen City Survey is looking at some Germanic influences on Cincinnati, its history, and its built environment in a week-long series we are calling Okto'BAU'fest!

Fachwerk

Noun: The German term for timber-framed house. Half-timbered construction has been a common building tradition in Europe for centuries. Wood posts and beams are constructed to form the supporting structure and the space between the vertical timbers are filled with either stone, brick, or a construction method called wattle and daub where a wood lattice is formed (wattle) and covered in a mixture of usually water, soil, clay, and straw (daub).

Willis Kemper House (1895)
2206 Upland Place
Architect: Attributed to Lucian Plympton

‘Planet Dance’ Building
2230 Gilbert AvenueI do not know the architect nor the date of construction.

In modern buildings the post and beams are decorative and non-loadbearing, but the visual effect is the same. More examples of Fachwerk will be seen in upcoming Okto‘BAU’fest! posts. Which is why this post leads us off.

Next – Part II: Architect Emil Rueckert

The Queen’s Dictionary of Architectural Terms

Crenellations

Noun: The series of openings or depressions in a parapet, resulting in an alternating pattern of solids and voids where the individual cut-out openings are called crenels or embrasures and the raised portions called merlons. Also referred to as a battlement, the design was historically developed as a defensive measure along the top of castles and other fortress structures so a person could fire through the opening and yet still be protected during battle.

The Citadel (1905)
114 East 8th Street
Architect: Samuel Hannaford & Sons

Xavier University Hinkle Hall (1920)
3800 Victory Parkway
Architect: Joseph & Benjamin Steinkamp

Xavier University Schmidt Field House (1928)
3800 Victory Parkway
Architect: Joseph & Benjamin Steinkamp

Another good example, though not photographed, is the Hebrew Union College Classroom Building (1907) at 3101 Clifton Avenue by Architects Fechheimer & Ihorst with Harry Hake.

The Queen’s Dictionary of Architectural Terms

Crocket

Noun: Derived from a French term meaning hook, it is a decorative carving, usually resembling foliage, protruding from the sloped surfaces of gables and spires in Gothic architecture that serve no function but were intended as an imitation of a bishop’s staff called a crozier.

Christ Church Parish House (1909)

318 East Fourth Street

Architect: Elzner & Anderson

St. Francis Xavier Church (1861)

607 Sycamore Street
Architect: Louis Picket
First English Lutheran (1894)

1208 Race Street
Architect: Crapsey & Brown

The Queen's Dictionary of Architectural Terms

Gibbs Surround

Noun: A door or window framing device with alternating large and small blocks of stone named after Scottish architect James Gibbs (1682 – 1754). Gibbs was an influential architect in England in the early 1700’s. His most influential work is St. Martin-in-the-Fields which employs the motif.

700 Walnut Street (1895)
Downtown

On the same building, the design is incorporated with a segmented arched window pediment.
In some instances the device is elongated from the openings to create further pattern on the elevation.

Sixth District School (1896)
Over the Rhine - 1525 Elm Street
Architect: Henry Siter

Fire Station Co. 34 (1906)
Clifton - 301 Ludlow Avenue
Architect: Hake & Kuck

The Queen's Dictionary of Architectural Terms

Oriel Window

Noun: A type of bay window projecting from a wall sometimes supported by a corbel or bracket but not extending to the ground.

610 Race Street (1865)

The oriel window can be in a multi-story variation.

John Evans House (c. 1840)

The Fort Washington (1897)
The Brittany (1885)
Architect: Samuel Hannaford

Lancaster Building (1898)