Latrobe, Benjamin Henry

Latrobe, Benjamin Henry

(1764–1820) architect; born in Fulneck, Yorkshire, England. Having trained in England as an engineer and then as an architect with Samuel Pepys Cockerell, Latrobe enjoyed a successful practice there before emigrating to America in 1795. His early work included the monumental Greek Revival Bank of Pennsylvania (1798–1800) and the earliest American city water system (1799–1801), both in Philadelphia. Latrobe was appointed surveyor of the U.S. Capitol (1803–17) and supervised the construction of William Thornton's plans, making interior alterations; after the burning of the Capitol by the British in 1814, he submitted new designs. He designed numerous other buildings in Washington, D.C., mastering the Federal style and spearheading the popularity of Greek Revival public architecture in America. His largest building was the Cathedral of the Assumption, Baltimore (1805–21), the first vaulted church in the U.S.A.

The Cambridge Dictionary of American Biography, by John S. Bowman. Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1995. Reproduced with permission.