It stands to reason that a city with the motto; “the Nation’s Oldest Seaside Resort” would have a lot of old buildings. In fact, with over 600 summer homes, hotels and commercial structures, Cape May has one of the largest collections of 19th century frame buildings remaining in the Unites States. We are second only to San Francisco in that regard. In honor of that fact, Cape May received National Historic landmark status in 1976 and this year, celebrates its 30th year of that esteemed designation.
Obviously the standards are high for a building, let alone a city, to qualify for National Landmark status. CapeMay.com decided to take a short walk around town and see exactly what the experts are looking for when they define a structure as being Victorian. In March 2003, we looked at Late Victorian Architecture or post-Civil War, 1860-1900. This time around, we will look at the Romantic Houses or early Victorian period, 1820-1880.
For help, we consulted the city’s Historic Preservation Commission (HPC) booklet on Design Standards which defines the Victorian period as spanning the years 1837 to 1901, the reign of Great Britain’s Queen Victoria. However, the HPC says “some of the defining architectural styles of the first years of her reign started emerging as early as the second decade of the 19th century and remained popular into the 1880s.”
Early Victorian architecture reflects a new republic looking for its own stamp of distinction and a way to break from the traditional English construction. A myriad of styles emerged in this pre-Civil War period, among them Gothic Revival, Romanesque Revival style, Renaissance Revival style, Exotic Revival style and Octagon style.
Gothic Revival was inspired by the Romantic Movement, which, according the HPC manual “proclaimed its superiority of the Christian medieval past. Angularity, asymmetry verticality, steep intersecting gables, pointed arch windows and towers distinguish it. However, very few could afford it. The proper Gothic Revival was meant to be made of stone with intricate carvings. In true American fashion, people compromised and, more often than not, built a balloon-frame Gothic Revival home supported by elaborate wood ornamentation more readily available, thanks to the invention of the jigsaw. This was known as Carpenter Gothic.
The eight Stockton Cottages on Gurney Street are an example of Carpenter Gothic, the former Franklin Street Methodist Church, turned condo, at Franklin and Washington streets, as well as the private residence on 655 Hughes Street. Revival Gothic architecture is always distinguished by numerous gables or steeple-like angles above the windows. In the case of the Hughes Street property, windows extend into gables with elaborately detailed woodwork in the most prominent gable. The roof is pitched and gabled. There are gable dormers on either side of the larger central gable. The window panes are diamond-shaped with arched and square window crowns. On the lower level, a single column with flattened arches supports the porch roof. Full-scale bay windows are located on the first and second floor and the front door is designed with elaborate panels with etched cased glass and leaded stained-glass transoms.
With just a mention of the Franklin Street Church – it was originally the First Baptist Church and was built in 1878 by architect Charles Brown. The church was constructed by local contractor Charles Shaw. According to George E. Thomas and Carl Doebley, authors of Cape May Queen of the Seaside Resorts – Its History and Architecture, Brown “defied the thin, linear conventions of local building and attempted to give the building the feeling of mass associated with masonry buildings.” This was achieved with massive corner wooden buttresses and an elaborate wooden frame about the door and window frames.
For the most obvious example of Romanesque Revival style we again visit one of the city’s churches – Our Lady Star of the Sea on the corner of the Washington Street Mall and Ocean Street. Built in 1911, it is, according the Thomas-Doebley book, one of the more ambitious undertakings in Cape May’s architectural history. The gabled roof comes into play again as well as a flat roof with parapet (a low or protective wall along the edge of a raised structure such as a roof or balcony), on the tower section of the church. The doors are tall, round and arched and most distinctive is the fortress-like appearance achieved not only through the architecture but with the monochromatic stone used in the building of the structure all reminiscent of the medieval, Normal design with little sculptured ornamentation. We should note that earlier, we defined the early Victorian period as being 1820-1880, but Our Lady Star of the Sea, which replaced the old St. Mary’s Church, is, nevertheless, an example of Romanesque Revival architecture. The Romanesque Revival style was introduced in the early 1840s and remained a later 19th century presence.
Just across the street on the same corner is the “old bank building,” as we locals call it. The former New Jersey Trust and Safe Deposit Company is an example of Renaissance Revival Style of architecture and has had several owners and occupants since its construction in 1895, among them, it served as Cape May’s city hall for a time. It was McDowell’s Gallery, a retail store, for 25 years and just this past year changed ownership and is currently Winterwood Gift Shop. The bank building was considerably altered in this century to accommodate the needs its tenants. The building was extended south and the interior remodeled to include two levels of offices in the new section.
Renaissance Revival Style architecture is distinguished by austere rectangular or square box structure with minimal projections or recesses. It has a flat roof with a parapet and prominent chimney. There are wide, overhanging eaves supported by large decorative brackets, an arched top door with a short bottom panel and tall, glazed top panel. The windows in the building are ached top windows. It has corniced moldings and wide overhanging eaves supported by large decorative brackets beneath.
Another example of Renaissance Revival can be found at 20 Jackson Street also known as Holly House. Holly House is another example of an architectural style which emerged early and continued late into the century. Holly House was built in 1891 and has the typical rectangular construction found in Renaissance Revival Style. Residential properties had one story porches. In the case of 20 Jackson Street, the front porch is a full-width front porch not a wrap-around. Please note that when walking along 20 Jackson, you are actually facing the back of the house. 
Holly House is one of the Seven Sister Houses which were built facing their own courtyard known as Atlantic Terrace. They were built on the site of the old McMakin’s Atlantic Hotel which was destroyed following the Great Fire of 1878. According to authors Thomas and Doebley, developer E. C. Knight commissioned architect Stephen D. Button to design a group of house for the still-empty property in the fall of 1891. They were completed the following spring.
The stately Southern Mansion Hotel at 720 Washington Street is a fine example of Italianate Style of architecture which was nearly lost save for the efforts of its present owner Barbara Bray Wilde. The three-story structure also has a rectangular plan with a symmetrical façade and a square cupola with a finial on top. Wide overhanging eaves supported by large decorated brackets appear on the sides of the roof. There a pair of prominent chimneys with molded terra cotta chimney pots. Windows are plentiful and paired on the third floor. The second floor windows are tall and narrow with a rectangular top. The wooden shutters on the ground floor accent the floor-to-ceiling windows. The front entryway is distinguished by tall double doors with a curved top, short bottom panel and tall top panel. Another example of Italianate architecture can be found at 28-30 Congress Street. Here the cupola is hipped with a pyramidal roof and conclave slopes at the tower. The prominent two-story porches feature walk-through windows.
Cape May Stage’s Lafayette Street theater is currently undergoing a re-do. This Exotic Revival Style structure was built in 1853. This past winter the onion-shaped cupola or belvedere atop the building received a severe going over. Underneath the cupola are sturdy steel reinforcements and new wood beams supporting a new roof and providing a safe place from which to hang new stage lighting (a project slate to begin in the fall). Exotic Revival uses Egyptian ornaments on an otherwise Italianate structure, a la the cupola. The doors and windows feature scalloped edges and massive columns on either side of the building to support the roof.
Despite desire to break away from England, Exotic Revival architecture definitely explores Queen Victoria’s exploration of the Far East and development of trade with them. Turkish domes and oriental trip became common and remained prevalent into the early 1830s.
The history of the building goes back to early Presbyterians visiting the island in the 1800s. They did not have a church. They instead traveled to Cold Spring Presbyterian Church on Seashore Rd, some three miles away. In 1844 one of the ministers decided to build a summer church or Visitor’s Church at the north end of Washington Street. As the town became more established, the newly formed Cape May congregation asked if they could buy the church. The Cold Spring elders said no. The Cape May congregation said o.k. and went ahead and purchased the property on Lafayette Street. For a sum of $7,000, Cape Island Presbyterian Church was built in the Exotic Revivalist style. The first service occurred on July 17th, 1853.
Our final architectural look-see is at 1286 Lafayette Street. This private esidence is built in the Octagon Style. The two story structure has a flat roof with wide eave overhangs. Its most distinctive property is its very shape – an octagon. It is a rare style and was inspired by Orson S. Fowler who claimed the Octagon Style superior to all others in that it minimized perimeter wall length, reduced building costs, cut heat loss and maximized sunlight – think of it as the first solar house, if you will. These were built mostly in the 1850s and ‘60s.
That’s about it for now. We strongly suggest you take a walk-about and look at some our lovely and interesting buildings. They define Cape May. They define our history, our concern for their continued preservation and the reason our love for this – the oldest seaside resort goes way beyond the love of beach and ocean.
