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About the Building: THE ACTIVITIES
BUILDING AT CHESTNUT LODGE IN ROCKVILLE, MARYLAND The Activities Building at Chestnut Lodge meets the following established criteria for City of Rockville historic designation: Historical and Cultural Significance Has character,
interest, or value as part of the development, heritage, or cultural characteristics
of Rockville, Montgomery County, Maryland, and the United States The building was cited in a September 1955 article in Architectural Forum as an outstanding collaboration of client and architect and "should have great influence both as a specific facility and as an example of what architecture, given the chance, can do for medicine." This article provided positive national exposure for Smith's work, Bradley Karn (the builder), the Activities Building, Chestnut Lodge, and Rockville. Is identified with
a person or group of persons who influenced society When the Activities Building was designed and built in 1954-55, Dexter Bullard Sr. was medical director and Frieda Fromm-Reichman was on staff (until she passed away in 1957). Both Bullard and Fromm-Reichmann are two influential leaders with historical significance in the mental health field. In the biography, To Redeem One Person is to Redeem the World: The Life of Frieda Fromm-Reichman, author Gail Hornstein describes Fromm-Reichman as having revolutionized psychiatry by demonstrating, both in the 1920's in Heidelberg, Germany, and in the 1940's and 1950's, at Chestnut Lodge Hospital outside Washington, D.C., that it was possible to create a therapeutic ambience where 'hopeless schizophrenics' got better. The Activities Building was designed in a manner consistent with Bullard's and Fromm-Reichman's philosophy. The Activities Building was designed by architect Chloethiel Woodard Smith, FAIA, as partner in the firm of Keyes, Smith, Satterlee, & Lethbridge. Smith's influence as an architect is significant; two of her projects, Capitol Park in Southwest DC and Waterview Townhouses in Lake Anne Village in Reston, Virginia have achieved landmark designation in DC and Fairfax County, respectively. Her contributions to the profession, through design, writing, advocacy, and public service, influenced the public debate on urban planning and architecture in Washington, DC and throughout the nation. The New Yorker magazine, in a lengthy 1967 profile, called her "quite simply one of the best architects, planners, and thinkers about cities now working anywhere." The Activities Building is the single remaining building that stands today built during the time when these three internationally-recognized leaders in their profession-Bullard, Fromm-Reichman, and Smith-were producing work at Chestnut Lodge representative of their philosophies. No other building on the Chestnut Lodge campus can trace its design and use to the influence of these three individuals who influenced society in significant ways. Exemplifies the
cultural, economic, social, political or historical heritage of Montgomery
County and its communities. Chestnut Lodge was a major influence in defining the community's leading role in health care services. Wayne Fenton, M.D., who held various positions at Chestnut Lodge between 1984 and 1997 in various positions (including medical director and CEO) and later with the National Institute of Mental Health, was quoted in the April 20, 2001 Psychiatric News, "Over the past 90 years Chestnut Lodge has both shaped and reflected changes in American psychiatry." The Activities Center is an important, tangible example of Chestnut Lodge's leadership and innovation. The Activities Center is an early representation of post-World War II cultural, social, and economic progress in a city now known as "Home of the Genome."
Embodies the distinctive
characteristics of a type, period or method of construction The Activities Building was recently identified as one of a few Rockville buildings having architectural significance in a Maryland Historical Trust-initiated survey of the Modern Movement in Maryland (MOMOMA), conducted by the University of Maryland. Initial MOMOMA research conducted by Dr. Isabelle Gournay and Dr. Mary Corbin Sies identified the building's architect as Chloethiel Woodard Smith, a critically-acclaimed modernist architect known for her humanist design philosophy. Further research by the Recent Past Preservation Network has affirmed the building's current integrity as consistent with mid twentieth century modernism. The September 1955 issue of Architectural Forum describes structure as having "steel columns with open web steel joists…Columns are spaced to take stock 8' exterior wall panels and stock stash, for easy changes in the future. Glazing near the floor is translucent, colored, unbreakable plastic. Top sash is removable, leaving a screened ventilation band for the summer."
Smith's humanist philosophy and contributions to American architecture and planning is substantiated by the great body of work she produced. She had a reputation for sensible and innovative urban planning and was a respected authority on contemporary city planning and large-scale community housing. Jayne Lisbeth Doud, in a 1994 thesis, "Chloethiel Woodard Smith, FAIA: Washington Urban Gem," wrote that Smith was influenced by Le Corbusier and Frank Lloyd Wright, and expanded on concepts for urban residential living in natural settings, utilizing open green space and common pathways for access and egress between buildings of different scales. Smith's influence on the mid twentieth century design in the Washington area is significant. Through her work in the Washington, DC area and across the United States, Smith developed a reputation as one of America's most influential architects. The New Yorker, in a 1967 profile called Smith "quite simply one of the best architects, planners, and thinkers about cities now working anywhere." She was responsible for significant project commissions, including commissions at Chestnut Lodge that spanned a twenty year period. She was selected to serve on various committees that influenced the shaping of post-World War II Washington, DC. In addition to her work at Chestnut Lodge, she designed Harbour Square in Southwest Washington, the National Airport Metro station and the Waterview Townhouses in Reston, some of which have spiral steps that descend into a lake. At a key intersection in downtown Washington -- the corner of Connecticut Avenue and I Street NW -- Smith designed three of the four office buildings there; architects and critics have referred to the intersection as "Chloethiel's Corner." In addition, she helped save the old Pension Building in Northwest Washington; it now houses the National Building Museum. In 1989, the Washington chapter of the American Institute of Architects awarded her its Centennial Award for "continuous service to the chapter, the community and the profession." Smith also designed and built large residential projects in Boston and St. Louis, and was an influence on other architects as a member of the Fine Arts Commission, an independent federal agency, from 1967 to 1976. Though she has been described as influential, was cited with honors, and completed significant architectural projects and writings, (see "Fact Sheet on Chloethiel Woodard Smith') Chloethiel Woodard Smith's name is not as well-known by the general public as those of her contemporaries, due in part to gender bias of the time. Nonetheless, she is considered to be a master whose successful career spanned five decades.
The September 1955 Architectural Forum described the Activities Building as "a community center that would not be out of place on a campus or in a fortunate town, although unobtrusively it is most carefully designed for its special function and future expansion." The building was designed not to overpower, but to assimilate with surrounding buildings as part of campus that has been a familiar part of Rockville's landscape for more than ninety years. The Activities Building's design and integration with the surrounding landscape render it as a distinctive and recognizable element of the campus. Text by John Hartranft
for RPPN, photographs
by Corri Jimenez.
Preservation Updates, from John Hartranft, RPPN MD Representative January 2003: December 2003: The Activities Building was designed by renowned architect Chloethiel Woodard Smith, and for 49 years has been a familiar part of the campus landscape at Chestnut Lodge, which was a world-recognized mental health institution from 1910 through 2001 The building has been held up as a significant representative example of Maryland's Modern Movement in a Maryland Historical Trust-sponsored survey being conducted by the University of Maryland. Letters of testimony supporting historic designation of the building were received by from Architectural Historians Dr. Richard Longstreth, Dr. Isabelle Gournay, Joey Lampl, Christine Madrid French, Montgomery Preservation, Rockville citizens, and others. A 26 page Maryland Historical Trust Inventory Form on the building may be viewed on the City of Rockville web site at http://www.rockvillemd.gov/government/commissions/hdc/2003/500WMont-MHT.pdf In opposition were parents and board members of the Washington Waldorf School (which is selling the property), the contract purchaser (who want to build homes on the site), Rockville residents (who testified that they dislike the building), an architect (introduced by the contract purchaser) who identified himself as a contemporary of Chloethiel Smith, and the local historic preservation nonprofit. Each of these three entities stands to gain financially from the conveyance of property. The opposition views the possibility historic designation has a serious restriction to realizing full economic value from the land. The local preservation nonprofit group, testified that "There is question that this building meets Rockville's criteria for architectural significance." However, they are not supporting the designation, arguing in part that the nomination of the Activities Building is being considered 30 years after intial local historic district and National Register proposals that resulted in the designation of adjacent properties into a local and National register Historic District. The record before the Historic District Commission will be held open through its next meeting on January 15, 2004. |
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Activities
Building, Chestnut Lodge, Rockville, MD
