Jump to content

Adrian Boucher

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Adrian Boucher
Bornc. 1760
Died1804(1804-00-00) (aged 43–44)
NationalityFrench
OccupationArchitect
BuildingsCity Exchange, Savannah, Georgia

Adrian Boucher (c. 1760–1804) was a French architect who came to prominence after emigrating to the United States in the late 18th century. He was considered amongst the top European talent involved in the construction of post-colonial America,[1] and became the first architect to work in Savannah, Georgia.[2]

Life and career

[edit]

Boucher was born in France around 1760.[3] He left his homeland for the United States, in the late 18th century, as a refugee of the French Revolution.[4] He arrived in New York City,[5] where he worked as a draftsman for noted architect brothers and his compatriots Joseph-François and Charles Mangin.[6]

In 1799, one of Boucher's works, the City Exchange, in Savannah, Georgia, was completed.[7] He had arrived in the city to assist in its reconstruction after the 1796 fire and became one of the early influencers of the growth of the city, along with cartographer John William Gerard de Brahm.[5][8]

Boucher designed the second of three incarnations of Savannah's Christ Church, the construction of which began in 1801 but was leveled during the 1804 Antigua–Charleston hurricane.[9]

He was included on 1799 and 1802 lists of defaulters in Chatham County.[10][11]

Death

[edit]

Boucher died in 1804, aged around 44.[3]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "America's Romance with Greek Revival". Greek-American Review: 17. August 1991.
  2. ^ Early American Life. Cowles Magazines. 1978. p. 20.
  3. ^ a b Kennedy, Roger G. (1989). Greek Revival America. Stewart, Tabori & Chang. p. 129. ISBN 9781556700941.
  4. ^ Rauers, Betty (1976). Sojourn in Savannah: An Official Guidebook and Map of Savannah and the Surrounding Countryside. p. 14.
  5. ^ a b Nichols, Frederick Doveton (1976). The Architecture of Georgia. Beehive Press. p. 27.
  6. ^ Kennedy, Roger G. (1989). Greek Revival America. Stewart, Tabori & Chang. p. 79. ISBN 9781556700941.
  7. ^ Spracher, Luciana M. (2003). Lost Savannah: Photographs from the Collection of the Georgia Historical Society. Arcadia Publishing. p. 47. ISBN 9780738514871.
  8. ^ Morrison, Mary Lane. Historic Savannah: Survey of Significant Buildings in the Historic and Victorian Districts of Savannah, Georgia. pp. XI.
  9. ^ Wheeler, Mary Bray (1993). Eugenia Price's South: A Guide to the People and Places of Her Beloved Region. Longstreet Press. p. 144. ISBN 9781563520716.
  10. ^ "A List of Defaulters of Chatham County for the year 1802". Georgia Republican & State Intelligencer. 14 April 1803.
  11. ^ "A List of Defaulters". Columbian Museum & Savannah Advertiser. 27 September 1799.