Product Description

Nineteenth-century American inventor and entrepreneur James Bogardus was known for his unique grinding mill and other patented devices, but his enduring claim to fame is his cast-iron structures, forerunners of the modern American skyscraper. A passionate advocate for iron's strength, economy, suitability for ornamentation and fire resitence, he invented several new methods of construction; his buildings rose from New York to San Francisco. This work describes how iron architecture remade the face of American cities in the mid-19th century, following the appearance of cast iron on the industrial scene in 18th-century Britain. It documents the role played by Bogardus, who patented his method for cast-iron construction in 1850 and championed its use. Supplanted by steel framed buildings, cast-iron architecture went out of favour, languished, decayed and fell on the bulldozers of urban renewal of the 1950s and 1960s. Only in recent years has 19th-century urban architecture come to be rescued, restored and reused. Four such buildings by Bogardus are recognized as landmarks.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1989251 in Books
• Published on: 1998-04-21
• Released on: 1998-04-21
• Original language: English
• Dimensions: .89" h x 8.23" w x 10.30" l, 2.36 pounds
• Binding: Hardcover
• 192 pages

Brendan Gill
Margot Gale has long been the leading figure in the world--once very nearly the lost world--of cast-iron architecture. . . . No one is better fitted than she to explore the life and work of James Bogardus.

Ingram
The first book on the life and work of 19th-century American inventor and entrepreneur James Bogardus, known for his unique grinding mill and other patented devices. However, his enduring claim to fame is his cast-iron structures, forerunners of the modern skyscraper. Modern interest in Bogardus stems from the historic preservation movement. His four surviving buildings in New York are recognized landmarks.

About the Author
Margot Gayle, a nationally known authority on cast-iron architecture, lives in New York City. Carol Gayle teaches history at Lake Forest College, Illinois.