Green-Wood Historic Chapel
Location: Green-Wood Cemetery, Brooklyn, NY
Landmark Status: NYC Individual Landmark; National Historic Landmark
Original Architect: Warren & Wetmore
Date of Construction: 1911-1913
Date of Restoration: 2018-2020
Scope of Work: Roofing & Drainage Replacement, Limestone Cleaning Restoration & Carving, Interior Finishes Restoration, Stained Glass Restoration
Awards: Excellence in Historic Preservation Award (Preservation League of New York State), Preservation Award (Victorian Society in America)
Green-Wood Cemetery’s historic chapel was designed by Warren & Wetmore and sited just downhill from the cemetery’s main entrance. Constructed in 1911-13, the neogothic design was reportedly inspired by Sir Christopher Wren’s Tom Tower, Christ Church, Oxford (1681-1682), with a character-defining octagonal lantern topped by a ribbed ogee dome. Compact and jewel-like, the chapel boasts intricate stone carvings and window tracery, figurative stained glass by the Willett Stained Glass and Decorating Company of Philadelphia, and an interior finished with natural and imitation limestone and Guastavino tile. Appropriately, utilitarian elements such as roof drainage systems and the boiler chimney are hidden from view.
In recent decades, the chapel was used only rarely. In 2018, owner’s representative About the Work retained Walter B. Melvin Architects, LLC and stained-glass consultant Julie L. Sloan for a comprehensive restoration effort. Initial surveys by WBMA revealed significant interior water damage caused by deteriorated roofing systems and drainage courses through the masonry walls. The exterior limestone was found to be in general disrepair with eroded mortar joints, cracked and displaced units, missing decorative elements, and heavily soiled surfaces. The stained glass was in similarly poor condition, having settled, deflected, and cracked due to weakened lead.
At the exterior, scope of work included repair and replacement of all roofing and internal drainage systems; infill of non-original scuppers at decorative limestone parapets; and associated limestone restoration, including cleaning, repointing, and carving of new decorative elements, most notably the long-missing monumental cross. Halfway through the project, Green-Wood directed the project team to proceed with the enormous task of replacing the concealed waterproofing at the limestone-slab roof over the chancel, to address leaking. Inside, stonework was allowed to dry, cleaned of efflorescence, and repaired with limestone dutchman and the spot application of mineral paint. All of the stained glass was carefully removed from the windows, cleaned and fully restored off site, and re-installed. This work was performed judiciously during the pandemic and finished on schedule.
The restored chapel once again provides visitors to the cemetery a most peaceful sanctuary to rest and contemplate, and will help imbue new life into Green-Wood as a home for art, music and even celebration.
