Rediscovering Architect Donald Monell

On-line resource catalogue, chronology, and analysis provides background about American architect, Donald F. Monell (1917-2002), and visual context regarding his designs. Illustrations include original vs. extant structure comparisons for numerous residential and public buildings designed by Monell, early Swift & Monell designs, diverse media used by Lila Swift Monell (1929-2022), aerial photographs pre and post the No-Name Storm (1991) by Alexander Monell, and family snapshots.

Donald F. Monell 

American Architect

b. Donald Francis Monell, Concord, New Hampshire 1917 - d. September 26, 2002, Gloucester, Mass. 

Lila Swift Monell 

American Diverse Media Artist

b. Feb. 8, 1929 Pasadena, California - d. January 2022, Gloucester, Mass. 

DESIGNED BY DONALD F. MONELL. View past Sawyer Free Library's Monell Building on Dale Avenue over to UU Church, Glouc., Mass. (photo © SFL to UU. C. Ryan, 2019) 

Intro 

Design inspiration sets a high bar - Gloucester Lyceum & Sawyer Free Public Library's Saunders House and Monell building (designed by Donald F. Monell)

For nearly 190 years, the Gloucester Lyceum & Sawyer Free Public Library has played a key role in the cultural life of the city of Gloucester and the Commonwealth.  Gloucester Lyceum & Sawyer Free Public Library features not one but three iconic buildings. Investment in building projects with such inspiring history, pedigree, assets, materials and form are indeed a rare and enviable opportunity. Any future library work should feature the Saunders and Monell buildings. Monell naturally incorporated "The Stacks". We are so lucky to have them!  

There was worry about the Saunders and Monell buildings, the Stacks, and the Rando Memorial garden when news of a proposed new library building first dropped and as a design process has continued. 

Design inspiration did not come from Saunders or Monell. (I asked.) 

Thankfully, a Saunders stewardship committee has been re-established and the Rando Garden will remain. There was pushback that the "21st century new library building" left the community with less green space, not more.  It's only since last week that razing Monell was taken off the table. And it's only since February 2019 that the architects began to emphasize green design as they had not realized how valued such criteria was in Gloucester and scheduled a workshop held at the library. Regarding the library's 2019 green visionaries—Monell may be more important to them than they realize. After all, he was ahead of his time incorporating wind and solar design into public buildings and homes. Still, even at that meeting, no one involved in the new process was discussing Monell, his inspiration, or influence. 

I’ve been thinking more and more about Monell, his studies and business ventures, and his devotion to Gloucester. I've established an on line showcase here, Rediscovering Architect Donald Monell, to help. 

- Catherine Ryan, February 2019 

Update, May 2019: I interviewed and met up with Alexander Monell on multiple occasions including a walking tour. Later he shared more family photographs and his incredible aerial vistas of Eastern point both PRE and POST the No-Name Storm* shot from his ultralight which he rigged up with custom photography gear. I've folded these gems into the original article I published. See below.

*the No-Name Storm (aka Perfect Storm) developed into a Category 1 Hurricane during Oct 28 - Nov. 2, 1991 off the Massachusetts coast.

ABOUT DONALD MONELL - Work

Donald F. Monell earned multiple degrees from Bowdoin (BS, 1937), Royal College of Edinburgh (1938), Tekniska Hogskolan in Stockholm (KTH Royal Institute of Technology), and M.I.T. (MS in city planning,1941 and MS in architecture, 1950).  He was a research assistant in City Planning at M.I.T. (1940-41), and a Research Associate in solar energy at M.I.T. from 1949 to 1951. 

During World War II he served as a Captain with the 333 Engrs. S.S. Regiment in the US Army Corp of Engineers from 1942-46, rebuilding bridges and railroads for US allies. On D-Day in 1944, he landed on Utah Beach, one of the five assault beaches of the Normandy Invasion.  

Prior to setting up his own firm in 1952, Monell  worked as a community planner in Tennessee and for various architectural establishments. His son Alex Monell said that his father declined positions with larger international firms. "He preferred working on a smaller one to one relationship with clients." 

Monell's tenure at M.I.T. coincided with I.M. Pei and Buckminster Fuller; Monell set up his eponymous business two years prior to I.M. Pei. I asked Alex if his father worked with architect Eleanor Raymond. She had built her home in Gloucester and had similar interest in sustainable design. She is credited with designing one of the first solar heated houses in 1948.  "I know he worked with Maria Telkes (who invented a means to store heat in melted crystals that stored more than water could) on one of their solar homes, and now that I looked her up I see the home was designed by Eleanor Raymond! So they knew each other."  

Alex also shared a section from the M.I.T. President's Report, 1951, with a reference to his father: "Mr. R. Buckminster Fuller, visiting lecturer, who contributed significantly to this conference, worked this year with the third-year students in architectural design and presented his concept of the "comprehensive designer" in a program emphasizing the relation of structure to design. In August, I950, occurred the five-day symposium on "Solar Energy for Space Heating," under the auspices of the Godfrey L. Cabot Fund, attended by about 900 persons who were mostly visitors to the Institute. Mr. Donald F. Monell, research associate, was responsible for organization. Speakers included staff members and outside authorities in this field. Professor Lawrence B. Anderson was one of the contributors."  

Monell was licensed to practice in Massachusetts, New Hampshire and New York and was NCARB certified. He was a member of AiA and Boston Society of Architects. He served on Gloucester's Civic Art Committee beginning in the 1960s. He was a trustee of the Cape Ann Symphony Orchestra, an incorporator of AGH and Cape Ann Savings Bank, and a Vice President of the Cape Ann Museum (then Cape Ann Historical Assoc.).  Monell's office was located in the Brown Building, 11 Pleasant Street. His son remembers visiting his dad on jobs and admiring the hand made scale models. Local residents may recognize the names of Monell hires:  Kirk Noyes who preserved Central Grammar and other award winning developments, was a draftsman, and Craig Toftey helped Monell with the Sawyer Free library.

Don and Lila Monell could be the "Charles and Ray Eames of Gloucester"


Courtesy image. Portrait of Lila and Don Monell circa 1951 at Sarah Fraser Robbins' home  (photographer unknown). 

ABOUT DON MONELL AND LILA SWIFT 

Don Monell and Lila Swift should rightly be included on any Massachusetts #MassModernism trail. Monell and Swift, co-founders and collaborators of their own contemporary wrought steel furniture design firm in 1950, Swift & Monell, husband and wife, architect and artist, were the Charles and Ray Eames* of Gloucester.  

Original examples of their woven leather, metal and enamel stools, tables, and bins are rare and placed in collections. The furniture was exhibited at Current Design (now ICA) and Furniture Forum. They operated the business in upstate New York when Monell worked for Sargent Webster Crenshaw & Folley. They built a studio for their business in their home when they moved back to Gloucester in 1952. Initial prototypes and editions were inspired by touring Lawrence Mills with Monell's brother in law, who worked in the textile industry.  Alex clarifies: "I do not know what mill my father's brother in law was involved in or to what capacity, I just remember my parents toured it and found the source of leather. A Cambridge firm sold them for awhile. And later my parents gifted them as wedding presents to close friends and relatives. Ray Parsons a blacksmith from Rockport often made the frames and later I made some at Modern Heat."

MONELL FAMILY ARCHIVES. Wrought Metal Furniture by SWIFT & MONELL, printed matter brochure, circa 1950. (Research photo, 2019. Detail from DFM Memory Board.)

Swift & Monell small tables with artistic enameling

Swift and Monell table

Swift & Monell iron and woven leather stool  

Motif. Idyllic surroundings of Monell family home.

Contrasting materials--stone, metal, and wood--in seamless harmony throughout Monells' family home. Light and dark. Lines and geometry. Natural world and hand made. Ephemera and permanence. The Monells are so inspiring! Stunning flooring: Black iron filings in cement with wood trim. (photo: C. Ryan, 2019)

Lila Monell woodblock print, Cormorant, was a tribute for her great friend, Sarah Fraser Robbins. Her children remember printing Christmas cards with their mom. (photo © C. Ryan, 2019)

Snapshot of a Lila Swift Monell photograph. She was a multi-talented artist [photographer, sculptor, embroiderer, furniture designer and manufacturer, printmaker, poet, naturalist, and wildlife rescuer (nicknamed the "bird lady")]


Lila Swift Monell embroidered denim shirt.

*Note from the author: Ray Eames was in Gloucester. Before Hans Hofmann settled into teaching in Provincetown, he was invited to teach summer classes at the Thurn School of Art in Gloucester, Massachusetts, in 1933 and 1934. Thurn was a former Hofmann student. Ray Eames studied painting with Hofmann in Gloucester and was a student of his for years.  Decades later (during an interview with Ruth Bowman, who was wonderful, and owned a fabulous Gloucester Edward Hopper) Eames mentioned 1940, a later date, for when she first learned about Hofmann. On an architecture timeline:  Charles and Ray Eames were born in 1907 and 1912 respectively, and Monell in 1917. They were married about a decade before Monell & Swift and west coast rather than east. Yet they were contemporaries. Art & Architecture case study homes began in 1945 (Eames house, 1949) Eames lounge chairs were manufactured in 1956 (after years of prototypes). Gropius House in Lincoln , Mass., landmark Bauhaus residence now museum was built in 1938, same year as MoMa Bauhaus exhibition. The Graduate school at Harvard designed by Gropius was a TAC (The Architects Collaborative) build in 1950. TAC was founded in 1945 with the clout addition of Gropius who continued with the firm until his death in 1969. Original 7 founders were Norman Fletcher, Louis McMillen, Robert McMillan, Ben Thompson,  Jean Fletcher, Sarah Harkness and John Harkness. Twenty years later, Monell's Plum Cove elementary school design in 1967 was leveraged by partnering with The Architects Collaborative. Gloucester's Plum Cove school is a TAC build. Wikipedia lists several commissions. The school could be added.- Catherine Ryan

Monell family papers. Lila Swift and her sisters in a press clipping: "THREE SWIFTS--LILA, HARRIET AND JOSEPHINE try on their Russian costumes, ready for their ushering duties Wednesday afternoon at the Gloucester benefit for Russian War Relief that will present famous Paul Robeson and Helen Howe." 

Formative Years 

Don was born and raised in Concord, New Hampshire in 1917. (See above for his CV.) Lila was born in Pasadena, California, on February 8, 1929, to Carlton B. Swift and Lila L. Swift. Her family summer vacationed at "Drumhack" with her grandparents on Eastern Point in Gloucester, Mass. At Bennington she majored in English. A year after co-founding Swift & Monell, they married in 1951 and Donald designed their home in 1960. They raised four children Alexander, Stephen, Marcus and Francena. Donald designed some 35 residences and numerous corporate and municipal buildings before he retired. Split-Image Focus: The Poetry of Lila Swift Monell was published in 2004 (see below). Both Monells were early adopter conservationists. 

Gloucester Years 

The Monells were friends with many artists and Gloucester residents. They were best friends with Sarah Fraser Robbins which is another rich "green" connection related to his Gloucester Lyceum & Sawyer Free Public Library design--and any future expansion. They were so close the Monells were married at Robbins' house and residing there when their first son came home! Eventually they built their dream home in Gloucester designed to maximize its stunning natural setting, all granite and ocean views. Their family and business grew. Lila's art and home are inspired by wild nature, especially birds and insects, often the subject of her prints and photographs, and even wardrobe embellishments.  (More than one person recalled a striking faux brooch or embroidery like adornment that was actually a coiled live centipede.) Domestic animals and wild birds were part of the family. There were always pet crows and birds. "Our mother raised geese and guinea fowl,"  Alex continued, "Mainly the birds we had were ones she brought to rescue from oil slicks and other calamaties. She was well known as someone to bring an injured bird to." Lila wrote an article in the Mass Audubon newsletter about two cormorants which she had a permit to raise.  "Sarah (Fraser Robbins) had an old lobster boat, never used as one." Alex recalled. "They used it for fishing. Our families were quite close. We'd head to Norman's Woe and bring back seagulls. You know, rescue babies, and help teach them to fly." He said he got them comfortable being tossed like a glider. "They'd come back again and again ready to launch!" It was easy to imagine some glimpse of his childhood in this idyllic setting. His delight brought to mind My Side of the Mountain by Jean Craighead George and Driftwood Captain by Paul Kenyon. 

Sea and stone. 

What a playground!

Donald F. Monell Architecture inventory

Monell completed many commissions in Gloucester and elsewhere on the North Shore, New Hampshire and New York. Any renovation and remodel at Sawyer Free library in Gloucester would be an incredible chance to celebrate his work and honor his legacy. After considering examples of Monell's architecture it is easy to find his personal design in the work he did at Sawyer Free Library. He was trained as a landscape architect as well which helps to imbue his projects with great sensitivity and gentle passages. Many of his commissions are heavenly sites where buildings serve the surroundings,  whether built or natural. His designs are better because of this reverence for context. Monell's designs enhance landscape features (whether views, pond, meadow, marsh, or boudlers) particular to each commission.  

(Note on images: double click to enlarge. Contemporary photos © Catherine Ryan unless otherwise noted.)

Monell architecture  - Residences

Monell designed some 35 private residences [e.g. Dotty & Lawrence Brown (1957), Laight (1958), Despard (1959), Boyce (1961), Foster, Nydegger, Marietta Lynch, Judy Winslow, Bob and Libby French (1967), Featherstones, John Hays Hammond Jr, and Phil Weld (many)] in Massachusetts, New Hampshire and New York. Many were dream home getaways or "contemporary escapes"  that were eventually adapted to serve permanent rather than seasonal use. Several clients were repeat customers. The Brown home is one example. Alex writes that "the residence was altered by my father in the late 70s to accommodate a library when they moved there year round."  Dotty was a great friend of Lila's. Much of the big collection of books in the Browns' library were cookbooks. "Dotty was a great cook and good friends with Julia Child," he added.

Donald F. Monell Architecture 

(Note on images: double click to enlarge. Contemporary photos © Catherine Ryan unless otherwise noted.)

Monell family home (1960)

Architect: Donald F. Monell

Courtesy vintage photo.  Monell family residence. Ocean side

PRE STORM. Courtesy photo. Photo credit: ©Alex Monell, photographer and pilot, aerial photo from ultralight. 

Aerial photo illustrates proximity and gorgeous shared setting of the Monell's domicile and the Swift mansion (or as the children called it,  the "Swift playhouse"). The summer cottage at the water's edge was built by his mother's grandparents. Arthur Grant Leonard, her maternal grandfather, was a cattle stockyards & transport tycoon based in Chicago.

THEN. Courtesy photo. Driveway to Monell family home, Gloucester, Mass.  

Round about drives and approaches, and  lily of the valley clustered at entrances , were hallmarks of Monell landscape designs. Inside is airy with open rafters. There's wood everywhere and stone & metal combinations including a knock out distinctive black stone floor and wood trim. (Black iron filings in cement floor did rust, "so a bit of a flaw. Can file out.")


NOW ©C. Ryan, 2019


Interior photos, 2019




Vista out the window





Courtesy photo. Don Monell at home in Gloucester, Mass. Seated in "the holding spot": There's a remnant of a sculpture base in their yard (ocean side) from where Monell installed a sculpture for Cape Ann Museum with the stipulation that when he died it would go back to the museum. It's sited in the Cape Ann Museum sculpture courtyard. Hyde Cox was a family friend. Museum and Cox relayed that there was just not enough room even after the addition.

THEN. Courtesy photo. Alexander Monell working in his father's office. 

NOW.  There's metalwork in the front yard. One of  Alex's first jobs was removing ship wreck pieces by blowtorch. He'd turn them into sculpture. His mom "painted them brightly sometimes."

Courtesy photo. Portrait of Alexander Monell with his Phantom Ultralight and custom camera rig for aerial photographs

PRE 1991 STORM. Courtesy photo. Triangle trio of residences, Gloucester, Mass.: Monell family home middleground; Brown family home on left; Swift estate on right. Aerial photograph from Ultralight by ©Alexander Monell

Swift estate | Drumhack

Architect: Walker & Carswell. [John Arthur Walker (Englishman 1884-1938) and Harold Thorp Carswell (1886-1940)] 

Drumhack on Eastern Point was built by Arthur G. & Lila Leonard, Lila Monell's grandparents. Lila Monell's grandfather was president of the Chicago stockyards. Her namesake, her grandmother, was  Eliza (Lila) Charlotte Swift. There were many members of the Swift meat-packing family* and erudite creatives and athletes among generations of descendants.  

dating back roughly a century ago, pedigreed estates on Eastern Point, one of Gloucester's gold coast coves



PRE 1991 STORM. Courtesy photo. Drumhack Swift estate pre storm. Photo credit: ©Alex Monell, photographer and pilot, aerial photo from ultralight. 

Alex remembers that the ancestor home was filled with fine art and furnishings and a renowned Chinese pagoda which his family stayed in during summer visits. His great grandmother designed “all the furniture”, sketched them, had them made. One of her captain’s chair is now in their family home. Later in life, many of the extant winding nature paths were built out to accommodate her motorized wheelchair. Rocks and boulders were maneuvered to make a natural swimming pool. 


PRE STORM. Courtesy photo. Boyces. Brown residence designed by architect Donald Monell (4th from left). Photo credit: ©Alex Monell, photographer and pilot, aerial photo from ultralight. The exterior was originally 2 box shaped structures overlapping.

POST STORM. Courtesy photo. View back to Swift estate (aka "playhouse) on right, next to the Brown residence. Properties damaged by storm.  Photo credit: ©Alex Monell, photographer and pilot, aerial photo from ultralight. 

POST STORM. Courtesy photo. Brown residence after storm. Photo credit: ©Alex Monell, photographer and pilot, aerial photo from ultralight. 

POST STORM. Courtesy photo. Swift estate (aka "playhouse) after storm. Photo credit: ©Alex Monell, photographer and pilot, aerial photo from ultralight. 

Swift family history

*Swift heirs and heiresses and spouses: There were numerous millionaire members of the Swift meat-packing family. Lila Monell's grandfather was a direct descendant of William Swift who was Gustavas Franklin Swift's brother. 

Gustavas was the revolutionary meatpacking and railways mega magnate who set off for Chicago as a young butcher. A Massachusetts son, he was raised on a farm in West Sandwich (Barnstable County) north of the Cape Cod canal. He was one of ten siblings. His father was his first investor. 

On the North Shore 1930 real estate ad: Mabel Swift and her first husband, Clarence Moore, built Swiftmoor in Beverly Pride's Crossing, one of many of their family retreats. Mabel was Gustavas's niece.  Her husband Moore died on the Titanic.  In 1932, Swiftmoor was in foreclosure and Mrs. Ada Small Moore purchased it.

*Swift heirs and heiresses: Many Swifts were members of the Swift meat-packing family. Lila Monell's grandfather was a direct descendant of William Swift who was Gustavas Franklin Swift's brother. Gustavas was the revolutionary meatpacking and railways mega magnate who set off for Chicago as a young butcher. A Massachusetts son, he was raised on a farm in West Sandwich (Barnstable County) north of the Cape Cod canal. He was one of ten siblings. His father was his first investor. 

1930 real estate ad: Mabel Swift and her first husband, Clarence Moore, built Swiftmoor in Beverly Pride's Crossing, one of many of their family retreats. Mabel was Gustavas's niece.  Her husband died on the Titanic.  In 1932, Swiftmoor was in foreclosure and Mrs. Ada Small Moore purchased it.

Brown residence 

Architect: Donald F. Monell 

Courtesy photo.  Brown residence. View back to house with the ocean at one's back. Donald F. Monell architect, Gloucester, Mass. 1957 commission. This property was next door to the Swift estate.

Comparison of the Brown residence circa 2015 with 2019 from the street side (seawall, cladding modified since original Monell plans).

Comparison of the Brown residence circa 2015 and 2019 (seawall, cladding modified since Monell's original plans) from the street side.

Residence Gloucester, Mass. 

Architect: Donald F. Monell 

Gloucester home designed by architect Don Monell

Windows altered from original design

J. Winslow residence, Gloucester, Mass.

Architect: Donald F. Monell 

J. Winslow residence. Gloucester home designed by architect Don Monell

Residence, Concord, New Hampshire (circa 1960)

Architect: Donald F. Monell 

Detail snapshot of family memory board with two views of a Concord, NH. residence by Monell that was one of the earliest homes  he designed, one that incorporated overhead electric radiant heat. Also a watercolor by Monell (drawn later in life in retirement) and clippings.

Residence, Gloucester, Mass. 

Architect: Donald F. Monell 

Residence. Gloucester, Mass. View from the street. Home designed by Donald. F Monell (1957) Design altered from original plans. (photo C. Ryan, 2018)

'Stilt House' Residence, Gloucester 

Architect: Donald F. Monell 

Courtesy Photo. Stilt house | kidney pool and grounds, Gloucester residence. Highly modified since original Donald F. Monell plans. 

 Gloucester residence. Significantly altered since original Donald F. Monell plans. Design of triangle garage still stands. 

Then | Now photos. On Left: Residence (stilt house) original design by Donald F. Monell, Gloucester, Mass. 

On Right: modified since Monell, 2018. Distinctive boulder adds a natural design element to be incorparated  rather than leveled.  

Marietta Lynch estate, Gloucester 

Architect: Donald F. Monell 

POST STORM. Courtesy photo. Marietta Lynch residence, Gloucester, Mass. No name storm took it and she rebuilt elsewhere. Lynch was a school teacher in Beverly. She brought students to study on the property. Aerial photo copyright ©Alex Monell (pilot and photographer)

Lynch residence was across the water, Gloucester, Mass. Tower in the distance all that remains of Don Monell commission. 

Featherstone residence, Gloucester 

Architect: Donald F. Monell 

F. residence. Gloucester, Mass. designed by Don Monell

Residence, Essex, Mass.

Architect: Donald F. Monell 

Essex, Mass. Home designed by architect Donald F. Monell with signature motifs (approach, connectors, stacking)

Residence, Gloucester, Mass.

Architect: Donald F. Monell 

Gloucester, Mass. residence designed by architect Donald F. Monell

French home, Gloucester, Mass. (1967)

Architect: Donald F. Monell 

FRENCH RESIDENCE (1967), Gloucester, Mass.

Within a few short years of moving to Gloucester, Robert and Elizabeth 'Libby' French expanded their art collection, he was elected Mayor, and they commissioned Monell to design their home and property in 1967.  

About the video and stills:  Interior/exterior  views were published in 2016. I don't know when it was filmed. Small lovely moments: Note poetic pauses: the interior staircase railing, exterior deck, and bridge to glacial boulders. Clearly there have been some modifications since it was designed in 1967, and perhaps since this video was filmed.

Monell architecture  - Public Buildings

Besides the Gloucester Lyceum & Sawyer Free Public Library commission, Monell government and public buildings include North Shore newspaper branches (Beverly which later Salem News; Gloucester Daily Times; Daily News of Newburyport) commissioned by Phil Weld; Eastern Point Retreat; Plum Cove Elementary School; and the Cape Ann Historical Society. 

Elements of his signature architecture resonate strongly with the work he did at the library.

Eastern Point Retreat House, Dorm & Dining Halls, Gloucester, Mass. (1960)

Architect: Donald F. Monell

For the Gonzaga project, Monell joined two buildings and built a cafeteria and dormitories. Recently his original work at the entrance, connector and dormitories was razed. The historic photos BEFORE illustrate his artistry and display a strong connection with the design Monell established at the front of the library on the stacks building between Saunders and the expansion.

AFTER remodel. Gonzaga (Eastern Point Retreat), Gloucester, Massachusetts. Entrance. New construction circa 2017 subsumes some of Donald J Monell architecture. © c ryan, 2019. For example, the hall connecting the cafeteria to the dorm and the bells, gone.

Courtesy photo. BEFORE: Detail showing Monell's work at the Gonzaga retreat with former hall and gateway (razed) heading on the left to the cafeteria (still standing) and to the right to the dormitories (remaining though greatly altered). This connector motif was incorporated into several Monell designs including the Sawyer Free Library.

BEFORE. Rleation of connector and Bells prior to remodel build out, circa 2017

AFTER remodel. Bells gone.

After photo shows renovation/expansion circa 2017. Monell passages were removed and/or altered. 

The compelling double bells and arches--poetry pause in architecture--were subsumed by the recent remodel. 

Before (low dormitories on far left)

After 

COURTESY PHOTO from Alex Monell. FRONT Gonzaga building designed by Donald Monell

After photo © C. Ryan, 2019

BEFORE. Courtesy photo. Eastern Point Retreat designed by  architect Donald F Monell. Snapshot of historic photo (view from the parking side) of the dormitories. Microphones were set up to amplify sounds of the ocean (white noise)!

AFTER remodel. photo C. Ryan

BEFORE & AFTER SAME. cafeteria low glass ceiling (ocean side preserved)

Plum Cove Elementary School Gloucester, Mass. (1966)

Architect: Donald F. Monell

Monell subcontracted/collaborated with TAC 

Beverly Newspaper Offices and Factory. (Now Salem News.)* 

Architect: Donald F. Monell

2021 update: *Building remodeled strenuously since this catalogue. Photos coming.

 A local resident swooped from nesting (near the roof?). Monell's design is a veritable wildlife refuge. What a beautiful spot! 

Monell designed the Gloucester Daily Times (1956) and the Newburyport Daily News branches also.

Gloucester Daily Times, Whittemore St., Gloucester, Mass. (1956)

Architect: Donald F. Monell

Daily News Of Newburyport 

Architect: Donald F. Monell 

need clarification on original Monell design vs. any remodel since

If you are downtown at this corner, you're just a block away from the low profile Monell building. 

Cape Ann Historical Center by Grant Circle, Gloucester, Mass. (ca.1960)

Architect: Donald F. Monell, proposal 

Circa 1967 plans for property by Grant Circle. Cape Ann Museum work by Grant Circle is underway, but consideration of that space began decades back. Here's Don Monell's illustration related to a  proposed campus for Cape Ann Historical Center by Grant Circle. At the same time he was asked for concepts related to the Pleasant Street addition which is ultimately the direction the museum went at that time (circa 1960-67).

Cape Ann Museum / formerly Cape Ann Historical Society (1968)

The institution asked Monell for concepts related to Grant Circle and the Pleasant Street addition--which is ultimately the direction the museum went at that time.

Architect: Donald F. Monell

Cape Ann Savings Bank, Gloucester, Mass.

Architect: Donald F. Monell

Monell's work at Cape Ann Savings Bank has been altered at least 2x since his commission. Here are a couple of placeholder "before" snapshots until I obtain better examples. Before (courtesy photos)/After example - Note changes like the Monell staircase design vs replacement and office additions vs open floor plan. The arch window motif remains.

Signature design elements

Arches, contrast in materials, rectangles, winding paths

Monell was concerned with getting it right. You don't have to know about Monell, his body of work or the history of architecture to be moved or respond. His slow designs are considerate of  their surroundings,  integrating connections with the natural and built environment. Thanks to his gentle, contemplative approach, it feels as though there's more than enough space even when there isn't much space to be had.

Gloucester Lyceum & Sawyer Free Public Library, Gloucester (1972)

When reviewing Monell's body of work, it's clear to see that Gloucester's landscape, history, art and architecture inform his designs. The library's connector and entrance are signature Monell motifs and beautiful. It's no accident that the symmetry of the windows at the back of the building echo the five bays of the fire station, or that they were inspired and reference City Hall (1867 plans) and Cape Ann Museum.

No matter which approach one takes to visit the library, Monell's consideration of the building and its surroundings remains intentional and graceful. Monell's handling of the two older structures (Saunders and Stacks), front entrance, and addition are important examples of his oeuvre, not solely the "façade", a dismissive term negating his legacy and influence. 

2005 Neshamkin, French expansion proposal

Further reading

Courtesy photo.  "Skateboard." Alexander Monell

Update: 

Special thanks to Alexander Monell for sharing his time, knowledge and inspiring family history. Content and photos are by Catherine Ryan unless noted “courtesy”. Those are extra special as they were culled by Alexander Monell in loving tribute to his father and family that he kindly shared and even granted permission to publish here. More to come!

-Catherine Ryan, May 2019

Lila Swift Monell 

Poetry

6/9 or 11/92

LIGHT

Like a child led,

Led because it opened

wide its innocence; fearless, rushing

to take my hand

where others would demure,

blanketed in caution.

and come upon -into-

the breath-taking

shower of stars spilling

through the hair

down the forehead

caught in an eyelash

so the world kaleidoscopes

for a second,

bounces off shoulders 

reaching for and caught

squeezed into flat

glistening finger-prints

tracing thights to the floor,

surrounding us

in pools of reflected light.

Shimmering, love-shot

from the body,

gifting the air

with a galaxy of grace.

Lila Swift Monell, Split-Image Focus: The Poetry of Lila Swift Monell, Light, June or August, 1992, p.15, 2004.



Compiliation of poetry by Lila Swift Monell in chronological order. Published by Parlez-Moi Press. Foward by Dotty Brown. Book & cover design by Karen Valentine. Poems, drawings and photographs by Lila Swift Monell.

9/28/92

PHOTOGRAPHS OF DEAD BIRD

The Swallow


Came to me briefly and stayed,

Passed out of itself

and in its death stayed,

disencumbered.

In its shimmering grayness

I saw a wraith,

silver-splintering,

fleeing into shadow beings.


Dancing free,

in and out

of light and focus

into radiances' 

splendid promise

of decay.


Lila Swift Monell, Split-Image Focus: The Poetry of Lila Swift Monell, Photograph of Dead Bird: The Swallow, 2004.

Compiliation of poetry by Lila Swift Monell in chronological order. Published by Parlez-Moi Press. Foward by Dotty Brown. Book & cover design by Karen Valentine. Poems, drawings and photographs by Lila Swift Monell.

1/02/04

CONDOLENCES 


The flowers arrive; 

Delivered to us

From many places:

          Far away;

          Across the street;

          Someone's backyard;

Exotic blooms;

Lush colors:

          Pink and yellow,

          Scarlets, blue and lavenders.

How removed I feel

From all this brilliance,

From such a show of raucous colors.


They're meant to be 

Talking to us,

Telling us, "It's all right

The pain will go away".


Around the room they're

Placed, arranged deliberately,

As orderly bouquets, an

Equi-distance from one another.


So, as one walks about his home,

We cross their radar;

Messages that zap.

Us through the heart.


Lila Swift Monell, Split-Image Focus: The Poetry of Lila Swift Monell, Light, June or August, 1992, p., 2004.


Compiliation of poetry by Lila Swift Monell in chronological order. Published by Parlez-Moi Press. Foward by Dotty Brown. Book & cover design by Karen Valentine. Poems, drawings and photographs by Lila Swift Monell.