Jane Griswold Radocchia

 

Architect / Geometer / Historian

 

 

 

Jane Griswold Radocchia

 

 

Architect - Geometer - Historian



 

 

Hello

 

Jane Griswold Radocchia is an architect.

Jane studies practical geometry and vernacular architecture.

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Jane Griswold Radocchia

Jane Griswold Radocchia


Jane Griswold Radocchia

Jane Griswold Radocchia



 

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Mud University
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Practical Geometry: What You didn't Learn In High School

Saturday March 1st 2025
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Friday, January 24. 2025

 

James Gibbs and the Rockingham Meeting House


This blog post assumes you, the reader, are familiar with James Gibbs' architecture. If you need an introduction or a review, check the end of this blog. You will see links to what I wrote about him and his work. See also Wikipedia.

Did anyone in the States study James Gibbs' books?




 

Yes. Gibbs' On Architecture*, published in 1723, was imported to the Colonies. We know the steeple designs were studied and copied**.

His book, RULES for DRAWING the several PARTS of ARCHITECTURE*, was also in the Colonies.

Both books were in bookstores and private libraries.


 




Were the rules Gibbs drew standard knowledge? Or was he simply the first to write them down?

Did builders follow his layout instructions?

I don't know yet. I'm studying historic doors, leaving surrounds and architraves for later research.

HABS has measured drawings of the Rockingham Meetinghouse in Rockingham, Vermont. It was built from 1787 to 1797. The Master Builder was John Fuller. The Master Joiner - who would have built the doors - is not recorded. He could have been John Fuller.

I know the Meetinghouse well. I've studied it, given tours, taught and written about the geometry of its construction as well as how the door paneling fits by the Rule of Thirds.**





 

The main door




 

The HABS drawing of this door




 

That drawing with the dimensions inked out in order to make James Gibbs' geometry easier to read.

2 squares.

The width divided into 6 parts, 3 noted. Then one part (1/6 the width of the door) determining the width of the surround.

I have used the arcs and lines that Gibbs used for his door layouts. The radius of the arc is the width and height of the square. This is a builder's 'shorthand'.

This layout matches the door on the left in Gibbs' drawing shown above.




 

The door for the right stair wing at the Rockingham Meetinghouse




 

The HABS drawing for the right stair wing door




 

The geometry:

2 squares and 1/6 added to the height ( the red rectangle at the top)

This geometry matches the layout of the middle door in Gibbs' drawing of 3 doors shown above.

 



 

Then, I tried using the 1/6 part of the door width as a radius. I placed 3 circles on the width, the red line across the middle of the door. The dimension of the circles is the radius x 2: simple geometry.

Beginning at the bottom of the door I stepped off 8 semi-circles up the right hand side. They are the same width as those across the width of the door. Those semi-circles lay out the height of the door surround, the beginning of the architrave and its height.

Finally, I saw that the width of the pilasters on each side of the door was the same width as the circles. See the circle on the left pilaster.



 



The HABS drawings are small. The dimensions were made to record the building, not to record the geometry. Either the recorder or I may have missed nuance. This year, when the Meeting House is accessible, I will measure the doors to see how close what I've drawn is to the actual doors.

* James Gibbs, On Architecture, 1728, London, Dover Press reprint

Rules for Drawing the several Parts of Architecture, 1753 edition through the University of Notre Dame https://www3.nd.edu › Gibbs-Park-folio-18


** https://www.jgrarchitect.com/2021/12/james-gibbs-book-of-architecture.html

    http://www.jgrarchitect.com/2022/02/james-gibbs-steeples.html

    https://www.jgrarchitect.com/2014/04/rockingham-meetiinghouse-rockingham-vt.html

    https://www.jgrarchitect.com/2024/05/how-to-layout-pediment-350-years-of.html









 

Architect

 

As an architect based in Bennington, VT. and Andover, MA. I work with old houses and the families who love them.

For 40 years I have helped owners restore, repair, renovate and expand their houses.

During this time, I have worked with over 1200 houses, some modern, some 300 years old.




Historian

 

I am an architectural historian by accident. I found I was showing friends and clients the historic environment they lived in but did not see.

Writing a column in the local newspaper, Sunday Drives, gave me my voice. I enjoy sharing what I see; so I give lectures and teach seminars.

I know from my work as an architect how available materials and technology influence design and construction.

I am most interested in vernacular architecture, how we built to suit our climate and our needs using the tools and materials we had.





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Blogs

Architecture  (Current Blog)


Passing By  (Original Blog)


Sunday Drives  (Original Blog)


 

Comments / Reflections

Mary said...
Thank you so much for this lovely article. This church was well loved & had at least a dozen families attending when it closed down. It is sad to see it be torn down, instead of being preserved as a community space. The one blessing is that we can finally see the beautiful architectural elements you describe, which were hidden to all of us by the drop ceiling. Lovely that the church still stands in this elemental fashion for a few more months. More