Collection ID: 2014.038

Collection context

Summary

Creator:
Boynton, Beulah, Ringle, William, and Wright, Frank Lloyd
Extent:
0.1 Cubic Feet and 1 folder
Language:
English
Preferred citation:

William Ringle Papers on the Boynton House. [box #,folder #]. Local History and Genealogy Division, Central Library of Rochester and Monroe County N.Y.

Background

Scope and Content:

William Ringle was a Times-Union reporter who wrote to Beulah Boynton, daughter of Edward Everett Boynton, for information about the construction of the house bearing her father's name in 1954. The collection includes correspondence between William Ringle and Beulah Boynton re: the Edward Boynton house. Includes a signed letter from Frank Lloyd Wright to Beulah Boynton. The materials in the collection date from 1954 to 1955.

Biographical / Historical:

According to the Rochester City Directory, Edward Everett Boynton and his 21-year-old daughter Beulah lived at 44 Vick Park B in 1907. Sometime during that year Boynton, a successful lantern salesman and partner in the C.T. Ham Manufacturing Company, took the advice of his colleague Warren McArthur and hired architect and designer Frank Lloyd Wright to design the house and grounds where Boynton and his daughter Beulah would live.Wright helped pick the site and was paid a total sum of about $55,000 to construct the Prairie-style house at 16 East Boulevard, which has four bedrooms and three baths. Built in 1908, the design of the house was achieved in collaboration with Beulah Boynton--unusual for Wright, who didn't always get along well with his clients. Wright also designed the furniture with Beulah's input. With its low, flat roofs, overhanging eaves, long horizontal rows of windows, and sharp lines punctuated by flights of colored glass, the Boynton house looked completely different from any other dwelling in Rochester. Mr. Boynton and his daughter lived in the house until 1918, when they moved to New York City.

In 1954, Times-Union reporter William M. Ringle wrote to both Wright and Beulah Boynton for more information about the house for an article he was working on. In January 1955, Ringle went to New York City to visit Beulah and to interview her about her recollections of the Boynton House--its design, construction, and what it was like to live in a piece of "living art." This collection consists of the correspondence, notes and other materials Ringle assembled at this time.

Acquisition information:
The provenance of this collection is unknown.
Arrangement:

This collection consists of a single folder.

Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Access

RESTRICTIONS:

There are no restrictions regarding access to or use of the collection.

TERMS OF ACCESS:

Permission to publish, reproduce, distribute, or use in any current or future manifestations must be obtained in writing from the Rochester Public Library Local History and Genealogy Division.

PREFERRED CITATION:

William Ringle Papers on the Boynton House. [box #,folder #]. Local History and Genealogy Division, Central Library of Rochester and Monroe County N.Y.

LOCATION OF THIS COLLECTION:
Rundel Memorial Building
115 South Avenue
Rochester, NY 14604, United States
CONTACT:
585-428-8370
lochist@libraryweb.org