Rhode Island State Hospital for Mental Diseases (former): Benjamin Rush Building - Cranston RI

City:: Cranston, RI
Site Type:: Education and Health, Civic Facilities, Hospitals and Clinics
New Deal Agencies:: Public Works Funding, Public Works Administration (PWA)
Completed:: 1936
Designer:: Franklin R. Hindle

Description

A large, three-story building facing Howard Avenue, the main road through the hospital campus. The building, in the Colonial Revival style, is most notable for its prominent ogee gable. The ogee gable has been a recurring element in Rhode Island ever since amateur architect Joseph Brown’s unorthodox use of it in his own residence in Providence, built in 1774. The architect of the Rush Building was Franklin R. Hindle, of Providence.

Source notes

Pages 15 & 19, Rhode Island: State-Owned Historic Properties (Rhode Island Historical Preservation Commission, 1989) PDF version available at https://www.preservation.ri.gov/survey/publications.php

Site originally submitted by John P. on February 18, 2014.