The New York Times Gets it Right
This Sunday’s New York Times real estate section profiles South Orange, N.J. in the Living In column. The joint school district of South Orange and Maplewood feature some of James Betelle’s finest...
View ArticleNew Rochelle High School Can’t Catch a Break
Poor New Rochelle High school. As if a devastating fire in 1968 wasn’t bad enough, the old girl suffered another indignity as lightning struck one of its towers about 6pm on Friday. The strike arrupted...
View ArticleWeequahic Walking Tour
If you read my last post, you know that over a weekend in August I visited Guilbert & Betelle’s Weequahic High School and took a tour of Newark’s historic High Street/Lower Broad Street area. Both...
View ArticleThe Point of Pencils
The output of new works from Guilbert & Betelle plummeted in the 1930s, as the Depression caused a suspension of school infrastructure programs. The firm layed off most of the staff, which numbered...
View ArticleDoings in the Hive of the Three Busy B’s
Office parties—when the staff lets their hair down, the boss awkwardly pretends to be “one of the gang”, and at least one person gets embarrassingly drunk—are a staple of the corporate world. These...
View ArticleSt. Paul’s Peril
Scouting New York: Over the past few months, I’ve been getting letters from readers about an abandoned school in Garden City, Long Island, called St. Paul’s, on the verge of being demolished. Last...
View Article$100 Million For Newark Schools
From the Wall Street Journal: Mark Zuckerberg, the 26-year-old founder and chief executive of Facebook Inc., plans to announce a donation of up to $100 million to the Newark schools this week, in a...
View ArticleMaple…wood school blocks?
Well this is interesting. A company in rural Pennsylvania called Firefly Landing appears to be in the business of making nothing but wood blocks die-cut in the shape of the schools and buildings of...
View ArticleRe-Education of the Adult a War Necessity
Beyond architecture, James Betelle occasionally wrote about grander social issues. This article was written in 1917, shortly after the U.S.’s entry into World War I. Transcribed from The American...
View ArticleDurand-Hedden Lecture
I have the honor of being asked to give a talk on the life and work of James Betelle at the Durand-Hedden House and Garden Association, on April 29th, from 1-4 pm. All are welcome—and I promise to...
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