Charles J. Bateman

Charles John Bateman was born March 4, 1851, in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He was educated in the Cambridge public schools and at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he took courses in 1868–69 with the class of 1872. He then worked for Boston architects Faulkner & Clarke, spending part of that time in their second office in Chicago, and then worked for architect George Ropes in Boston. In 1876 Bateman left Ropes to open his own office."Bateman, Charles J." in [https://archive.org/details/bostonoftodaygla00hern/page/n5/mode/2up Boston of To-day] (Boston: Post Publishing Company, 1892): 139-140.

Bateman was an Irish Catholic and a Democrat, and both of these attributes would impact his architectural career. As a well-connected member of the local Irish Catholic community Bateman was chosen to design Catholic churches and institutions throughout the Boston area, and by 1877 was being considered as the Democratic candidate for the office of Boston city architect, the holder of which had charge of all architectural work required by the city."Municipal Affairs," Boston Daily Advertiser, April 6, 1877, 1. He was first elected to that office in 1883, replacing Republican George A. Clough."Board of Aldermen," Boston Daily Globe, February 27, 1883, 2. He served only one term before being replaced by Arthur H. Vinal.

In 1885 the city charter was amended such that the city architect was appointed directly by the mayor. By 1887 Vinal was frequently the object of criticism by Democrats,"Those Alleged Attacks," Boston Daily Globe, February 11, 1887, 8. and in 1888 mayor Hugh O'Brien, a Democrat who had been chair of the board of aldermen when Bateman was first elected, reappointed him. The board of aldermen rejected this appointment in a meeting on April 2, 1888."A Cable System," Boston Daily Advertiser, April 3, 1888, 8. Five months later this was reconsidered, and he was confirmed on September 24, 1888."Electric Roads," Boston Daily Globe, September 25, 1888, 8. Bateman again only served one term before being replaced by Harrison H. Atwood.

When the office of city architect was abolished in 1895 private architects were hired for city work, and Bateman was assigned several of these projects. He designed two additional public schools, a library branch and altered a number of existing city buildings. He also designed several schools in towns outside of the city. Bateman returned to city government in 1902 when he was appointed consulting architect to the department of public buildings by superintendent Hugh Montague, himself an appointee of Democratic mayor Patrick Collins."Appointments at City Hall," Boston Daily Globe, February 4, 1902, 11. He remained in this role until Republican mayor George A. Hibbard reorganized city government in 1908. Bateman practiced architecture until 1932, when he retired."Charles J. Bateman Sr.," New York Times, May 4, 1940, 17.

All of Bateman's known works are in Massachusetts with few exceptions. Most prominently, in 1880 he was hired by the Hokkaidō Development Commission to prepare plans for a natural history museum at Sapporo on Hokkaidō in Japan. Why Bateman was chosen is unknown, but he was likely recommended by one of the many New Englanders who were advising the commission. He produced a stick style design for this building, which was completed in 1882. The museum and its collections were transferred to the Sapporo Agricultural College in 1884, is now administered as part of the Hokkaido University Botanical Gardens and has been designated an Important Cultural Property.American Architect and Building News 9, no. 262 (January 1, 1881): 12.Dallas Finn, [https://archive.org/details/meijirevisitedsi0000finn/page/n5/mode/2up Meiji Revisited: The Sites of Victorian Japan] (New York: Weatherhill, 1995): 58-59.

Bateman was married to Mary A. Bonner. One son, Charles J. Bateman Jr., was a long-time president of the Somerville Savings Bank. During his career Bateman lived in several places around Boston, and died May 3, 1940, at his home in Newtonville at the age of 89.

Bateman was a long-time member of the Boston Society of Architects and at the time of his death was noted as one of its oldest members.

• 1878 – Home for Aged Poor,{{efn|name=Demolished|Demolished.}} 424 Dudley St, Roxbury, Boston
• 1878 – St. Raphael's Catholic Church,{{efn|name=Burned|Burned in 1887.}} Thomas St, Dedham, MassachusettsAmerican Architect and Building News 4, no. 149 (November 2, 1878): vii.
• 1881 – St. Francis de Sales Catholic Church rectory, 303 Bunker Hill St, Charlestown, BostonKeith N. Morgan, Buildings of Massachusetts: Metropolitan Boston (Charlottesville, VA: University of Virginia Press, 2009): 210-211.
• 1882 – Natural History Museum, Hokkaido University Botanical Gardens, Sapporo, Japan
• 1883 – Engine House No. 32,{{efn|name=City}} 442 Bunker Hill St, Charlestown, Boston
• 1883 – Harbor View Street School,{{efn|name=City}}{{efn|name=Demolished}} Harbor View St and Dorchester Ave, Dorchester, Boston
• 1883 – Benjamin Pope School (former),{{efn|name=City|Designed by Bateman as city architect.}} 110 O St, South Boston, Boston[https://books.google.com/books?id=Tx_pQ9nzFggC Boston city documents] (1884)
• 1884 – St. Mary's Catholic School,{{efn|name=Demolished}} Stillman and N Margin Sts, BostonJames S. Sullivan, [https://archive.org/details/onehundredyearso00bost/page/n1/mode/2up One Hundred Years of Progress; A Graphic, Historical and Pictorial Account of the Catholic Church of New England: Archdiocese of Boston] (Boston: Illustrated Publishing Company, 1895): 42-48.
• 1885 – Most Precious Blood Catholic Church, 25 Maple St, Hyde Park, BostonJames S. Sullivan, [https://archive.org/details/onehundredyearso00bost/page/n1/mode/2up One Hundred Years of Progress; A Graphic, Historical and Pictorial Account of the Catholic Church of New England: Archdiocese of Boston] (Boston: Illustrated Publishing Company, 1895): 676-680.
• 1887 – St. Catherine's Catholic Church, 49 Vine St, Charlestown, BostonJames S. Sullivan, [https://archive.org/details/onehundredyearso00bost/page/n1/mode/2up One Hundred Years of Progress; A Graphic, Historical and Pictorial Account of the Catholic Church of New England: Archdiocese of Boston] (Boston: Illustrated Publishing Company, 1895): 236-127.
• 1889 – Charles H. Burke house, 1 Prospect St, Nashua, New Hampshire[https://books.google.com/books?id=tDUTAAAAYAAJ New Hampshire Homes] (Concord: James A. Wood, 1895): 66.
• 1889 – Engine House No. 34,{{efn|name=City}}{{efn|name=NRHP|Listed on the United States National Register of Historic Places.}} 444 Western Ave, Brighton, Boston
• 1889 – Memorial Tablets,{{efn|name=City}} Winthrop Square, Charlestown, Boston[https://archive.org/details/memorialofameric00bost/page/n5/mode/2up A Memorial of the American Patriots Who Fell at the Battle of Bunker Hill, June 17, 1775, With an Account of the Dedication of the Memorial Tablets on Winthrop Square, Charlestown, June 17, 1889] (Boston: City of Boston, 1896)
• 1889 – Home for the Aged,{{efn|name=Demolished}} 186 Highland Ave, Somerville, Massachusetts
• 1890 – Tomb, Mount Benedict Cemetery, West Roxbury, Boston
• 1891 – Carney Hospital expansion,{{efn|name=Demolished}} 40 Old Harbor St, South Boston, Boston
• 1891 – St. Francis de Sales Catholic School (former), 343 Bunker Hill St, Charlestown, Boston
• 1894 – St. Cecilia Catholic Church, 18 Belvidere St, BostonAmerican Architect and Building News 24, no. 671 (November 3, 1888): xv.
• 1900 – Corcoran School,{{efn|name=NRHP}} 40 Walnut St, Clinton, Massachusetts
• 1901 – St. Francis de Sales Catholic Church convent, 325 Bunker Hill St, Charlestown, Boston
• 1903 – Bigelow School,{{efn|name=NRHP}} 350 W 4th St, South Boston, Boston
• 1904 – Boston Public Library, Codman Square branch (former), 6 Norfolk St, Dorchester, BostonKeith N. Morgan, Buildings of Massachusetts: Metropolitan Boston (Charlottesville, VA: University of Virginia Press, 2009): 262.
• 1913 – John D. Philbrick School, 40 Philbrick St, Roslindale, Boston[https://books.google.com/books?id=ISI7AQAAMAAJ Boston city documents] (1913)
• 1923 – John Lothrop Motley School addition, 141 Savin Hill Ave, Dorchester, Boston

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Category:1851 births

Category:1940 deaths

Category:Architects from Boston

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Category:Architects of Roman Catholic churches