Martin & Thayer

MARTIN & THAYER of Boston, Mass. are credited with the design of Centenary Methodist Church at STANSTEAD, QUE., 1866-69; burned 1883 and later restored (H. Bergevin, Eglises Protestantes, 1981, 138, illus.). This outstanding Gothic Revival work is a landmark in the Eastern Townships, particularly because of its stone construction and the distinctive spire which incorporates a clock, a feature usually found only on civic or institutional buildings. Their intitial work on the project in 1866 generated interest from other clients in the region who, in 1867, commissioned the firm to design a large summer hotel on LAKE MEMPHREMAGOG, QUE., situated near the American border and the railway terminus at Rock Island, Vermont (Montreal Herald, 11 March 1867, 2, descrip.) Abel C. Martin (1835-1879) began practise in Boston in 1859 and in 1867 formed a partnership with Samuel J.F. Thayer (1842-1893). Their collaboration was a brief one, and by 1869 the partnership had been dissolved, and both opened separate offices. Martin studied engineering at Harvard University and trained under Arthur Gilman in Boston. Thayer trained under J.D. Towle and after enlisting during the Civil War he gained prominence for his design of the Town Hall at Brookline, Mass., the City Hall at Providence, R.I. (1878) and the Library at Dartmouth College (1885). Martin died in Boston on 29 October 1879 (obit. American Architect & Building News [Boston], vi, 8 Nov. 1879, 145). Thayer continued to practise until his death in 1893 (obit. American Architect & Building News [Boston], xxxix, 4 March 1893, 130).