J. William Schickel
William Schickel, FAIA, (1850–1907) known professionally as William Schickel, was a German-American architect and founder of the New York architectural firm of Schickel & Ditmars.
J. William Schickel

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- Name
- J.
- Born
- January 29, 1850
- Birthplace
- Wiesbaden, Hochbein, Germany
- Died
- 14 June 1907
- Known for
- Architect
- Nationality
- United States
- Fields
- architecture
- Honours
- Fellow of the American Institute of Architects
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William Schickel, FAIA, (1850–1907) known professionally as William Schickel, was a German-American architect and founder of the New York architectural firm of Schickel & Ditmars.
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wikidata · Q6107474 · wikipedia · J. William Schickel
In this article
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — J. William Schickel • Born — January 29, 1850 • Birthplace — Wiesbaden, Hochbein, Germany • Died — 14 June 1907 • Known for — Architect
Life and practice
Life and practice
Schickel was born January 29, 1850, in Wiesbaden, Hochbein, Germany. He was a student of Wilhelm Bozler. In 1870, at the age of twenty, he emigrated to the United States, passing through Castle Garden in New York City, and the next day started his New York architectural career in the offices of the renowned Richard Morris Hunt. He became a member and a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects in 1894. In 1885 he formed William Schickel & Company in association with Isaac E. Ditmars (1850–1934) and Hugo Kafka (1843–1913). He died June 14, 1907, in New York City. Following his death, Ditmars continued the firm.
Works
Works
• Illustration — St. Vincent Ferrer Priory on south side The John Crimmins House at 40 East 68th Street was the German-born Schickel's first commission in New York. Schickel was hired in 1879 to design and build a replacement for the original 1867 chapel of the Church of St. Vincent Ferrer. The church was known as the "Gothic Barn" and was demolished in 1914. Along with this commission came one to build a priory that would serve as the provincial headquarters for the Dominicans in New York. The priory's intricate use of materials and its overall polychromy, characteristics of the High Victorian Gothic style popular in the late 19th century, reflect Schickel's training in Bavaria and the strong influence there of Friedrich von Gärtner. It was the first of many buildings Schickel would design for the New York diocese. The priory still stands. • Illustration — The first Church of St. Vincent Ferrer, known as the "Gothic barn" Among Schickel's most celebrated works were the impressive German-Baroque edifice of St. Ignatius of Loyola (1898), now on the National Register of Historic Places, and the Neo-Gothic St. Louis's Church (1889) in Buffalo, New York, with elements of French and German Gothic design including a pierced spire influenced by Cologne Cathedral. His firm had long-standing ties to leading German-American families and the Roman Catholic Church, principally building churches and ecclesiastical complexes in German-American neighborhoods. Among many other church structures in the United States, Schickel was the architect of the Most Holy Trinity Church, 138 Montrose Ave., Brooklyn, New York. The cornerstone of Most Holy Trinity was placed in 1882 and after three years of construction the church was opened in 1885. Schickel also designed the massive St. Joseph Seminary, Dunwoodie, NY, begun 1893 and taking five years to complete.
Partial list of solo works
Partial list of solo works
• Illustration — Basilica and Shrine of Our Lady of Perpetual Help, Boston For work done with William Schickel & Company (1885) and Schickel & Ditmars (1885-1907), see Schickel & Ditmars • The Staats-Zeitung Building, 17 Chatham Street (Park Row), New York City, New York (1873, demolished 1907 for the New York Municipal Building) • Our Lady of Sorrows School, 219 Stanton Street, New York City, New York (1874) • St. Francis Church, Monastery, and School, Milwaukee, Wisconsin (1877), National Register of Historic Places • Basilica of Our Lady of Perpetual Help, Boston, (1874-8), better known as Mission Church (in association with Edward Welby Pugin) National Register of Historic Places • The John D. Crimmins, Esq., Residence, 40 East 68th Street, New York City, New York (1878-9) • Old Church of St. Vincent Ferrer (New York City) and Priory, New York City, New York (1879, demolished 1914, priory extant) • Century Building (17th Street, Manhattan), 33 East 17th Street, New York City, New York (1880-1), National Register of Historic Places, New York City Landmark • Dry Goods Building for Richard Arnold, 27-33 West 23rd Street, New York City, New York (1880-1) • William Schickel House, 52 E 83rd Street, New York City, New York (1881-2), National Register of Historic Places • Robert L. Stuart House, 871 Fifth Avenue, NE Corner of 68th Street and Fifth Avenue, New York City, New York (1882-3), demolished 1942 • Convent of the Sisters of Bon Secours of Troyes, France, 1197 Lexington Avenue, New York City, New York (1882), demolished c. 1985 • Most Holy Trinity Roman Catholic Church, 138 Montrose Avenue, Brooklyn, New York (1882-1890) • The Constable Building Annex, 9-13 East 18th Street, New York City, New York (1883-4) • Stables for Adolph Kutroff Residence, 153 East 69th Street (1883-4) • August Richard House, 12 East 69th Street, New York City, New York (1883-4), new facade in 1913 by W.W. Bosworth, gut renovation in 2006. • The German Library and Dispensary 135-137 Second Avenue, New York City, New York (1883-4), National Register of Historic Places, New York City Landmark • Alumni Hall, Seton Hall University, South Orange, New Jersey (1884) • Isaac & Virginia Stern House, 835 Madison Avenue, New York City, New York (1884-1885)
Identity and overview
Identity and overview
The following is established of the heading itself. It is also recorded that j.
Origins and background
Origins and background
The following is established of origins and background. William Schickel died in 1907 at New York City. William Schickel was born in 1850 at Wiesbaden.
Works and production
Works and production
The following works and productions are recorded by name or by count.
Places
Named by the record
Places
Only places the record itself states, plotted where the house gazetteer settles their coordinates. Nothing is inferred from a name or a nationality.
Wiesbaden.
Birth place
New York City.
Death place
Primary material
Documents and archives
Institutional database
- Wikidata, structured authority record Q6107474: J. William Schickel
Scholarly · Wikimedia Foundation
reference work
- “J. William Schickel”, English Wikipedia, consulted as further reading
Reputable secondary · Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.The AIA Historical Directory of American Architects.
- 2.Henry F. Withey, A.I.A., and Elsie Rathburn Withey, Biographical Dictionary of American Architects (Deceased) (Los Angeles: New Age Publishing Company, 1956. Facsimile edition, Hennessey & Ingalls, Inc., 1970)
- 3.O'Brien, Austin. National Register of Historic Places nomination, St. Vincent Ferrer Church and Priory. New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. March 1981.
- 4.Church History - Church of St. Ignatius Loyola, NYC.
- 5.Schickel and Ditmars.
- 6.mhtbrooklyn.org.
- 7.Brooklyn Daily Eagle Online.
- 8.The Archdiocese of New York the Bicentennial History, Rev. Thomas J. Sheiley page 401
- 9.archINFORM arch 48888
- 10.Regan, Brian. Gothic Pride: The Story of Building a Great Cathedral in Newark.
References
Citations
References
Each reference names the institution holding it, so a reader may go to the document itself.
Institutional database
Wikidata, structured authority record Q6107474: J. William SchickelWikimedia Foundation
Institutional witnessreference work
Secondary witness
Further particulars
Held on the record
Further particulars
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This entry is compiled from 3 catalogued sources across 3 independent registers. The registers consulted are Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation and Crossref registry. Every statement above is held against the register that stated it; where the registers are silent, the entry is silent.
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 18 August 2026.
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