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PART II. ARCHITECTUAL INFORMATION General Statement: St. Luke's Chapel is an example of the Carpenter Gothic style of the late nineteenth century which was employed for at least four other small churches of the period in and around Charlottesville. The building is rectangular in plan with a steeply pitched gable roof. A square, one room addition is located on the buildings southwest corner. The most striking element of the chapel’s exterior is the pointed arch on it’s east elevation. This arch enframs a round stained glass window, one of eleven in the building. These features as well as the building’s interior Gothic millwork and exposed roof tresses add distinction to the structure. Exterior Description: Overall Dimensions: The chapel is 45’ 2' in length and 25’3' in width. The entrance vestibule on the east elevation is 4’6'ong and 8’4' wide. The addition on the southwest corner is 10’0' by 10’3'. The height of the building from the base of the weather-boarding to the peak of the roof is28’0'. The walls are 11’10' high. The addition is19’1' in height from the base of the weatherboarding to the peak of its roof. Foundations: The foundations are of random rubble or fieldstone. The height ranges from 81/2’ under the vestibule and east elevation to 3’2' under the west elevation. Wall Construction, finian, color. The walls are constructed of 4 ˝ beaded weatherboards. There are 4' corerboards at each corner and a 2' board covers the joint between the chapel and the addition on the west elevation. The arch on the east elevation which projects 6' from the wall is constructed of 3’ unbeaded vertical boards. The inside of the arch is finished with horizontal boards. An arch of similar construction appears over the door of the addition. The square bell tower straddling the peak of the roof at the eastern end of the building is constructed of unbeaded weatherboards and has cornerboards. All the exterior walls are painted white. Structural system, framing: The walls are framed using post and stud construction with studs set at 18' o.c. The floor joists are set at 24' o.c. The studs in the addition are set at 19' o.c. and the joists are also set at 24' o.c. The chapel’s exposed timber roof framing consists of vertical sheathing boards, twelve purlins and a ridge piece which are supported by four scissors trusses spaced at approximately ten foot intervals. These trusses are joined with the ridge piece by iron tie roods which are bolted with a metal plate the bottom center of each truss. Iron bolts also strengthen each truss at its junction with the wall.
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Historic American Buildings Survey |