155 Whitney Avenue

*UPDATE (2018): 155 Whitney was completely demolished to make space for Yale's School of Management. Edward P. Evans Hall, designed by Norman Foster, lends Whitney Avenue a modern, glassy feel; once inside, it boasts a grassy courtyard, massive art installations, and state-of-the-art lecture facilities. But one cannot help sensing that a stately structure like 175 Whitney, with history, rather than computer monitors, embedded in its walls, would better fit with its surroundings.**

The three-story modern office building that currently stands at 155 Whitney Avenue was built in 1951 by the Security Insurance Company of New Haven and designed by New Haven architect Douglas Orr. The building is symmetrical and rectangular and built from limestone and marble with a structural system of iron and steel. It mirrors the size and scale of 175 Whitney which was built in 1924 for the Security Insurance Company of New Haven as the first commercial intrusion into a residential neighborhood. The landscaping in front of the building has a significant impact on the building’s relationship to the street. In a photograph taken in October of 1980 one can clearly see the lack of landscaping presenting a much starker street-view than the current building with landscaping. Landscaping also seems to have been on the mind of Douglas Orr as he conceptualized 155 and 175 Whitney Avenue as part of a larger “campus” for the Security Insurance Company of New Haven. A drawing found in the papers of Douglas Orr shows a “future building” standing to the south and completing a heavily landscaped headquarters complex. The property of 155 and 175 Whitney Avenue were owned by Frederick Wells Williams, professor of History at Yale. The Williams’ house, built in 1879, stood on the property at least until 1946 when the property was sold by Frances W. Williams, wife of Frederick, to the Security Insurance Company of New Haven for $125,000. The northern part of the property where 175 stands was purchased by the insurance company from the Williams’ in 1923. The current building was bought by Yale along with 175 Whitney in 1965 and currently houses the University’s Department of Human Resources. Douglas William Orr was a Yale trained architect who opened what was New Haven’s largest architectural firm during the middle of the 20th century. It began as a general practice and his early work was mostly residential. As the practice grew it became more institutional and commercial. Orr gained national recognition and served as the President of the American Institute of Architects in 1949. He retired in 1966. The building has become a subject of controversy as the Yale School of Management has plans to demolish both 155 and 175 Whitney Avenue to make way for a new building designed by Lord Norman Foster. The New Haven Preservation Trust has called upon Yale “to give serious consideration to reusing existing structures.” The Foster plans have yet to be presented, but it is unlikely they have taken the Preservation Trust’s words very seriously.