Charles Bulfinch

Charles Bulfinch (1763-1844) was one of the most important architects working in and shaping post-Revolutionary Boston. His life paralleled that of his close childhood friend Harry Otis; both born into patrician families, each growing up in Bowdoin Square, and attending Harvard College. Heavily influenced by architects in England during his travels in Europe, Bulfinch began designing buildings in Boston that became known as the Federal Style. In addition to the three houses he designed for the Otis family, Bulfinch was hired to design many houses, schools and public buildings in New England, including Boston’s new State House on Beacon Hill and the operating theater of Massachusetts General Hospital.