The Bishop’s House on the Delaware:  1837-1875

1837 Bishop George Washington Doane plans the construction of a new house near Saint Mary’s Hall, a school he founded in 1837. He, his wife, and two sons have been living in the parsonage of Saint Mary’s Church, Burlington, New Jersey since 1834; there is not enough room for her four children (by her first husband, James Perkins) to reside with them.	Early 1838 Bishop Doane commissions John Notman to build Riverside. How they met is unknown, but by 1837 Notman had designed Laurel Hill cemetery in Philadelphia and at least one private home in the Mount Holly area. Alexander Jackson Downing was contracted to design the seven acres grounds and gardens.	April 1838 The cornerstone is laid on 26 April, Easter Monday, although an earlier date was anticipated. A transcription from the Doane Papers (New York State Library at Albany, New York) reads: The Corner-Stone of  [              ] the family mansion of the Bishop of New Jersey and the Rector of St Mary’s Church was laid by him on December 1837 26 April, Easter Monday, 1838 in the presence of his family and friends and of the family of St. Mary’s Hall.	Autumn 1838 The first name considered for the house seems to have been Holy Rood. (A reference to this is found in a letter from GWD to William Croswell.) That name is never made public and Riverside seems to have been selected as a replacement by the autumn of 1838.
1839 The 'Italianate Gothic villa' had 25 rooms and was approximately 8000 square feet. The library was 18 x 30, with a 16-foot ceiling of ornamental plaster. The second storey comprised eight rooms, averaging 360 square feet each (18 x 18). The third floor had only one bedroom in the tower. The cistern over the first-floor bath held 500 gallons of water force pumped from the Delaware river; the bath area included a shower. The kitchen and many of the cellar rooms were illuminated by natural light through an ingenious 'moat' dug 10 feet or so below grade.		Spring 1839 The Doane family have moved into Riverside by the end of April. The first letter from GWD headed 'Riverside' rather than 'St Mary's Parsonage' is dated 30 April. This indicates that the massive house was built in twelve months or less.
Early 1840s An engraving of the house, by John Collins, a local Burlington artist, with handpainted watercolour, which gives some idea of the beauty of the AJ Downing-designed grounds.		Circa 1848 Riverside is located about 50 feet south of what will become the Chapel of the Holy Innocents (built in 1847, also by John Notman). In this engraving by John Collins, the house is obscured by the willow tree.
1845 GWD, in a letter to his stepdaughter Sarah Paine Perkins, indicates that all that the grounds of Riverside need is a fountain and a sundial. He adds that he hopes to have the interior painted the following year.	April 1859 Bishop Doane dies at Riverside on 27 April 1859. His body is laid out in the drawing before being taken to Saint Mary's churcyard for burial on 1 May 1859.	October 1859 The Reverend William Croswell Doane, the bishop's younger son, remains at Riverside with his family until October 1859. He finishes a biography of his father whilst serving as rector of Saint Mary's Church.	December 1859 William Henry Odenheimer, elected third Bishop of New Jersey iin May, moves into Riverside with his family. He will die there in 1879, the last year Riverside serves as the residence of a Bishop of New Jersey.
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