The firm was founded in February 1893 when the two men, who were both employed by Stone, Carpenter & Willson, decided to leave and open their own practice. They brought some clients with them, resulting in a rift with their former firm. Due to this, both were denied membership to the AIA until the deaths of Alfred Stone and Edmund R. Willson.[2]
The firm was dissolved upon Martin's death in 1917. It was continued as Hall's private practice, who ran the office until his death in 1928.[2]
Frank Howard Martin was born in Seekonk, Massachusetts in 1863, just across the state line. He attended the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, before leaving to work in New York City. He trained with several architects, including Richard Morris Hunt in 1886.[3] In 1888 he opened his own office, but soon relocated to Providence to work for Stone, Carpenter & Willson, where he gained a high level of responsibility.[4] He and Hall left in early 1893, and established Martin & Hall of February 1, 1893. He remained a member of the firm until his death in 1917.[2]
George Frederic Hall was born in Providence in 1866. He went to work for Stone, Carpenter & Willson in the 1880s. His employers allowed Hall to take private commissions, including a building for the Narragansett Boat Club, of which he was a member, in 1891.[5] Along with Martin, he left in early 1893. After Martin's 1917 death, Hall continued in private practice. However, his prominence quickly declined, and he designed no significant buildings until 1927, when he was commissioned to design the William H. Hall Free Library in Cranston.[6] During that time he also served as the supervising architect on the Industrial Trust Building. He died in 1928.
Emma K. Jewett House, 259 Wayland Ave., Providence, Rhode Island (1909)[10]
Providence City Hospital, 151 Eaton St., Providence, Rhode Island (1910) - Later renamed Charles V. Chapin Hospital, now part of Providence College.[10]
Edwin A. Smith Building, 1 Fulton St., Providence, Rhode Island (1912)[10]
Kinsley Building, 334 Westminster St., Providence, Rhode Island (1912)[12]
Comfort Stations, Weybosset St. and Kennedy Plaza, Providence, Rhode Island (1913)[10]
Robert J. B. Sullivan House, 350 Wayland Ave., Providence, Rhode Island (1914)[22]
O'Connor Apartments, 234-242 President Ave., Providence, Rhode Island (1916)[23]
Stylistically, Martin & Hall were very typical. They were very capable, but not very original. They favored the popular styles of the day: the Colonial and Gothic Revivals. When faced with a major civic commission, they would use an aggrandizing Beaux-Arts design.
Their commercial buildings are among their most refined, the Shepard and Smith Buildings in particular. The Smith, especially, used a very sophisticated interpretation of the Chicago School, in the manner of Holabird & Roche.
Other than this, the work of Martin & Hall trends toward wooden residences, usually Colonial Revival. Though plain and unremarkable, they add to the essence of the city.
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