Thomas W. Silloway was an American architect

Architect

An architect is a person trained in the planning, design and oversight of the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to offer or render services in connection with the design and construction of a building, or group of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the...

, known for building over 400 church buildings in the eastern United States.

Thomas William Silloway was born in Newburyport, Massachusetts

Newburyport, Massachusetts

Newburyport is a small coastal city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States, 35 miles northeast of Boston. The population was 21,189 at the 2000 census. A historic seaport with a vibrant tourism industry, Newburyport includes part of Plum Island...

 and raised a Methodist by his parents, Susan Stone Silloway and Thomas Silloway, Sr., a coppersmith. As a teenager, Silloway apprenticed to a housewright and as a clerk in an East India merchant store.
In 1844 Silloway became a Universalist. He was educated in the local public schools, at Brown High School, and in the local Latin School. In 1847 Silloway began studying under Ammi B. Young

Ammi B. Young

Ammi Burnham Young was an important 19th century American architect whose commissions transitioned from the Greek Revival to the Neo-Renaissance styles. His Second Vermont State House brought him fame and success, which eventually led him to become the first Supervising Architect of the U.S....

, designer of the Boston Custom House

Boston Custom House

The Custom House in Boston, Massachusetts, was established in the 17th century and stood near the waterfront in several successive locations through the years. In 1849 the U.S. federal government constructed a neoclassical building on State Street; it remains the "Custom House" known to Bostonians...

. In 1851 Thomas W. Silloway began his own architecture practice. In 1862 Silloway started a second career as a Universalist minister in New Hampshire, Boston, and Brighton, Massachusetts. He left the ministry in 1867 when his architectural work increased. Silloway had diverse interests in architecture, theology

Theology

Theology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...

, music, and genealogy

Genealogy

Genealogy is the study of families and the tracing of their lineages and history. Genealogists use oral traditions, historical records, genetic analysis, and other records to obtain information about a family and to demonstrate kinship and pedigrees of its members...

 and published many books on diverse topics. By the time he died in 1911 Silloway was credited for designing more church buildings than any other individual in America.

Notable works

• Highrock Church, ca. 1841, Arlington, Massachusetts
  Arlington, Massachusetts
  Arlington is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, six miles northwest of Boston. The population was 42,844 at the 2010 census.-History:...
  
  
• Milford Town Hall
  Milford Town Hall
  Milford Town Hall is an historic town hall at 52 Main Street in Milford, Massachusetts.The hall was built in 1853 and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1977....
  
  , 1853, Milford, Massachusetts
  Milford, Massachusetts
  Milford is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. It had a population of 27,999 at the 2010 census.For geographic and demographic information on the census-designated place Milford, constituting the center of the town, please see the article Milford ,...
  
  
• Vermont State House
  Vermont State House
  The Vermont State House, located in Montpelier, is the state capitol of Vermont and the seat of the Vermont General Assembly. The current Greek Revival structure is the third building on the same site to be used as the State House...
  
  , 1858, Montpelier, Vermont
  Montpelier, Vermont
  Montpelier is a city in the U.S. state of Vermont that serves as the state capital and the shire town of Washington County. As the capital of Vermont, Montpelier is the site of the Vermont State House, seat of the legislative branch of Vermont government. The population was 7,855 at the 2010...
  
  
• First Congregational Church, 1870, Waltham, Massachusetts
  Waltham, Massachusetts
  Waltham is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, was an early center for the labor movement, and major contributor to the American Industrial Revolution. The original home of the Boston Manufacturing Company, the city was a prototype for 19th century industrial city planning,...
  
  
• Memorial Hall, 1870, Oakland, Maine
  Oakland, Maine
  Oakland is a town in Kennebec County in the U.S. state of Maine. The population was 6,240 at the 2010 census. . Gateway to the Belgrade Lakes region, Oakland is 4 miles west of Waterville and approximately 18 miles north of Augusta, the state capital.-History:It was first settled about 1780 by...
  
  
• Roslindale Baptist Church
  Roslindale Baptist Church
  Roslindale Baptist Church is an historic Baptist church at 52 Cummins Highway in the Roslindale neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts.The church was built in 1884 by Thomas Silloway in a Stick-Eastlake style and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1998....
  
  , 1884, Boston, Massachusetts
• Unitarian Church in Charleston, 1886, Charleston, South Carolina
  Charleston, South Carolina
  Charleston is the second largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It was made the county seat of Charleston County in 1901 when Charleston County was founded. The city's original name was Charles Towne in 1670, and it moved to its present location from a location on the west bank of the...
  
  

Publications by Silloway

• Thomas William Silloway, Lee L. Powers, The cathedral towns and intervening places of England, Ireland and Scotland (A. Williams, 1883 )