On Mary's description of the exterior and interior of St. Paul Church's in Cambridge, Mass.:
"While viewing the buildings in company with Mr. Edward T. P. Graham, the architect, the President of one of the best Art Clubs of Boston unhesitatingly asserted the site to be the most European, so far as had come under his notice in this country. By way of explanation he stated that in the old countries it was almost universal to build churches apart from the noise and rumble of traffic; thus, it happens the important churches occupy, each its own piazza, where the quiet recollection befitting religious devotion prevails, and when the service is ended, the congregation may have easy egress to the spacious area without."
I have walked by this church on countless occasions and never stopped to even read its name; I figured it was just one of hundreds of other religious buildings in New England, which it is, but your documentation of the intent and hopes of its creators sheds interesting light on how the construction of places of worship were approached in the 20th century. I'm particularly fascinated by the architect's consideration for the Europeanness of the site and the manner in which the New World is seen as inheriting the design principles (at least for religious buildings, perhaps the most important of all buildings) of "the old countries." It is ironic that now, the church is at the intersection of two rather busy and commercial streets (Bow St. and Mt. Auburn St.) and does not have the space for "the quiet recollection befitting religious devotion." I feel like I know so much more about the local geography and land use of Harvard Square!