Stephen Decatur Button

Stephen Decatur Button (June 15, 1813, in Preston, Connecticut – January 7, 1897, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) was an American architect and a pioneer in the use of metal-frame construction for masonry buildings.

He apprenticed to his uncle, Connecticut carpenter Stephen Button, and became an assistant to New York City architect George Purvis.

"[3] In 1961, architectural historian Winston Weisman labeled this style "Philadelphia Functionalism," and conjectured that it may have influenced the skyscrapers of architect Louis Sullivan.

[4] Sullivan worked next-door at 243 Chestnut Street in 1874, while a draftsman in the offices of architects Frank Furness & George W. Hewitt.

Button received major commissions in Camden, including churches, schools, railroad stations, commercial buildings, and the second City Hall.

Arch Street Presbyterian Church , Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (1855).
Lewis Building (center), and 243 Chestnut Street (left).
Spring Garden Institute
Mount Moriah Cemetery Gatehouse
The "Belevedere" bed and breakfast at 101 S. LaFayette Street in Cape May near the corner with Windsor, part of the Cape May Historic District
Adams County Courthouse