Robert Mills was an early 19th
century American architect. Mills was quite active during a
lesser known architectural period called the Greek Revival or the
Classical Revival.1781-1855
Robert Mills was an early 19th
century American architect. Mills was quite active during a
lesser known architectural period called the Greek Revival or the
Classical Revival.
Mills is historically responsible for many of the buildings, especially government buildings that stand today. He was most active in Washington D.C. because it was President Jackson who appointed Mills the "National Architect" in 1836. In the same year, Mills designed the Treasury Building in Washington D.C. Three years later he accompanied this work with the Patent Office.
Most famous, though, was his Washington Monument designed in 1833. It now stands as a national monument of the United States.
NOT A COINCIDENCE
As an architect who widely used the Greek Revival style in his buildings it wasn't a coincidence that he was appointed the official architect for the US Government. During the time of Robert Mills, the United States was forming a political policy of democratic tradition. It was only natural to model the government buildings of a democratic nation from the styles of the first democratic civilization - the Athenians of Greece.
The US government found the Robert mills was the perfect architect for the job taking into consideration his knowledge of the Greek Revival style, which was a revelation of the original classical style. Robert Mills helped the US to reflect democracy through architecture. Therefore, governmental buildings such as the Capitol Building and the White House have not only a national meaning, but an historical and democratic meaning as it is understood through architecture.