Bevier Memorial Building collection

Susan A. Bevier (1821-1903) was born in May 1821 and eventually married Henry H. Bevier. Although Henry was originally from Binghamton, NY, he moved to New York City sometime after 1863. The Beviers were a prominent family in Manhattan, having achieved financial success. Susan Bevier, an art enthusiast, visited family and friends in Rochester, NY every summer. She actively collected artwork and was a proponent of art education. Thus, when Mrs. Bevier passed away in 1903 she left a large portion of her estate to the Rochester Athenaeum and Mechanics Institute (renamed the Rochester Institute of Technology in 1944).

Susan Bevier had already given financial support to the Institute's Department of Fine Arts. The money she left in her will was to be used to construct and equip a fine arts building, as well as support the program's instruction costs. The building was to have a permanent gallery, classrooms, and workshops. In addition, an auditorium was to be included in the structure and named in memory of Bevier's daughter, Alice D. Bevier. Alice died on March 2, 1896. Mrs. Bevier also specified in her will that any remaining funds should be used to purchase artwork for the school on an annual basis.

The Bevier Memorial Building was erected in 1910 on the site of Colonel Nathaniel Rochester's house. Colonel Rochester purchased land in 1803 that eventually became the city of Rochester, NY. The building, designed by architect Claude F. Bragdon, housed the Institute's various art programs, as well as the Bevier art collection and officially opened on December 4, 1911. When the Institute relocated its campus from the city of Rochester to the suburbs of Henrietta in 1968, the university leased the Bevier Memorial Building to "Action for a Better Community," a community action organization for Monroe and Ontario counties. In 1974, the Institute considered demolishing the building, but alumni and local residents were able to convince the Rochester Preservation Board to designate the building as a "landmark of the City of Rochester" and the land parcel as a "landmark site." Since then, several individuals have owned the building in the hopes of renovating it. In 1982, the building was leased by the New York State Department of Health. For many years, the building was vacant. As of 2019, the Bevier Memorial Building contains privately-leased apartments.