FORT WAYNE ARCHITECTS & FIRMS

Leighton Bowers (1894-1944) A native of Fort Wayne, Bowers practiced here until he moved to Indianapolis in 1933, where he served as an architect for the state of Indiana. His Fort Wayne designs include the NIPSCO Office Building (34112) and the Gaston F. Bailhe House (49169).

Griffith & Goodrich Fort Wayne native Chauncey Griffith (1872-1953), and D. Parson Goodrich (1867-1955), born in Boston and educated at M.I.T. (Massachusetts Institute of Technology), formed this partnership by 1916. Griffith had previously worked in partnership with Perry W. Fair. Local buildings known to be Griffith & Goodrich designs are the Franklin Public School (14044) and South Side High School (44081).

Alfred Grindle Grindle worked as a draftsman in the office of Wing & Mahurin before he briefly practiced in Fort Wayne on his own, and in partnership with Charles Weatherhogg. Grindle moved to Muncie about 1897. He designed the Dreibelbiss-Tri-State Block (28007), built 1894.

Frank B. Kendrick Kendrick was a native of Philadelphia. He began his architectural career there in the office of Bruce Price in 1869. By 1879 Kendrick had settled in Fort Wayne and he became a partner in a contracting firm. After 1888 he resumed his architectural practice, and designed such Fort Wayne landmarks as the Louis Mohr Block (26037) and the Schmitz Block (26105). Kendrick moved to Crown Point, Indiana around 1901.

Lloyd W. Larimore (c.1893-1959) Larimore worked in the offices of John F. Wing and Mahurin & Mahurin before he opened his own practice in both Fort Wayne and Marion. Larimore also had a brief partnership in Fort Wayne with Simpson Parkinson, from around 1929 to 1931. Known local works include the Birkmeier and Sons Monument Co. (24042).

Thomas Lau (c.1804-1891) Lau was born in Bavaria and trained in Paris. He arrived in Fort Wayne about 1837 and worked as an architect and builder. Local examples of his work to survive include Emmanuel Lutheran Church (25315) and the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception (28067).

Guy M. Mahurin (1877-1941) Mahurin, nephew of architect Marshall S. Mahurin, was born in Fort Wayne. Early in his career he served as chief draftsman in the U.S. Bureau of Architecture in the Philippine Islands, and even designed the Philippine buildings at the 1904 St. Louis World's Fair. From 1907 to 1918 Guy Mahurin worked in partnership with Marshall Mahurin. For two years during and after World War One, Guy Mahurin was Assistant Chief of the Requisitioning Division of the U.S. Housing Corporation in Washington, D.C. He returned to Fort Wayne and opened his own practice, designing homes and buildings such as the Byron Hattersley House (17161), Forest Park School (17609), the Fort Wayne Chamber of Commerce (25067), and the Federal Building (26092).

Marshall S. Mahurin (1857-1939) Mahurin was a Fort Wayne native, the son of the city's first public school teacher. After taking mechanical drafting lessons, he received his architectural training working in the offices of George Trenam and T.J. Tolan and Son. From 1882 to 1907 he worked in partnership with John F. Wing, and from 1907 to 1918 Mahurin was the senior partner in the firm of Mahurin & Mahurin. He continued an independent practice until 1929. The Henry C. Paul House (17199) and the Theodore Thieme House (25017) are local examples of Mahurin's individual talent.

Mahurin & Mahurin Marshall Mahurin and Guy Mahurin formed this partnership in 1907, after the dissolution of the firm of Wing & Mahurin. They remained in partnership until 1918. The firm worked throughout Indiana, with many examples of their work remaining in Fort Wayne, including Rudisill School (16080), the Louise Seidel House (17234), St. Patrick's Lyceum (37055), and the S.B. Bechtel House (49437).

Henry W. Meyer (c.1863-1931) Born in Allen County, Meyer was a graduate of Concordia College in Fort Wayne and worked as a draftsman in the office of John F. Wing before establishing his own practice. He designed many schools, churches, and commercial buildings, including Concordia Evangelical Lutheran Church (30030), a schoolhouse on Lower Huntington Rd. (58006), and Lutheran Hospital on Fairfield Avenue.

Joel Roberts Ninde (1874-1916) Joel Ninde, a woman self-taught in architecture, designed and built over 300 houses by 1914. Working with her husband, attorney and salesman Lee J. Ninde, through their Wildwood Builders Company, Ninde and her design partner Grace Crosby created Colonial Revival and Craftsman style houses with innovative features appealing to the housewife. The company also published The Wildwood Magazine, a nationally known publication on the subjects of architecture, city planning, and interior design, from 1913-1917. Joel Ninde died of a stroke in 1916 at age 42. Although examples of her work survive in various parts of the city, both the South Wayne Historic District (42001-42138) and the potential Shawnee Drive Historic District (43001-43022) contain significant concentrations. Her own home is located at 902 W. Wildwood Ave. (42016).

Pohlmeyer & Pohlmeyer Fort Wayne natives Fred W. Pohlmeyer (1885-1953) and Martin W. "Mox" Pohlmeyer (1896-1981) were sons of a local building contractor. Fred W. obtained his architectural training working in the offices of both Chicago and local architects. Younger brother Mox was a graduate of Carnegie Tech, and gained experience working with noted eastern architects. The firm designed homes, schools, and commercial buildings such as the Robert Hattersley House (17156), the Coony Bayer House (17188), the Coca Cola Bottling Works (39017), and John S. Irwin School (48002).

John M.E. Riedel (1865-1948) Riedel was born in St. Louis, but lived in Fort Wayne from the age of one. He attended Concordia College, and received his architectural training working in the offices of T.J. Tolan and Son and Harry W. Matson. In his independent career, which began in 1889, Riedel specialized in the design of churches and schools. Churches of his design were scattered from Rhode Island to Nebraska, and were even built in China and India. Local examples of Riedel's work include the Peter Nussbaum House (16082), Engine Houses Nos. 7 and 8 (24029, 37043), St. Paul's School (28077), and the Duemling Clinic (42392).

Alvin M. Strauss (1895-1958) A.M. Strauss, originally from Kendallville, served as an apprentice in the offices of prominent architects in both Chicago and Fort Wayne. Strauss established his own practice in 1918 in Fort Wayne and became one of Indiana's leading architects of the twentieth century. He worked in a number of popular styles, and many of his works are major public, commercial, or residential landmarks in cities throughout Indiana and northwest Ohio. An amazing variety of examples of the work of A.M. Strauss survives in Fort Wayne. Small bungalows such as the Clyde Meyers House (42046) remain, as well as mansions such as the Robert M. Pollak House (49440). Public and commercial buildings include the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum (09016), St. Vincent Villa (15001-15012), the Embassy Theatre and Indiana Hotel (26047), and the Lincoln Bank Tower (28006).

Brentwood S. Tolan (1855-1923) Brentwood Tolan, the son of Thomas J. Tolan, had some art training, but was trained in architecture by working in partnership with his father, starting in 1872. After the death of his father, Tolan continued his architectural practice in Fort Wayne, designing courthouses and jails, such as the Whitley County Courthouse, and Fort Wayne's Old National Bank Building and Masonic Temple and Opera House. Tolan's only design known to survive in Fort Wayne is the Allen County Courthouse (28001).

Thomas J. Tolan (1831-1883) Tolan was a native of northwest Ohio, a marble craftsman-turned architect. He practiced architecture in Delphos, Ohio, and in 1874 Tolan moved his family and practice to Fort Wayne. Together, Thomas J. Tolan, and his son Brentwood, designed many Midwestern courthouses and jails, including the courthouses in Lagrange and Warsaw. The only known work of Thomas J. Tolan, which survives in Fort Wayne, is the J. Ross McCulloch House (28014).

George Trenam (1818-1883) Trenam was a native of Leeds, England. He came to Fort Wayne about 1863, after first living in Chicago and Racine, Wisconsin. Trenam practiced architecture here for nearly 20 years. Surviving examples of his work in Fort Wayne are the H.G. Olds House (25030) and the Kerr Murray House (25109).

Charles R. Weatherhogg (1872-1937) A native of Donington, England, Weatherhogg attended the Art Institute of Lincoln, Lincolnshire and studied in the office of an architect there before he traveled to the United States. He lived in Chicago for one year, but settled in Fort Wayne in 1892. Weatherhogg was briefly in partnership with Alfred Grindle, but this partnership dissolved when Grindle moved to Muncie. With his own practice, Weatherhogg became one of Fort Wayne's leading architects of the early twentieth century. His residential designs include the Louis Curdes House (17228) and the Neizer-McMillen House (49120). Other works include landmarks such as North Side High School (10034), the Journal-Gazette Building (28068), Central High School (28079a), and Fairfield Manor (36202).

John F. Wing (1852-1947) Originally from Dexter, Michigan, Wing attended art classes and worked in an architectural office in Ann Arbor, Michigan. He came to Fort Wayne in 1878, and worked as the senior draftsman in the office of T.J. Tolan and Son. From 1882 to 1907 he worked in partnership with Marshall S. Mahurin. After this partnership was dissolved Wing practiced on his own, and he designed several houses in the Williams Woodland Park area, including the Vail-Hanna House (36132) and the Dr. Calvin English House (36154). Wing also designed the unique Dr. Charles Meigs House (42076) in the South Wayne Historic District.

Wing & Mahurin John F. Wing and Marshall S. Mahurin formed this partnership in Fort Wayne in 1882, under the name J.F. Wing & Co., as an outgrowth of the firm of T.J. Tolan and Son. In 1886 the firm was reorganized and became Wing & Mahurin, Architects & Superintendents. The two quickly made a name for themselves and were soon established as the premier architectural firm in Fort Wayne. The firm specialized in the popular Richardsonian Romanesque, Queen Anne, and Neoclassical styles of architecture, and designed many public and private buildings throughout Indiana and Ohio. They remained partners until 1907. Among the Fort Wayne landmarks designed by Wing & Mahurin are the John H. Bass Mansion (Brookside) (19002), several outstanding houses in the West Central Historic District (25047, 25050, 25068, 25077, 25081, 25092, 25093, 25108, 25117, 25187), the Elektron Building (28008), The City Building (Old Fort Wayne City Hall) (28013), and St. Paul's Evangelical Lutheran Church (28078).

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Nationally and Regionally Prominent Architects & Firms

Barry Byrne (1883-1968) Byrne received his architectural training as an apprentice in the Oak Park Studio of Frank Lloyd Wright in Chicago from 1902-1909. After four years in Seattle, he returned to Chicago in late 1913 to take over the practice of Walter Burley Griffin. Byrne practiced in the Chicago area until 1932, becoming particularly well known for his revolutionary designs of modern churches. After several years in New York City, Byrne returned to Chicago in 1945. He designed the John & Amelia Franke House (17244), built 1914.

Peter Dederichs (1856-1924) A self-taught architect from Detroit, Dederichs designed many German Catholic churches and parish buildings throughout the Midwest. Locally he designed St. Paul's Catholic Church (25154) and St. Peter's Church and School (38048, 38094).

John Eberson An Austrian-born architect, Eberson was a nationally prominent specialist in theater design. Based in Chicago, he designed landmark theaters and theater interiors throughout the United States. Eberson served as a consultant for the design of the Embassy Theatre (26047).

Bertram Grosvenor Goodhue (1869-1924) Goodhue practiced architecture in first Boston, and then New York City. His work is known for its unique combination of the best of historical forms, ornament, and detail with modern materials and forms. Goodhue is known for the Nebraska State Capitol and the Los Angeles County Public Library. Trinity English Lutheran Church (25107) is a fine example of Goodhue's many Gothic churches.

Meade & Hamilton Frank B. Meade (1867-1947) and James M. Hamilton (1873-1941) were two of Cleveland's most prominent architects. Meade was educated at M.I.T. and worked in the offices of major firms in both Boston and Chicago, returning to Cleveland in 1893. Hamilton was architect of many Cleveland landmarks before joining in partnership with Meade. This firm designed the Robert M. Feustel House (32008).

Morris & O'Connor Benjamin W. Morris III (1870-1944) led this New York City firm, in partnership with Robert T. O'Connor. Morris was a graduate of Columbia University and the Paris Ecole des Beaux Arts. He served on the Art Commission of the City of New York, and from 1927 to 1931 on the National Commission of Fine Arts. The firm designed a number of office buildings, banks, and public buildings on the East Coast. Locally, Morris designed the Lincoln National Life Insurance Co. Building (26093) and worked with Guy Mahurin on the United States Post Office and Court (26092).

Price & McLanahan William L. Price (1861-1916) was a Philadelphia architect, and a leader in the Arts and Crafts movement. His partner, M. Hawley McLanahan (1865-1929), was also a native of Pennsylvania. Price designed many stations for the Pennsylvania Railroad, but Fort Wayne's Pennsylvania Railroad Station (26065) is one of only two major stations that survive. In addition, Price designed the 1916 train shed added to Indianapolis Union Station.

Eero Saarinen (1910-1961) Saarinen, son of noted architect Eliel Saarinen, was born in Finland. He came to the U.S. at age 13 when his family relocated to Michigan. Saarinen's monumental architecture is recognized for both its utility and symbolic function. Examples of his work include the St. Louis Gateway Arch, as well as Fort Wayne's Concordia Senior College (03003).

Walker & Weeks Frank R. Walker (1877-1949) and Harry E. Weeks (1871-1935) were boyhood acquaintances in Pittsfield, Massachusetts. Walker was educated in architecture at M.I.T. and the Ecole des Beaux Arts in Paris. Weeks also studied at M.I.T. and worked in the office of a Boston architect. By 1909 both men had migrated to Cleveland, and they formed a partnership there in 1911. Walker & Weeks became known in the Cleveland area for substantial projects such as banks, churches, schools, and major public buildings. The firm designed the Indiana World War Memorial in Indianapolis, and served as consulting architects for the Lincoln Bank Tower (28006) in Fort Wayne.

Frank Lloyd Wright (1867-1959) Perhaps the best known American architect, and the master of the Prairie School of architecture, Wright was born in Wisconsin and trained in the Chicago office of Adler & Sullivan. In 1893 Wright established his own practice in his Oak Park, Illinois Studio. He is known for landmark houses such as the Frederick C. Robie House in Chicago and "Fallingwater" at Bear Run, Pennsylvania. Wright, however, also designed the John & Dorothy Haynes House (32001) in Fort Wayne, built 1952 in his "Usonian" style, which eliminated unnecessary elements through technical innovation.