Difference between revisions of "Percy Parke Lewis (1885-1962), Architect"

Latest revision as of 13:42, 23 December 2022

Percy Parke Lewis, 1916

Percy Parke Lewis was born in Merryall, Pennsylvania on August 12, 1885 to Jackson and Hannah (nee Parke) Lewis. His father, a miller, died in 1890. By 1900, widow Hannah and three of her children, including 14-year-old Percy, lived in Waterbury, Connecticut.[2][3] Young Percy showed an early talent for drawing, taking "first on pen and ink drawing" at the "Waterbury Agricultural fair" in 1900.[4] Whether he had the advantage of much education in architecture is uncertain, but his early choice of an architectural career is clear. When Percy married Ruth Hoffer in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania in 1909, he was referred to as "a well known architect of this city, formerly of Waterbury, Conn."[7][a] He practiced in Pennsylvania until moving to Omaha in 1916, then to Los Angeles in 1924. His practice there included churches, theaters, houses and large apartment buildings, sometimes illustrated in L.A. newspapers with exquisite watercolor renderings. Lewis retired in 1953 and died in Los Angeles on February 9, 1962.[1][2]

This page is a contribution to the publication, Place Makers of Nebraska: The Architects. See the format and contents page for more information on the compilation and page organization.

Compiled Nebraska Directory Listings

Omaha, Nebraska, 1917-1924

Educational & Professional Associations

1907: draftsman, Jacksonville, Florida.[6]

1908: took "a course of architecture," New York City.[5][8]

1910-1911: draftsman in office of (F. L.) Olds & Puckey, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania.[9][c]

1912-1915: partner with Jacob S. Pettebone in Pettebone & Lewis, architects, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania.[10][29][30][31]

1916-1918: draftsman and architect with Bankers Realty Investment Co., Omaha, Nebraska.[8][32]

1919-1924: draftsman and architect, Omaha, Nebraska.

1923: draftsman for Jno. Latenser & Son, Omaha, Nebraska.

1924-1951: architect, Los Angeles, California.[1][12]

Buildings & Projects

1910-1915

Lewis worked as a draftsman in the architectural office of Olds & Puckey in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, beginning around 1910, then upon F. L. Olds' death "succeeded" to the business, practicing in partnership with Jacob S. Pettebone as Pettebone & Lewis from 1912 to 1915. Pettebone earned a B.S. in architecture from Cornell in 1893.

Project for bridge across Susquehanna River (1914), Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania.[11]

1916-1918

On staff, Architectural Department, Bankers Realty Investment Company (BRIC), Omaha, Nebraska (1917-1919). BRIC was a vertically integrated construction and investment firm organized around 1910 in Omaha which offered architectural, financial, and construction services. North American Hotel Company was a closely affiliated subsidiary announced as the operational arm for the enterprise's hotels. Lewis joined the firm early in 1922 and by March visited Albion, Nebraska regarding a hotel project there. This page includes projects on which Lewis' involvement is documented. A full list of the firm's known projects is included on the BRIC page.

Site visit "with a view of arranging preliminary plans" for a hotel (1916), Albion, Nebraska.[13]

Hartington Hotel (1916-1917), Hartington, Nebraska.[16][17]

Atlas Bank & office building, (1917-1918), Neligh, Nebraska.[14][18][19][b] Exterior (2016) severely compromised by window replacement. (AP04-168)

Red Cloud High School (1917-1918), Red Cloud, Nebraska.[15]

1919-1924

When BRIC stumbled in 1919 and collapsed in 1920, Lewis continued an architectural practice from his Omaha home on Florence Blvd. until 1924.

Combined elementary and high school (1919), Fairfax, South Dakota.[20]

Addition to school building (1921), Colome, South Dakota.[21]

1924-1951

Percy Lewis and his family relocated to Los Angeles by 1924 and practiced there until retirement in 1951.

14-story El Encanto Apartments (1924), Sycamore and Highland Avenues, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California.[12]

Regency Village Theater (1930), Westwood Village district, Los Angeles, California.[24]

Fox West Coast Village Theater (1931), Westwood Village district, Los Angeles, California.[1][24]

"Demonstration home" for Janss Investment Corp. (1933), 11155 Montana Avenue, Los Angeles, California.[22]

Chateau Colline apartment project (1935), 10335 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles, California.[23][24]

St. Alban's Episcopal Church (1941), 580 Hilgard Avenue (Westwood), Los Angeles, Calfornia.[1][25]

Notes

a. P. P. Lewis was listed in the Jacksonville, Florida city directory of 1907 as a draftsman. John H. W. Hawkins was well-established in his Jacksonville architectural practice by that time, having relocated from Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania in 1902. Previously Hawkins was located in Omaha and Lincoln, spending a highly productive decade in Nebraska from 1885-1895. Perhaps it is coincidental that after his year in Jacksonville, Lewis settled in Wilkes-Barre for a decade, then Omaha from 1916-1924, but it seems possible that Hawkins had some influence on those choices.(EFZ)

When Lewis "succeeded" the architectural practice of Olds & Puckey in Wilkes-Barre in 1912, the local newspaper announced "Mr. Lewis received his early technical training in the Columbia University, and has practiced for twelve years in large offices in the East and So[uth]. He has spent some time in study in New York, New Haven, Waterbury Conn,; Jacksonville, Florida; Chattanooga, Tenn., and in Atlanta, Georgia." Perhaps the cities listed are a recounting of Lewis' travels in search of work or to observe buildings in various locations--a Chattanooga newspaper mentioned in 1906 that he was visiting that city (from Jacksonville) in 1906. However, Lewis' name has not been found in Columbia University Alumni Registry, and a claim of a dozen years of practice by 1912 would begin his career at age 15. When he arrived in Omaha in 1916, his new employer, Bankers Realty Investment, repeated that Lewis "is a Columbia University man" and also that he had "studied at the Art Students' League in New York City." Perhaps it was in reference to the Art Students' League that a Waterbury newspaper mentioned in 1907 that Lewis "has been taking a course of architecture in New York."[5][7][8][27]

b. F. W. Fitzpatrick published a rendering in 1918 captioned "Design for a Bank Building, Omaha" depicting a long, narrow, two- story building with a sculpture of Atlas at the center of the front parapet, bending beneath a globe.[18] The rendering closely matches Atlas Bank in Neligh, Nebraska, where another publication of 1918 indicates Bankers' Realty Investment Co. (BRIC) built a bank that year, designed by Fitzpatrick, the head of BRIC's architectural department in 1917-1919.[19] Probably the caption in the first publication was simply erroneous, but it is possible the building was first planned for Omaha, then built instead in Neligh. Lewis made progress visits to Neligh, where he was referred to as the building's architect, but that probably should not be read as assigning him sole or even primary credit for the design. It was a BRIC effort, in which Lewis played a part.(EFZ)

c. Frederick L. Olds (1852-1912) located in the Wilkes-Barre area around 1894 and was active in civic matters as well as in his architectural practice. He died suddenly of a heart attack in January 1912 at age 59.[26]

References

1. "Percy Parke Lewis," obituary in Los Angeles Times (February 12, 1962).

2. Ancestry.com. 1870 United States Federal Census, s.v. "Jackson Lewis" & "Hannah Lewis," [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2009; Ancestry.com. 1900 United States Federal Census, s.v. "Percy Lewis," b. 1885, [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2004; Ancestry.com. 1910 United States Federal Census, s.v. "Percy Parke Lewis" and spouse "Ruth," [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2006.

3. "Jackson Lewis" in Find a Grave, accessed on-line December 9, 2022, at https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/87826220/jackson-lewis

4. "Close of the Fair. Long List of Prizes Distributed," Waterbury (Connecticut) Democrat (September 22, 1900), 3.

5. "City News," Waterbury (Connecticut) Democrat (March 6, 1908), 10.

6. Jacksonville, Florida city directory, 1906-1908.

7. The Times Leader (Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania) (August 31, 1909), 18.

8. "Prominent Wilkes Barre, PA., Architect Comes to Omaha," The New Nebraskan (Omaha, Nebraska) (February 24, 1916), 2; "East Watching Omaha, Declares P. P. Lewis," Omaha (Nebraska) Daily News (February 22, 1916), 12.

9. Succeeds Architect Olds," Pittston (Pennsylvania) Gazette (February 233, 1912), 8.

10. Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania city directories.

11. New Bridge Plan...Architect Lewis to Submit Perspective Painting of a Proposed Structure," The Times Leader (Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania) (July 6, 1914), 17.

12. "Big Apartments Will Be Unique--El Encanto Structure to Be Ultimate in Smart Appointments," Los Angeles (California) Evening Citizen News (May 2, 1924), 8; "El Encanto Has Novel Duplexes--Idea for Apartments is New One Among Western Builders," Los Angeles (California) Evening Citizen News (June 7, 1924), 9.

13. "Albion Hotel Company Incorporates," The Albion (Nebraska) Argus (March 16, 1916), 5; "Hotel Site Announced," The Albion (Nebraska) Argus (March 23, 1916), 1; "Prospects for Albion Hotel," Petersburg (Nebraska) Index (March 24, 1916), 8.

14. "Atlas Bank Architect Here," The Neligh (Nebraska) Register (December 17, 1917), 5; "Nearing Completion," The Neligh (Nebraska) Register (January 17, 1918), 5.

15. "School Board Contracts with Omaha Architect," Weekly Advertiser (Red Cloud, Nebraska) (January 5, 1917), 1; "...school paraphernalia is being moved into the new building...," Weekly Advertiser (Red Cloud, Nebraska) (January 4, 1918), 1.

16."To Decide Monday. Hotel Co. Officials to Return Then. Conditions Very Favorable. Architect Views Proposed Locations...," Cedar County News (Hartington, Nebraska) (May 18, 1916), 1.

17. "The Hartington Hotel, Banker Realty Investment Company, Architect and Builder," The Cedar County News (Hartington, Nebraska) (May 24, 1917), 7 (full-page, 14 photographs).

18. F. W. Fitzgerald, “Mid-West Building Activities,” The Architect and Engineer of California (March, 1918), 91-98.

19. "Country Banks in New Buildings," Bankers' Monthly (June 1918), 55.

20. "Notice for Sealed Bids for New School Building," Norfolk (Nebraska) Daily News (April 4, 1919), 7.

21. "School Building, Colome, S. D.," (Omaha, Nebraska) Evening World-Herald (June 15, 1921), 16.

22. "Interesting Types of New Homes in Three Different Residential Locations," Los Angeles Times (October 29, 1933), 15 (illustrated with rendering).

23. "Plans Ready for Large Apartment Building Project," Los Angeles Times (June 30, 1935), 30 (illustrated with rendering); "Wide Variety of New Structural Projects in This Area," Los Angeles Times (November 24, 1935), 73 (illustrated with construction photo).

24. "Percy Parke Lewis," Find a Grave, accessed on-line December 11, 2022, at https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/70666366/percy-parke-lewis

25. "Our Story--St. Alban's Episcopal Church," accessed December 11, 2022 on-line at https://stalbanswestwood.org/about/our-story/.

26. "Architect Olds Dead," Wilkes-Barre (Pennsylvania) Record (January 11, 1912), 14; "Frederick Lauren 'Fred' Olds," Find a Grave, s.v. "F. L. Olds," website accessed December 12, 2022 on-line at https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/162726143/frederick-lauren-olds

27. "Succeeds F. L. Olds--P. P. Lewis Takes Over Business of the Late Well Known Architect," The Times Leader (Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania) (February 23, 1912), 5.

28. "Hotel Gossip and Personal...P. P. Lewis, of Jacksonville, Fla., is spending a few days in the city," The Chattanooga (Tennessee) News (March 22, 1906), 8.

29. Ancestry.com, "Certificate of Death" (Jacob Sharpe Pettebone, 1866-1943), Pennsylvania, U. S., Death Certificates, 1906-1968, s.v. "Jacob S. Pettebone."

30. Ancestry.com, "U. S. School Catalogs, 1765-1935 for Jacob Sharps Pettebone...New York, Cornell University," (B. S. in Arch., 1893, Dorranceton, Pa.).

31. "J. S. Pettebone, Architect, Dies," Wilkes-Barre (Pennsylvania) Record (March 25, 1943), 5.

32. "Bankers Realty Has An Artist on Staff--P. P. Lewis, the New Employee, Says America is Developing European Taste for Architectural Beauty," Omaha (Nebraska) Daily News (February 13, 1916), 5.

Page Citation

E. F. Zimmer, “Percy Parke Lewis (1885-1962), Architect,” in David Murphy, Edward F. Zimmer, and Lynn Meyer, comps. Place Makers of Nebraska: The Architects. Lincoln: Nebraska State Historical Society, December 23, 2022. http://www.e-nebraskahistory.org/index.php?title=Place_Makers_of_Nebraska:_The_Architects Accessed, May 15, 2024.

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