Difference between revisions of "William Carl Gott (1879-1961), Architect"

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'''William Carl Gott''' was born December 14, 1879 in Worcester, New York, son of Jonhattan and Julia Gott. His father was identified as a huckster (peddler) in the 1880 U. S. Census. William C. Gott was listed as an architect in 1909 in Albany, New York.  The 1910 census confirmed his occupation and his residence in Albany with his wife Corlista and daughter Beatrice.[[#References|[1][2]]][[#Notes|[a]]]
 
'''William Carl Gott''' was born December 14, 1879 in Worcester, New York, son of Jonhattan and Julia Gott. His father was identified as a huckster (peddler) in the 1880 U. S. Census. William C. Gott was listed as an architect in 1909 in Albany, New York.  The 1910 census confirmed his occupation and his residence in Albany with his wife Corlista and daughter Beatrice.[[#References|[1][2]]][[#Notes|[a]]]
  
Gott's personal life and professional practice both appear to have been tumultuous in the 1910s.  He remarried in 1911 in New York, then married yet again and was arrested for bigamy in Omaha, Nebraska in 1912.[[#References|[5][6]]][[#Notes|[b]]] In Omaha he was mentioned as a "construction engineer" for architect [[George Bernhard Prinz (1864-1946), Architect|George Prinz]]. He next surfaced in Lincoln, Nebraska in 1916-1917 as an architect and builder of a few homes.  He then moved west across the state to Scottsbluff, where in 1919 he prepared a design for a high school for neighboring Bayard that was rejected.[[#References|[7][8][9][10]]] The 1920 Census found him in Eagle, Nebraska (a few miles east of Lincoln) with a new wife and infant son, in the household of his wife's parents.[[#References|[11]]] In the 1920s, he relocated to Los Angeles County in California with his new family, where they remained until his death in 1961.  In his later decades, Gott worked as an engineer of the city of Inglewood, California.[[#References|[12][13][14][15]]]
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Gott's personal life and professional practice both appear to have been tumultuous in the 1910s.  He remarried in 1911 in New York, then married yet again and was arrested for bigamy in Omaha, Nebraska in 1912.[[#References|[5][6]]][[#Notes|[b]]] In Omaha he was mentioned as a "construction engineer" for architect [[George Bernhard Prinz (1864-1946), Architect|George Prinz]]. He next surfaced in Lincoln, Nebraska in 1916-1917 as an architect and builder of a few homes.  He then moved west across the state to Scottsbluff, where in 1919 he prepared a design for a high school for neighboring Bayard that was rejected.[[#References|[7][8][9][10]]] The 1920 Census found him in Eagle, Nebraska (a few miles east of Lincoln) with a new wife and infant son, in the household of his wife's parents.[[#References|[11]]] In the 1920s, he relocated to Los Angeles County in California with his new family, where they remained until his death in 1961.  In his later decades, Gott worked as an engineer for the city of Inglewood, California.[[#References|[12][13][14][15]]]
  
 
This page is a contribution to the publication, '''[[Place Makers of Nebraska: The Architects]]'''. See the [[Format and contents of Nebraska architect entries]] page for more information on the compilation and page organization.
 
This page is a contribution to the publication, '''[[Place Makers of Nebraska: The Architects]]'''. See the [[Format and contents of Nebraska architect entries]] page for more information on the compilation and page organization.
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==Page Citation==
 
==Page Citation==
  
[[E. F. Zimmer]], “{{PAGENAME}},” {{Template:ArchtPageCitation}} December 8, 2018.  {{Template:ArchtPageCitation2}} {{LOCALMONTHNAME}} {{LOCALDAY}}, {{CURRENTYEAR}}.
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[[E. F. Zimmer]], “{{PAGENAME}},” {{Template:ArchtPageCitation}} December 9, 2018.  {{Template:ArchtPageCitation2}} {{LOCALMONTHNAME}} {{LOCALDAY}}, {{CURRENTYEAR}}.
  
  
  
 
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Revision as of 17:36, 9 December 2018

Omaha, Nebraska, 1912; Lincoln, Nebraska, 1916-1917; Scottsbluff, Nebraska, 1919

DBA: W. C. Gott

William Carl Gott was born December 14, 1879 in Worcester, New York, son of Jonhattan and Julia Gott. His father was identified as a huckster (peddler) in the 1880 U. S. Census. William C. Gott was listed as an architect in 1909 in Albany, New York. The 1910 census confirmed his occupation and his residence in Albany with his wife Corlista and daughter Beatrice.[1][2][a]

Gott's personal life and professional practice both appear to have been tumultuous in the 1910s. He remarried in 1911 in New York, then married yet again and was arrested for bigamy in Omaha, Nebraska in 1912.[5][6][b] In Omaha he was mentioned as a "construction engineer" for architect George Prinz. He next surfaced in Lincoln, Nebraska in 1916-1917 as an architect and builder of a few homes. He then moved west across the state to Scottsbluff, where in 1919 he prepared a design for a high school for neighboring Bayard that was rejected.[7][8][9][10] The 1920 Census found him in Eagle, Nebraska (a few miles east of Lincoln) with a new wife and infant son, in the household of his wife's parents.[11] In the 1920s, he relocated to Los Angeles County in California with his new family, where they remained until his death in 1961. In his later decades, Gott worked as an engineer for the city of Inglewood, California.[12][13][14][15]

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

Educational & Professional Associations

1909-1910: William C. Gott, Architect, Albany, New York.[2]

1912: William C. Gott, construction engineer for George B. Prinz, Omaha, Nebraska.[6]

1916-1917: W. C. Gott, architect, Lincoln, Nebraska.[7]

1919: W. C. Gott, architect, Scottsbluff, Nebraska.[8][9][10]

1930: William C. Gott, architect, San Antonio, Los Angeles County, California.[14]

1938: William C. Gott, draftsman, Inglewood, California.[21]

1940: William C. Gott, architect, City Engineer's office, Inglewood, California.[12][13]

Buildings & Projects

Barbaugh house (1916), 3025 Randolph Street, Lincoln, Nebraska.[17]

J. B. Harris house (1916), 2424 J Street, Lincoln, Nebraska.[18]

Marie Abbott house (1916), 2651 A Street, Lincoln, Nebraska.[19]

Enderis garage (1917), 1740 Washington Street, Lincoln, Nebraska.[20]

Design for Bayard High School (1919), Bayard, Nebraska.[8][9][10][c]

Notes

a. The 1900 census found the Gott family in W. C.'s hometown of Worcester, where he was a day laborer. [3] After William, Carlista and Beatrice were listed together in Albany in 1910, William seemingly left Albany, while "Mrs. Wm. C. Gott" continued to appear in the Albany directories. As late as the 1940s, Carlista (or sometimes Clarista) Gott was listed in Albany as widow of William. Carlista M. Gott (1881-1963) and Beatrice J. Gott (1898-1973) were interred under a shared gravestone in Maple Grove Cemetery, Worcester, New York.[4]

b. Gott married Gertrude Walrath in Jefferson, New York August 14, 1911. He listed his parents as Manhattan [sic] and Julia (Searl) Gott. No further listing of William with Gertrude has been found. In 1912 he married Loretta Donahey of Omaha in Council Bluffs, Iowa and shortly after was arrested for bigamy. A story on his arrest described him as "a construction engineer employed by Prinz, the architect..." and mentioned "it has been discovered that he was married a year ago in an eastern Canadian city to another woman." As reported, his defense was "that he 'faked' a marriage to another woman in Canada last year, but is not legally married to her." [5][6]

c. Gott's plans and specifications for a $60,000 high school in Bayard, Nebraska apparently attracted no bids from builders, either because of insufficient funding (per Gott) or because they were structurally flawed (State Engineer Johnson). The first article on the matter in a Lincoln newspaper referred to "G. C. Gott, who claims to be an Englishman and is an architect living in Scottsbluff.” A response by "Gott's friends" (likely from Gott himself) clarifies that the architect involved was William C. Gott. Later in 1919, new plans and specs (designed by the architects R. A. Bradley and Company of Hastings, Nebraska) were advertised for proposals in American Contractor.[8][9][10][16]

References

1. Ancestry.com and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. 1880 United States Federal Census, S.V. "Julia Gott," [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2010.

2. Ancestry.com. 1910 United States Federal Census, S.V. "William C. Gott," [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2006.

3. Ancestry.com. 1900 United States Federal Census, S.V. "Carl Gott," [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2004.

4. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/87092945 S. V. “Beatrice Gott,” accessed December 7, 2018.

5. Ancestry.com. New York, County Marriage Records, 1847-1849, 1907-1936, S.V. "W. C. Gott," [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2016.

6. "Construction Engineer Accused of Bigamy," Omaha (Nebraska) Bee (November 9, 1912), 15.

7. Lincoln city directory (1917) and city building permits.

8. "Gott and Engineer Differ—State Official Reports School Building at Bayard as Planned by Mr. Gott Dangerous," Evening State Journal (Lincoln, Nebraska) (March 17, 1919), 1.

9. "Criticism Due to Jealousy—Gott’s friends declare Bayard School Plans were properly drawn," Lincoln (Nebraska) Star (April 2, 1919), 5.

10. "Johnson Insists Gott’s Friends Did not Stick to Facts," Lincoln (Nebraska) Star (April 4, 1919), 11.

11. Ancestry.com. 1920 United States Federal Census, S.V. "W. Carl Gott," [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010. Images reproduced by FamilySearch.

12. Ancestry.com. 1940 United States Federal Census, S.V. "William C. Gott, [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012.

13. Ancestry.com. U.S., World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010.

14. Ancestry.com. 1930 United States Federal Census, S.V. "William C. Gott," [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2002.

15. Ancestry.com. California, Death Index, 1940-1997 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2000.

16. American Contractor (August 16, 1919), 40.

17. City of Lincoln Building Permit #6719, issued August 8, 1916; estimated cost: $2,000.

18. City of Lincoln Building Permit #6750, issued September 1, 1916; estimated cost: $2,100.

19. City of Lincoln Building Permit #6844, issued November 1, 1916; estimated cost: $14,000.

20. City of Lincoln Building Permit #6974, issued March 20, 1917; estimated cost: $500.

21. Inglewood, California city directories, 1938-1947.

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Page Citation

E. F. Zimmer, “William Carl Gott (1879-1961), Architect,” in David Murphy, Edward F. Zimmer, and Lynn Meyer, comps. Place Makers of Nebraska: The Architects. Lincoln: Nebraska State Historical Society, December 9, 2018. http://www.e-nebraskahistory.org/index.php?title=Place_Makers_of_Nebraska:_The_Architects Accessed, March 28, 2024.


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