William Roy Morton (1899-1961), Architect
William Roy Morton was born in Wisconsin in 1899 to Aranthus and Lena Morton. His father was listed as a painter and paperhanger in Ellsworth, Pierce County, Wisconsin in 1900. His mother was identified as of Russian birth in 1900 but as Finnish in 1910, when the family lived in Oelwein, Fayette County, Iowa. [1][2] William married Daisy Gladys Miner in Omaha in September 1917, during the period in which he was enlisted in the U.S. Army as a member of the First Balloon Squadron, based at Fort Omaha.[3][4][5][7][a][b] They had a son, Burdette, in 1918. William worked as a printer in Douglas, Otoe County, Nebraska (1920) and in Denver (1923)[6][8]. The family returned to Lincoln, Nebraska, by 1924 where William worked as a draftsman for architects Miller & Craig and Meginnis & Schaumberg. Although Morton was not listed as a practicing architect until 1931, he identified as the architect on building permits for several houses in 1929 and 1930. In 1932 and 1933, he was architect for Sweeney & Company, a house-building enterprise, then returned to independent practice from 1934-1936.[9]
The family relocated to Los Angeles by 1940, where William was again working as an architectural draftsman, with four children in the household.[10] William Morton died in 1961 and was interred in Los Angeles National Cemetery.[4] Daisy Morton died in 1969.[11] Their eldest son Burdette R. Morton (1918-1976) established himself as an artist in Los Angeles and San Francisco.
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.
Contents
Compiled Nebraska Directory Listings
Lincoln, Nebraska, 1918, 1923-1936.
Educational & Professional Associations
1925: draftsman, Miller & Craig, Lincoln, Nebraska.[9]
1928-1930: draftsman, Meginnis & Schaumberg, Lincoln, Nebraska.[9]
1931: architect, Lincoln, Nebraska.[9]
1932-1933: architect, Sweeney & Company (house-builders), Lincoln, Nebraska.[9]
1934-1936: architect, Lincoln, Nebraska.[9]
1940-1961: draftsman, Los Angeles, California.[10]
Buildings & Projects
House, Lincoln, Nebraska.[][] (LC13:xxx-xxx)
19xx-19xx (Lincoln, Nebraska)
Undated
Notes
a. Daisy was 17 and William was 18 when they married, although a listing of marriage licenses in the World Herald newspaper gave their ages as 18 and 21, respectively.[3]
b. According to the "Application for Headstone or Marker" for Morton's grave, he enlisted April 19, 1917 and was honorably discharged November 6, 1917, serving as a private in the "1st Balloon Sqdrn, ASSC."[4]
References
1. Ancestry.com. 1900 United States Federal Census [database on-line], s.v. "William R. Morton." Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2004.
2. Ancestry.com. 1910 United States Federal Census [database on-line], s.v. "William R. Morton." Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2006.
3. "Marriage Licenses," Evening World-Herald (Omaha, Nebraska) (September 8, 1917), 8.
4. "Honor Roll" (new enlistments), Evening World-Herald (Omaha, Nebraska) (April 10, 1917), 1; Ancestry.com. U.S., Headstone Applications for Military Veterans, 1925-1963 [database on-line], s.v. "William R. Morton." Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012.
5. "Fort Omaha Balloon School: Its Role in World War I," Nebraska History (Spring 1988), 69:1, 2-10; accessed March 9, 2019, on-line at https://history.nebraska.gov/sites/history.nebraska.gov/files/doc/publications/NH1988BalloonSchool.pdf
6. Ancestry.com. 1920 United States Federal Census [database on-line], s.v. "Daisy Morton." Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010.
7. Ancestry.com. U.S., World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918 [database on-line], s.v. "William Roy Martin." Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2005.
8. Denver city directory, 1923.
9. Lincoln city directories.
10. Ancestry.com. 1940 United States Federal Census [database on-line], s.v. "Daisy Morton." Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012.
11. Find A Grave database on-line, s.v. "Daisy G. Morton," accessed March 9, 2019 at https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/80899061
xx. City of Lincoln Building Permit 8040, issued July 15, 1919, estimated cost: $25,000.
Page Citation
E. F. Zimmer and D. Murphy, “William Roy Morton (1899-1961), Architect,” in David Murphy, Edward F. Zimmer, and Lynn Meyer, comps. Place Makers of Nebraska: The Architects. Lincoln: Nebraska State Historical Society, March 9, 2019. http://www.e-nebraskahistory.org/index.php?title=Place_Makers_of_Nebraska:_The_Architects Accessed, April 19, 2024.
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