James J. Egan
| James J. Egan | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1839 Cork, Ireland |
| Died | December 2, 1914 (aged 74–75) Chicago, Illinois, US |
| Burial place | Calvary Cemetery |
| Known for | Architect |
James J. Egan, FAIA, (1839 – December 2, 1914) was an Irish-American architect and fellow of the American Institute of Architects practicing in Chicago, Illinois. He was a partner of the Chicago architectural firms Armstrong & Egan, Egan & Kirkland and Egan & Prindeville, which gained prominence designing Catholic structures.
Early life
Born in Cork, Ireland, Egan was educated at a private academy in Cork, Ireland before graduating from the Government School of Design, Queens College, Cork.[1] He also studied in England before emigrating in 1864. He arrived at Castle Garden, New York City and found work as a draftsman for Richard Upjohn.[2] He continued his training under Charles W. Clinton who had previously trained with Upjohn, and was "one of the most refined designers in the Renaissance styles".[3] He also worked under Clinton's sometime associate Edward Tuckerman Potter of Schenectady, New York, whose tastes leaned toward Gothic Revival.[3]
Chicago
He relocated to Chicago, Illinois shortly after the great fire in 1871, where he became heavily involved in reconstruction. He also developed strong personal connections with leaders in the Chicago Roman Catholic Church, and received the commission for St. Vincent de Paul Church in Lincoln Park.[4] He and formed several partnerships with fellow architects.
John M. Armstrong was born around 1840 on a farm at Kinzie and Wells Streets. He was a councilman at the age of twenty and is credited with the relocation of the city's first cemetery to make way for Lincoln Park. Around 1874, Egan went into partnership with Armstrong, forming the firm of Armstrong & Egan which designed the City Hall/County Building (1874).[5] Disagreements arose between the City Council and the County Board, with each pursuing their respective portion of the project separately.
Henry W. Hill was born in Elmshorn, Germany and attended the Inst. of Technology ad Polytechnicum in Hamburg. He arrived in Chicago in March 1872 and was employed in the offices of a number of leading architects. Hill worked for Armstrong & Egan on the courthouse project. From 1875 to 1881 Egan partnered with Hill,[2] in the firm Egan & Hill. In 1881, Hill went into partnership with Augustus Bauer. Hill retired to Holstein, Germany in 1914.
Egan & Kirkland
In 1882, he formed a partnership with Alex Kirkland. Kirkland had previously served as Supervising Architect on Armstrong & Egan's City Hall/County Building project.[6]
- Hotel St. Benedict Flats, 801 North Wabash Street (1882–1883), a four-story building of luxury apartments on Chicago Avenue at Wabash.[7]
- Church of St. Thomas the Apostle (1885), Beloit, Wisconsin.[8]
- St. Raphael's Cathedral in Dubuque, Iowa (1886 interior renovation)[9]
- St. Mary's Church, Clinton, Iowa (1888, demolished in 2009),[10]
- St. Mary of the Assumption Cathedral in San Francisco, California (1891, destroyed by fire in 1962)[11]
- Sacred Heart Cathedral in Davenport, Iowa (1891)[10]
- St. Ambrose Cathedral in Des Moines, Iowa (1891)[12]
- St. Patrick's Roman Catholic Church in Milwaukee, Wisconsin (1893)[13]
- St. Paul's Church in Burlington, Iowa (1895)[14]
Egan & Prindeville
Egan formed the firm "Egan & Prindeville" with Charles H. Prindeville. It gained prominence building Roman Catholic churches and other structures, including the cathedral church of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh, St. Paul Cathedral (1906). Egan was made a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects in 1913.
He died in Chicago on December 2, 1914, and was buried at Calvary Cemetery in Evanston.
The firm continued under Charles Prindeville after Egan's death.[15]
- St. Francis de Sales Church (1899, demolished), Keokuk, Iowa[10]
- St. Vincent de Paul Church in Chicago (1897)
- St. Paul Cathedral in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (1906), as Egan & Prindeville[15]
- St. Bridget Church Chicago, Il (1906; demolished, 1992)
- St. Pius V Church, Pilsen neighborhood, Chicago, IL
Gallery
Structures designed by James J. Egan
References
- Back to citation James J. Egan at archINFORM
- Back to citation occurrence 2.0 Back to citation occurrence 2.1 "James J. Egan (Architect)", Pacific Coast Architecture Database
- Back to citation occurrence 3.0 Back to citation occurrence 3.1 Wight, Peter J., "James J. Egan", Construction News, January 16, 1914, p. 7
- Back to citation McNamara, Denis Robert. Heavenly City: The Architectural Tradition of Catholic Chicago, Liturgy Training Publications, 2005, pp.22-23ISBN 9781568545035
- Back to citation "The Cook County Criminal Court under construction in 1874", Chicago Tribune, February 16, 1874
- Back to citation Annual Report of the Department of Public Works, 1885, p. 58
- Back to citation "Hotel St. Benedict Flats", Chicago Landmarks, City of Chicago
- Back to citation "Church of St. Thomas the Apostle (Catholic)". Architecture and History Inventory. Wisconsin Historical Society. January 2012. Retrieved November 18, 2017.
- Back to citation "Part 2: February 1858 – March 1900". St. Raphael's Cathedral. Retrieved August 1, 2018.
- Back to citation occurrence 10.0 Back to citation occurrence 10.1 Back to citation occurrence 10.2 Greer, Edward (1956). Cork Hill Cathedral: The Chronicle of St. Margaret's and Sacred Heart Parish Davenport, Iowa 1856-1956. Davenport: Gordon. p. 78.
- Back to citation "St. Mary's Cathedral I: History". Cathedrals of California. Archived from the original on March 9, 2012. Retrieved June 23, 2012.
- Back to citation Muffy Mitchell; M.H. Bowers. "National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form: St. Ambrose Cathedral and Rectory". National Park Service. Retrieved February 9, 2015. with photos
- Back to citation Mary Ellen Wietczykowski; Donald N. Anderson (August 10, 1974). "National Register of Historic Places Registration: St. Patrick's Roman Catholic Church". National Park Service. Retrieved March 16, 2020.
- Back to citation Steven Brower; Kathleen Brower; et al. "National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form: Heritage Hill Historic District". National Park Service. Retrieved March 3, 2015.
- Back to citation occurrence 15.0 Back to citation occurrence 15.1 Decker, Kevin F. " James J. Egan (d.1914)" Archived September 8, 2006, at the Wayback Machine, University of Plattsburgh, New York (2000)