Difference between revisions of "James Tyler (1844-1919), Architect"

Revision as of 20:12, 22 January 2018

James Tyler was born in Usk, Monmouthshire, England on September 26, 1844 to parents George and Jane Price Taylor.[10][11] Before emigrating, Tyler was a stone-cutter and carver, described by Andreas as one of England's most distinguished stone-cutters, working on the remodel of Windsor Castle and other iconic English buildings. He came to America in 1868, settling in St. Louis, Missouri, where he was engaged in the construction of the Four Courts, after which he relocated to Chicago and erected St. James Church. By 1870 he was in Omaha, Nebraska, serving as master mechanic of the post office building there. He moved to Lincoln in 1875 to perform a similar role in the construction of Lincoln's U. S. Post Office and Courthouse. He was thus employed until June, 1879, when he was appointed superintendent of construction of the State insane asylum. [1][2][5] James' brother William H. Tyler also settled in Lincoln and in 1880 established himself as a building stone supplier, often working with his brother on projects.[19] James Tyler married Emily Elizabeth Burgis in London in 1868, with whom he had five children, including a future partner in his firm, James Tyler, Jr. The elder James Tyler died on November 1, 1919 in Lincoln.[5][10][11]

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

Lincoln, Nebraska, 1878-1890, 1892-1919

Educational & Professional Associations

1870-1875: "master mechanic" for U. S. Courthouse & Post Office, Omaha, Nebraska.

1875-1879: "master mechanic" for U. S. Courthouse & Post Office, Lincoln, Nebraska.

1880-1883: architect and partner, Smith & Tyler, Architects, Lincoln, Nebraska.

1883-1892: architect and superintendent, Lincoln, Nebraska.

1894-1907: architect and partner, James Tyler & Son, Architects, Lincoln, Nebraska.

1903-1919: City of Lincoln water and light commissioner, Lincoln, Nebraska.[5][d]

1916-1919: architect and partner, Tyler, Brandt & Tyler, Architects, Lincoln, Nebraska.

Other Associations

1886-1892: Employed his son James Tyler, Jr., as a draftsman.

1903: Employed Eugene H. Brandt (1867-1918), brother-in-law of his son James Tyler, Jr., as a draftsman.

Buildings & Projects

1880-1883 (Lincoln, Nebraska)

Tyler's initial practice as an architect was in partnership with George A. C. Smith, who had worked on several post offices before coming to Lincoln in 1878 to take charge of the final stage of construction of the U. S. Courthouse and Post Office there. See Smith & Tyler, Architects for an account of additional work of their partnership.

John Fitzgerald house (ca. 1880), Lincoln, Nebraska.[4][6][20]

Fitzgerald Block (1882), 120 N. 10th, Lincoln, Nebraska.[3][4][21][a]

1883-1892 (Lincoln, Nebraska)

James Tyler practiced independently for a decade before forming a partnership with his son James around 1893. James Jr. was a draftsman in his father's office from 1886.

Townsend Block (1883), Lincoln, Nebraska.[10]

J. R. Johnson house (1885-1886), 1422 Boswell, Crete, Nebraska.[3][13] (SA01-12)

John R. Clark house (1886-1887), SW corner 20th & F, Lincoln, Nebraska.[6][4][8]

Burrs' Block (1887), NE corner 12th & O, Lincoln, Nebraska.[3][4][10] (LC13:C09-002)

Proposals for a wholesale house for John Fitzgerald (1888), SW corner of 10th & M, Lincoln, Nebraska.[16][f]

Fitzgerald Building/warehouse (1888), 701 P, Lincoln, Nebraska.[6][a]

Seven-room brick school house (1888), Ulysses, Nebraska.[17]

Nebraska Stock Yards Company: new Store House, Chill Room, and other additions to Packing House #1 (1888), West Lincoln, Nebraska.[14]

William H. Tyler house (1890-1891), 808 D St., Lincoln, Nebraska.[7] (LC13:C07-001)

Robert E. Moore residence (1891), Lincoln, Nebraska.[3][4][18]

Sacred Heart Catholic Church (1892), NE corner 13th & Ivy, Crete, Nebraska.[3] (SA01-020)

Halter Block (1892-1893), SE corner of 11th & P Streets, Lincoln, Nebraska.[15][e]

Plans for J. T. Bullard mansion (1893), McCook, Nebraska.[4]

1893-1907 (Lincoln, Nebraska)

The father and the son practiced together as James Tyler & Son for over a decade, with projects throughout Lincoln and Nebraska. As early as 1903, James Sr. also began to be listed in Lincoln city directories as City Water Commissioner, while his architectural practice apparently continued. See James Tyler & Son, Architects for an account of the projects of their partnership.

1908-1915 (Lincoln, Nebraska)

For several years the elder James Tyler was listed in Lincoln city directories solely as Lincoln's Water Commissioner and superintendent of the city's Lighting Plant. During the same period, his son James Tyler, Jr. formed a partnership Tyler & Brandt with Eugene H. Brandt. The wives of James, Jr. and Eugene--Julia and Jessie, respectively--were sisters, the daughters of W. W. and Mary E. Palmer.

1916-1919 (Lincoln, Nebraska)

In the last years of his life, James Tyler rejoined his son in architectural practice as Tyler, Brandt & Tyler. Eugene H. Brandt died in 1918 and James Tyler, Sr. died in 1919, but the firm name continued unchanged until at least 1924. The works of that partnership are listed on a separate page for Tyler, Brandt & Tyler, Architects.

Undated

Lamaster Block (n.d.), Lincoln, Nebraska.[3]

Masonic Temple (n.d.), Fremont, Nebraska.[3]

Donald H. Pegler Garage Bldg. (n.d.), 17th & P, Lincoln, Nebraska.[9]

State Penitentiary (n.d.), Lincoln, Nebraska.[10]

Mental Asylum (n.d.), Nebraska.[10]

Disputed Attributions

1st National Bank/State Block (1874), 10th & "O" St., Lincoln, Nebraska.[10][c]

Ganter Block (1909), NW corner of 12th & O Street, Lincoln, Nebraska.[10][g]

Notes

a. "Capitalist" John Fitzgerald developed buildings called "Fitzgerald Block" in at least three locales--Plattsmouth, Lincoln, and West Lincoln--and built so many structures in Nebraska's capital city that any contemporary reference to "Fitzgerald Block" must be scrutinized carefully to distinguish one from another. In the 1883 Lincoln city directory, John Fitzgerald's business address was 111 N. 9th. That may have been the earliest of Fitzgerald's Lincoln buildings, as newspaper report of 1879 noted that a new grocery company called "Plummer, Perry & Co.," with Fitzgerald himself being the partner referred to by "& Co.,") was opening in "Fitzgerald's Block, on the west side of the {Government] square."[22] That address was also one of two "Fitzgerald Bldgs" identified in the 1889 city directory--111 N. 9th and 120 N. 10th. The latter may correspond to Pen & Sunlight Sketches of Lincoln's reference to a "Fitzgerald Block" as a work of the firm Smith & Tyler, dating from the period they practiced together--1880-1883.[3] In 1891, the directory lists "Fitzgerald Block" at "Grand avenue, West Lincoln" and "Fitzgerald Building" at P, southeast corner Seventh. The "Fitzgerald Block" in West Lincoln was designed by J. H. W. Hawkins. The 7th & P building was the work of James Tyler, built in 1888-1889 when he was a solo practitioner. The Lincoln News of October 6, 1888 described "The Fitzgerald block at the corner of P and 7th," then under construction, as "one of the most substantial mercantile blocks in the city." A lengthy description of the building, presented as an interview with Tyler, appears in The Daily Call of December 5, 1888.[6][16]

b. Temporarily left blank.

c. Tyler is credited [10] with the design of the First National Bank/State Block which stood on the SE corner of 10th & O in Lincoln, but the datestone on that building is clearly visible in historic photos, reading "STATE BLOCK 1874," which precedes Tyler's relocation from Omaha to Lincoln.[22]

d. Tyler's obituary notes he had been Lincoln's water commissioner for 16 years.[5]

e. The Lincoln Daily Call of January 1, 1893 notes "Among the improvements in the building line, with which Lincoln has been blessed during the past year, none can outclass the new Knights of Pythias Castle Hall block, which is being erected by Alexis Halter on the corner of 13th and P streets, and a cut of which appears in this paper." The column is headed "The Halter Block" and an accompanying illustration is captioned the same. The estimated cost of the 5-story building, with an elevator, is cited at $110,000. It is also noted that "The plans have been prepared by James Tyler architect, of this city, and the work is being done under his supervision."[15]

f. When local business titan John Fitzgerald reportedly acquired the northeast quarter of Block 86 (Original Plat of Lincoln, SW corner of 10th & M) in 1888, rumors flew as to how he would develop the site. Lincoln Daily Call of May 9, 1888 suggested a grand hotel and opera house, to which Nebraska State Journal on May 12, 1888 rather tartly replied "THE JOURNAL would like to corroborate that report this morning, but finds that it cannot do so and still remain in the straight path of truth that has been followed so faithfully for twenty years." The Journal then goes on to announce that Fitzgerald "will put up a fine block on the corner in question, completing the same in time for occupancy this year," and describes in detail "Plans for the structure...now being prepared by Architect James Tyler." The structure was to be four stories tall, above a basement, and built to house two wholesale establishments. Two alternatives are described for the exterior: "One is in the strict classical style" but "The design that seems to meet with the most general favor, however, follows the modern Romanesque style." Fitzgerald did not carry out any project on the 10th & M corner before his death in 1895. His Fitzgerald Block warehouse at 7th & P, designed by Tyler, appears to have been related to the "modern Romanesque" double warehouse described in the Journal article. [16]

g. Ganter Block at the NW corner of 12th & O Streets in downtown Lincoln began as a three story office and retail building, constructed in 1909. Building permits for that construction identity Woods & Cordner as the project's architects. In 1915 three more stories were added atop the 25-foot-wide building, and again the building permits named A. W. Woods as the architect.

References

1. A. T. Andreas, History of the State of Nebraska (1882), 1080.

2. A. T. Andreas, History of the State of Nebraska (1882), 1056.

3. "James Tyler," in Pen & Sunlight Sketches of Lincoln (Chicago: Phoenix Publishing, 1893), 108.

4. Lincoln, Nebraska: Why We Grow (Lincoln, Nebraska: Thomas H. Hyde, 1893), 74.

5. "James Tyler Passes Away," Sunday State Journal (November 2, 1919), 8A:6 (and portrait); (Lincoln) Evening State Journal (November 1, 1919), 1 (with portrait).

6. Ed Zimmer, email to David Murphy, October 26, 2000; regarding Fitzgerald Block at 7th & P: (Lincoln) Nebraska State Journal (September 4, 1888), 8 ("Work will commence next week..."); "Solid Growth. Short Review of the City's Wonderful Progress...Newsy Notes of Doings in and About the City," Lincoln (Nebraska) News (October 6, 1888), 4; "In the City. The New Fitzgerald Block Well Under Way," (Lincoln, Nebraska) Daily Call (December 5, 1888), 4.

7. Listed in the National Register of Historic Places.

8. William Wood, “Postcard from Lincoln,” Newsletter of the Preservation Association of Lincoln 17:1 (Spring 2009), 3.

9. Thomas Lee Kaspar (1951-2017), Architect, comp. Inventory of architectural records in the archives of Davis Fenton Stange Darling, Architects, Lincoln, Nebraska. 1996. Nebraska State Historical Society, RG3748, Box 16.

10. Mrs. Maryan Tyler Matthew. Personal interview. November 27, 1978.

11. England & Wales, Civil Registration Birth Index, 1837-1915 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2006. Accessed through Ancestry.com

12. 1900 United States Census. s.v. “James Tyler,” Lincoln, Lancaster County, Nebraska. E.D. 57, sheet 4, line 57.

13. Photos by David Murphy, October 1975. NSHS 7510/1:25

14. Contract between Mr. William R. Berger, Mr. James Tyler, and the Nebraska Stock Yard Company president and other employees. Signed February 13, 1888.

15. "The Halter Block," Lincoln (Nebraska) Daily Call (January 1, 1893), 5; with illustration.

16. Lincoln (Nebraska) Evening Call (May 9, 1888), 3; "The Fitzgerald Block," (Lincoln) Nebraska State Journal (May 12, 1888), 7.

17. "Notice to Contractors," (Lincoln) Nebraska State Journal (July 20, 1888), 2.

18. Matthew Hansen, James McKee, Edward Zimmer, Lincoln's Early Architecture, (Arcadia Publishing: Charleston, South Carolina, 2014), 55 (illustration).

19. "W. H. Tyler," in Pen & Sunlight Sketches of Lincoln (Chicago: Phoenix Publishing, 1893), 87.

20. Edward F. Zimmer, The Near South Walking Tours: V. 2 (Lincoln, Nebraska: Near South Neighborhood Association, 1990), 61-62.

21. A. T. Andreas, History of the State of Nebraska (Chicago: Western Historical Company, 1882), 1056.

22. Lincoln Picturesque and Descriptive (George B. Pratt: Neenah, Wisconsin, 1889).

Page Citation

D. Murphy & E. Zimmer, “James Tyler (1844-1919), Architect,” in David Murphy, Edward F. Zimmer, and Lynn Meyer, comps. Place Makers of Nebraska: The Architects. Lincoln: Nebraska State Historical Society, January 18, 2018. http://www.e-nebraskahistory.org/index.php?title=Place_Makers_of_Nebraska:_The_Architects Accessed, November 23, 2024.

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