Willoughby J. Edbrooke (1843-1896), Architect
Willoughby J. Edbrooke was born in 1843 in Illinois to Robert J. and Mary A. Edbrooke. Robert was listed as a farmer in the censuses of 1850 and 1860, but according to one of Willoughby's obituaries his father was also a builder. Two of Robert's sons, Willoughby and Frank, became architects.[14-19] By 1867 Willoughby was practicing architecture in Chicago, and from 1891-1893 was Supervising Architect of the U.S. Treasury.[5] His three known Nebraska projects were post offices commenced while he was working in the Treasury Department. Two of these post offices were completed before his death in 1896, while the largest, the Omaha Post Office, was finished a decade later. Much earlier, in 1879, he was invited to "submit sketches" for the proposed Trinity Cathedral in Omaha, a proposition he declined.[1] Edbrooke was a Fellow of the Western Association of Architects, and a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects, 1889.[3] He married Elizabeth Isabel O'Brien in 1872 and they had two children, including H. W. J. Edbrooke who became an architect with a practice in Denver (with his uncle Frank E. Edbrooke).
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
Educational & Professional Associations
1867-1896 architect, Chicago, Illinois.[4][5]
1891-1893 Supervising Architect of the Treasury, Washington, D.C.[5][9][10]
Selected Buildings & Projects
U. S. Post Office and Courthouse (1891-1899), Washington, D. C.[6]
U. S. Post Office and Courthouse (1891-1899), Milwaukee, Wisconsin.[7]
U. S. Post Office and Courthouse (1889, 1891-1906), 16th St at Capitol Ave, Omaha, Nebraska.[7][9][a][b]
U. S. Post Office (1891-1895), 605 N. Broad, Fremont, Nebraska.[2] (DD05:E-002) National Register narrative
U. S. Post Office (1891-1893), Beatrice, Nebraska.[11][12][13]
Notes
a. Retired Omaha architect A. R. Dufrene told Sunday (Omaha, Nebraska) World-Herald in 1891 that he was "well acquainted" with Edbrooke. "When Mr. Dufrene had the contract for putting up the buildings along the line of the Union Pacific Mr. Edbrooke supervised the construction of the buildings. 'He is a first class architect,' said Mr. Dufrene, 'and a practical architect, and I have no doubt the new federal building is Omaha will be a fine one. Edbrooke built the Georgia state house, which is a model structure of its kind.'"[8]
b. Edbrooke's Annual Reports to the Secretary of the Treasury were innovative in that they included illustrations of some of the office's principal designs including the Beatrice Post Office in 1891 and both Fremont Post Office and Omaha Custom House, Courthouse, & Post Office in 1892.[20][21]
References
1. W. J. Edbrooke to J. M. Woolworth, Apr 28, 1879. From church files; copy of letter in site file DO09:0126-009. The submittal of sketches as part of an interview process was common at the time, but was considered “free work” and unethical by many architects who refused to participate. The cathedral was ultimately designed by Henry G. Harrison (1813-1895), Architect.
2. "Old Fremont Post Office," National Register of Historic Places nomination.
3. AIA Historical Directory of American Architects: A Resource Guide to Finding Information About Past Architects, accessed April 27, 2010, http://communities.aia.org/sites/hdoaa/wiki/Wiki%20Pages/ahd1012234.aspx
4. 1870 United States Census, s.v. “W. J. Edbrooke,” Chicago, Cook County, Illinois, accessed through HeritageQuestOnline.com.
5. Henry F. Withey and Elsie Rathburn Wiley. Biographical Dictionary of American Architects (Deceased). Los Angeles: Hennessey & Ingalls, Inc., 1970, 189.
6. "Overview," Old Post Office Redevelopment Website. Accessed June 18, 2016. http://oporedevelopment.com/overview (also available from GSA website, http://www.gsa.gov/portal/ext/html/site/hb/category/25431/actionParameter/exploreByBuilding/buildingId/803); and James F. Steele, Jr., "Final Environmental Impact Statement, Restoration and Modernization, Old Post Office Building, Washington, D. C. (Statement Number EDC 78003) [Washington]: General Services Administration, Region 3, [ca. 1978], 1-2. Accessed June 18, 2016. https://books.google.com/books?id=FDM3AQAAMAAJ&pg=PA2&lpg=PA2&dq=old+omaha+post+office&source=bl&ots=ajm6rF0Hy6&sig=U9EGsfagaPK9kE0NknKRCtjRIN0&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjZjZnM8vXNAhWCSCYKHXyfCME4FBDoAQhMMAk#v=onepage&q=old%20omaha%20post%20office&f=false
7. J. P. Stadtmueller, "History of US Courthouse and Federal Building in Milwaukee," Federal Judges Association Newsletter (February 28, 2006). Accessed from United States District Court, Eastern District of Wisconsin website, June 18, 2016. http://www.wied.uscourts.gov/history-us-courthouse-and-federal-building-milwaukee
8. "Architect Edbrooke. He Was Once with Dufrene and Supervised Union Pacific Buildings," Sunday (Omaha, Nebraska) World-Herald (May 10, 1891), 14.
9. "Omaha's Federal Building...First Plans Completed under the Present Architect [Edbrooke]...," Omaha (Nebraska) Evening Bee (August 13, 1891), 5.
10. "Granite May Note Be Used. Supervising Architect O'Rourke Talks of Changing Omaha's Building Plans," Omaha (Nebraska) Evening Bee (May 24, 1893), 4.
11. "Nebraska Public Buildings. What Has Been and What Will be Done by the Government," Omaha (Nebraska) Daily Bee (June 16, 1891), 1.
12. "Sealed Proposals will be received..for all the labor and materials required for the erection and completion...Of the U. S. Postoffice Building at Beatrice, Nebraska...," Beatrice (Nebraska) Daily Express (February 29, 1892), 4.
13. "The new post office...building will probably be thrown open for inspection by the public Tuesday next," Beatrice (Nebraska) Daily Express (October 28, 1893), 4.
14. Ancestry.com. U.S., Find a Grave® Index, 1600s-Current, s.v. "Willoughby James Edbrooke," [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012.
15. Ancestry.com. 1850 United States Federal Census, s.v. "Willaby Edbrooks," [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2009.
16. Ancestry.com. 1860 United States Federal Census, s.v. "Willoughby Edbrooke," [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2009.
17. Ancestry.com. 1870 United States Federal Census, s.v. "W. J. Edbrooke," [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2009.
18. "W. J. Edbrooke" (obituary), Chicago (Illinois) Chronicle (March 27, 1896), 5.
19. "Willoughby J. Edbrooke" (obituary), Chicago (Illinois) Tribune (March 26, 1896), 5.
20. W. J. Edbrooke, Annual Report by the Supervising Architect to the Secretary of the Treasury for the Year ending September 30, 1891, (Washington, D.C.: U. S. Government Printing Office, 1891), following 28 (Beatrice).
21. W. J. Edbrooke, Annual Report by the Supervising Architect to the Secretary of the Treasury for the Year ending September 30, 1892, (Washington, D.C.: U. S. Government Printing Office, 1892); following 68 (Fremont), 110 (Omaha).
Page Citation
D. Murphy & E. F. Zimmer, “Willoughby J. Edbrooke (1843-1896), Architect,” in David Murphy, Edward F. Zimmer, and Lynn Meyer, comps. Place Makers of Nebraska: The Architects. Lincoln: Nebraska State Historical Society, December 4, 2014, revised July 30, 2024. http://www.e-nebraskahistory.org/index.php?title=Place_Makers_of_Nebraska:_The_Architects Accessed, October 31, 2024.
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