Otis H. Placey (ca. 1829-1892), Architect
Otis H. Placey was born in New York, circa 1829, to Peter and Laura Placey.[38] He worked as a cabinetmaker before beginning his practice of architecture in Aurora, Illinois in the mid-1860s. He worked from Chicago for nearly two decades before moving to Lincoln, Nebraska in 1885.[16][20][a] Placey was one of the architects credited with rebuilding Chicago after the devastating fire of October 8-9, 1871. He also signed an American Meteorological Society petition that pushed the adoption of the metric system of Measures and Length, by July 4, 1876, provided that a majority of architects in the five largest U.S. cities agreed. In Chicago and in Lincoln, Placey was involved with several short-lived partnerships. His first wife's name was Mary, and they had four children. [4:122][11][12][34][i] He divorced in 1881 and in 1888 married Mrs. Olive Y. Kenyon in Lincoln, Nebraska.[34][38] Otis Placey died April 10, 1892, in a "runaway accident" at Palisades, Nebraska, where he was an Adventist preacher.[13][31][f]
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, 1887-1891
Educational & Professional Associations
1860: cabinetmaker residing in Rockford, Illinois.[36]
1864: "architect &c" residing in Aurora, Illinois.[37]
1867-1885: architect, practicing in Chicago, Illinois.[4:294][5][8][16][20][a][d]
1867: architect and partner, Placey & Storrs, Chicago, Illinois.[20][a]
1870: residing in Aurora, Illinois.[19]
1871-1872: architect and partner, Placey & Armstrong, Chicago, Illinois.[20][a]
1880: residing in Waukegan, Illinois.[12]
1881: architect, Minneapolis, Minnesota.[33][i]
1885-1891: architect, Lincoln, Nebraska.
1885-1886: architect and partner, Gray & Placey, Architects, Lincoln, Nebraska.
1891: architect and partner, Placey & Cordner, Architects, Lincoln, Nebraska.
1892: Adventist preacher, Palisades, Nebraska.[13][31]
Buildings & Projects
1867-1885, practicing from Chicago, Illinois
West Side School (1867), Batavia, Illinois.[39]
School house (1871), Newton, Iowa.[27]
Plans for a "family hotel" for E. W. Griffin (1872), North Dearborn Street, Chicago, Illinois.[22]
Two dwellings for Dr. Freer (1872), Ontario Street, Chicago, Illinois.[21]
Block of two stores for Calvin DeWolf (1872), Madison Street, Chicago, Illinois.[21]
Fraser Building (1872), Clark Street, Chicago, Illinois.[21]
Block of five stores for W. S. Harding (1872), Indiana Avenue and 22nd Street, Chicago, Illinois.[21]
Four dwellings for E. W. Griffin (1872), Ontarior Street, Chicago, Illinois.[21]
Second Ward school-house (ca. 1874), Sterling, Illinois.[23][24] (cost $40,000)
Adams County Courthouse (ca. 1876), Quincy, Illinois.[5]
Wilbur F. Storey mansion (1879), Chicago, Illinois.[24][35][g]
Shelby County Courthouse (1880-1881), Shelbyville, Illinois.[9]
Proposal for Tippecanoe County Courthouse (1880-1881), Lafayette, Indiana.[5][32]
Waupaca County Courthouse (1881), Waupaca, Wisconsin.[28]
Building for P. Humiston (1883), 665-667 W Lake, Chicago, Illinois.[6][7]
Building for M. G. Colson (1883), 235 Western Ave, Chicago, Illinois.[6]
J. Rogerson house (1883), 309 W Monroe, Chicago, Illinois.[8]
School house (1884), Napierville, Illinois.[25][h]
Residence for M. C. Callahan (before 1884), Chicago, Illinois.[26] (cost $6,000)
Residence for I. M. Harne (before 1884), Chicago, Illinois.[26] (cost $6,000)
School house (before 1884), Aurora, Illinois.[26] (cost $30,000)
High school (before 1884), Streater, Illinois.[26] (cost $32,000)
School house (before 1884), Vinton, Iowa.[26] (cost $34,700)
School house (before 1884), Liskilwa, Illinois.[26} (cost $28,000)
Proposal for Pettis County court house (1884), Sedalia, Missouri.[29]
Proposal for county jail (1884), Rochester, New York.[30]
1885-1891, practicing from Lincoln, Nebraska
York County Courthouse (1885-1888), 5th at Lincoln Ave, York, Nebraska.[1:49][2][18][b] Demolished, 1978. (YK11-001)
Four houses for S. Davenport (1886), Lincoln, Nebraska.[18]
House for J. Z. Briscoe (1886), 1645 Locust (now SW corner 17th & Prospect), Lincoln, Nebraska.[18]
House for Rev. Lewis Gregory (1886), 1230 L, Lincoln, Nebraska.[18]
House for George B. Chapman (1886), 1345 T, Lincoln, Nebraska.[18]
18th & Q School (1886), (later Bryant Elementary School), Lincoln, Nebraska.[18]
11th & C School (1887), (later Everett Elementary School), Lincoln, Nebraska.[18]
A school building in East Lincoln (1887), Lincoln, Nebraska.[18]
A school building in South Lincoln (1887), Lincoln, Nebraska.[18]
Dawes County Courthouse (1887-1888), Chadron, Nebraska.[18][19][e]
Central Christian Church (1887-1888), NE corner of 14th & K Streets, Lincoln, Nebraska.[18]
Quinn Chapel African Methodist Episcopal Church (1889), E Street between 10th & 11th, Lincoln, Nebraska.[10][c] Demolished (ca. 1940).
Washington County Courthouse (1889-1891), 16th at Colfax, Blair, Nebraska.[1:59][2][3] (WN02-001) Extant (2016). National Register narrative
Notes
a. Census and other records indicate Placey resided in Aurora, west of Chicago, by 1864, and at least as late at 1870. He is first listed in Chicago directories in 1867, with Chicago addresses of both his office and his residence. Probably he maintained his family home in Aurora. In 1867 he was in partnership with David W. Storrs as Placey & Storrs; by 1869 and 1870, Placey is listed alone; then in 1871 he was in a new partnership as Placey & Armstrong (presumably John M. Armstrong). A "Dissolution Notice" in Chicago Tribune of February 14, 1872 announced: "The copartnership existing under the name of Placey & Armstrong, Architects is this day dissolved by mutual consent. O. H. PLACEY will continue the business at 417 State st. Mr. Placey has been in Chicago four years, and we can recommend him to all as a practical Architect,, and all who wish plans and specifications that will carry them through without extra work will do well to call on him. Feb. 13, 1872."[19][20][36][37] Throughout his career, Placey formed several short-lived partnerships.
b. Architects of record, Gray & Placey. Formerly listed in the National Register of Historic Places, since demolished.
c. Quinn Chapel AME Church owned this building for a decade, then moved one block north to a converted residential building at 1028 F. The congregation built a new church on that site in 1905, then relocated the building to the southwest corner of 9th & C Streets (845 C) in 1915. Their original church on E Street was listed as "1st United Evangelical Church" on the 1903 Sanborn atlas of Lincoln, then "The 1st Church of the Nazarene" on the 1928 Sanborn atlas. According to Lincoln City Directories, the Nazarene church still occupied the structure in 1939, but it was not listed by 1940. In 1948 a 5-unit residence was built on the site.[14][15]
d. Chicago City Directories list Placey in 1868, 1870, 1871, 1872, 1875, 1880, 1882, and 1885, but not in 1866.[16] His 1880 place of residence was Waukegan, Illinois.[12][16]
e. A January 1, 1888 newspaper account of the very active Lincoln building community includes mention of Placey as designer of "the new court house now being erected at Chadron, Neb." A second article in the same edition lists J. V. Consaul as "now putting up a neat court house at Chadron, Dawes County."[18]
f. Nebraska State Journal of June 5, 1887 listed the preachers for Sunday's services at West Lincoln Christian Church as "O. H. Placey and James Hope." Evening News of Lincoln, Nebraska, reported on April 12, 1892 "O. H. Placey, formerly an architect of this city, was fatally injured in a runaway accident at Palisades, Neb., Sunday. Placey was also a preacher of the Advent Christian denomination, and had charge of a church at Palisades."[13][31]
g. Chicago Tribune of January 1, 1879 carried a brief notice under the heading "Burlington Marble Company": "The new residence of Wilbur F. Storey, of the Chicago Times, is to be of white Vermont marble, and the Burlington Marble Company have closed the largest contract for that kind of marble ever let in the West or west of New York. O. H. Placey is the architect of the new building."[24]
Soon after Placey's arrival in Lincoln, Nebraska State Journal introduced Placey as "The architect who prepared the plans for that magnificent marble structure on Grand Boulevard, Chicago, which the late Wilbur F. Storey of the Times designed for his own palatial residence..."[35]
h. The Inter Ocean newspaper of Chicago published a correction in 1885: "Architect O. H. Placey, through erroneous information, was not mentioned in connection with one of his latest designs, a fine new school-house at Napierville, Illinois. In his absence the work was superintended by architect M. L. Beers."[25]
i. Placey advertised among Minneapolis architects in September and October of 1881, listing his office as 255 Hennepin. Placey continued to be listed in Chicago directories in the early 1880s and was not listed in Minneapolis directories of 1881 and 1882, so his testing of the Minneapolis market appears to be very brief. He seems to have placed his office squarely in the midst of his Minneapolis architectural colleagues, as over a quarter (seven of 26) of the architects listed in 1882 in that city's business directory had addresses between the 200 and 400 blocks of Hennepin. Cooke & Record, architects, had an office at 255 Hennepin according to the 1881 directory, but not in the 1882 edition. There is no other indication Placey had a connection with that firm, nor are there any Minneapolis projects by him currently known. At the same period that Placey was advertising a Minneapolis office, a Chicago newspaper listed a suit for divorce as "Otis Placey vs Elizabeth Placey. Bill for divorce for adultery."[33][34] Perhaps Placey explored changes in his professional life accompanying disruptions in his personal life.
References
1. Oliver B. Pollak, Nebraska Courthouses: Contention, Compromise, and Community [Images of America Series] (Chicago: Arcadia Publishing, 2002). [725.1.P771n]
2. Listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
3. “George W. Shaffer, Architect,” Nebraska State Historical Society Collection, MS4243/RG4258.
4. Industrial Chicago: The Building Interests Vol. 1 (Chicago: Goodspeed Publishing Company, 1891), accessed August 2, 2012, http://libsysdigi.library.uiuc.edu/oca/Books2008-03/industrialchicag/industrialchicag01good/industrialchicag01good.pdf
5. Benjamin L. Ross, “Tippecanoe County Courthouse,” August 2002. Benjamin L. Ross website, http://b-levi.com/research/arch/e_max/courthouse.php Accessed August 8, 2012.
6. American Architect & Building News XIV: 401 (September 1, 1883), 108.
7. American Architect & Building News XIV: 404 (September 22, 1883), 143.
8. American Architect & Building News XIV: 404 (November 17, 1883), 239.
9. Julie A. Elbert, Shelby County [Images of America] (Charleston, S.C.: Arcadia Publishing, 2010), 9, 13.
10. Kathryn E. Colwell (Hill), “African American Historic and Architectural Resources in Lincoln, Nebraska,” National Register of Historic Places: Multiple Property Documentation Form (Lincoln, NE: City of Lincoln-Lancaster County Planning Department, March 12, 1999), E-9, accessed August 8, 2012, http://pdfhost.focus.nps.gov/docs/NRHP/Text/64500386.pdf
11. Proceedings of the American Meteorological Society 1 (December 1873-May, 1878). (New York: American meteorological Society, 1880), 43, 45, accessed August 8, 2012 through Google Books, http://books.google.com/books?id=DKhPAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA45&lpg=PA45&dq=%22o+h+placey%22+architect&source=bl&ots=gTaj4ysLg9&sig=qijrJMR-h7V_7B4dRw6W417qFCo&hl=en#v=onepage&q=%22o%20h%20placey%22%20architect&f=false
12. 1880 United States Cenusus, s.v. “Otis H. Placey,” Waukegan, Lake County, Illinois, [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2010. 1880 U.S. Census Index provided by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints © Copyright 1999 Intellectual Reserve, Inc.
13. Evening News (Lincoln, Nebraska), (April 12, 1892); also reprinted in "Thirty Years Ago Today," (Lincoln) Nebraska State Journal, (April 11, 1922).
14. Kathryn E. Colwell (Hill), "Identifying Cultural Resources: A Case Study of African American Historic Landmarks in Lincoln, Nebraska," Master of Community & Regional Planning thesis, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 1999, 61-67.
15. City of Lincoln Building Permit 49069, 1948.
16. Chicago city directories, 1866, 1868-1871, 1871, 1875, 1880, 1885. The Newberry Library, ChicagoAncestors.org. Accessed June 22, 2016 http://www.chicagoancestors.org/#tab-tools and Ancestry.com; accessed December 21, 2017 https://search.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=2469
17. "Hung to His Small Change," (Lincoln) Nebraska State Journal (August 28, 1890), 7:4.
18. "A Good Showing. The Record of Mr. O. H. Placey as a First Class Architect" and "Large and Many Contracts. All Faithfully Fulfilled," [account of 1886-1887 work of contractor J. V. Consaul], (Lincoln) Nebraska State Journal (January 1, 1888), 8.
19. 1870 United States Federal Census [database on-line], s.v. "O. H. Placey," Aurora, Kane County, Illinois. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2009.
20. "Dissolution Notices," Chicago Tribune (February 14, 1872), 5.
21. "New Chicago. Another Week of Exceeding Activity in the Burnt District...Miscellaneous New Building Projects...," Chicago Tribune (May 12, 1872), 5.
22. "To Rent--To Hotel Keepers," Chicago Tribune (April 23, 1872), 6.
23. "Sterling, Ill. A Lively City in the Rock River Valley. Its Manufacturing Enterprise and Educational Facilities...," Chicago Tribune (September 5, 1874), 11.
24. "Burlington Marble Company," Chicago Tribune (January 1, 1879), 16.
25. "Buildings. Newest Chicago Work," (Chicago, Illinois) Inter Ocean (January 17, 1885), 7.
26. "Builders and Brokers...A round of the Architects and Contractors' Offices Pans Out Fairly Well," (Chicago, Illinois) Inter Ocean (March 28, 1885), 7.
27. "Notice to Contractors," Des Moines (Iowa) Register (April 5, 1871), 4.
28. "Notice to Contractors and Builders!" Oshkosh (Wisconsin) Northwestern (June 28, 1881), 4.
29. "The New Court House. Architects' Designs for the Structure--The County Court Soon to Make a Choice," Sedalia (Missouri) Weekly Bazoo (January 22, 1884), 6.
30. "The Regular Board. Proceedings of the Morning's Session of the Board of Supervisors," (Rochester, New York) Democrat and Chronicle (November 13, 1884), 6.
31. "This Day of Rest. Announcements for Its Appropriate Observance..."Announcements. West Lincoln Christian chapel," (Lincoln) Nebraska State Journal (June 5, 1887), 7.
32. "Lafayette...A Row among Court-House Architects...," Cincinnati Enquirer (March 16, 1880), 1.
33. "Architects," (Minneapolis) Star Tribune (September 22, 1881), 8.
34. "Superior [Court]. New Suits," (Chicago) Inter Ocean (November 11, 1881), 6.
35. "Stood Solid with Storey. An Able Architect Who Planned the Great Editor's Famous Mansion," (Lincoln) Nebraska State Journal (June 6, 1886), 8.
36. Ancestry.com. 1860 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. s.v. "Otis Placey." Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2009. Images reproduced by FamilySearch.
37. Ancestry.com. U.S. IRS Tax Assessment Lists, 1862-1918 [database on-line]. s.v. "O. H. Placey." Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2008.
38. Ancestry.com. Nebraska, Marriage Records, 1855-1908 [database on-line]. s.v. "Otis H. Placey." Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2017.
39. "West Side School," vignette on "Bird's eye view of Batavia, Kane County, Illinois, 1869" (Chicago: Chicago Lithographing Company, 1869), available on-line through Library of Congress at https://lccn.loc.gov/73693342, accessed December 22, 2017; "Public School Building Batavia, Ill. O. H. Placey Architect Aurora Ill.," from Library of Congress, on-line by Ancestry.com. U.S., Indexed County Land Ownership Maps, 1860-1918 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010.
Page Citation
D. Murphy & E. Zimmer, “Otis H. Placey (ca. 1829-1892), Architect,” in David Murphy, Edward F. Zimmer, and Lynn Meyer, comps. Place Makers of Nebraska: The Architects. Lincoln: Nebraska State Historical Society, December 21, 2017. http://www.e-nebraskahistory.org/index.php?title=Place_Makers_of_Nebraska:_The_Architects Accessed, November 22, 2024.
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