Charles George Dennis (1892-1978), Architect & Builder
dba: Charles Dennis
Charles Dennis was born in Tecumseh, Nebraska on June 10, 1892 to James W. and Mary Margaret Dennis, who farmed in Maple Grove, Johnson County, Nebraska. In early records, he was called "George C. Dennis," while he registered for the draft in 1917 as "Charles G. Dennis" and was enrolled in the 1920 census as "C. George Dennis," farming near Tecumseh in Johnson County. Around 1920 he moved to Lincoln, boarded in his widowed mother's home and worked as a mechanic. Probably he was the same Charles Dennis listed in Lincoln city directories of 1924 and 1925 as a "machine operator" for Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad.[1][2][3][b] In 1926 he began constructing houses in Lincoln, and in May married Miss Tyline Harold of Saint Joseph, Missouri. They made their home at 1920 Jefferson Avenue in Lincoln, one of the houses he had built that year.[4]. He built at least ten houses in Lincoln in 1926. In November he advertised his services as "Charles Dennis...Architect and Builder" with a full page advertisement in a Lincoln newspaper illustrated with "Some of the Homes Designed & Built by Us This Year".[5] The Lincoln directories listed Dennis as an architect in 1927 and 1928, while the Lincoln newspapers began listing foreclosures, mechanic's liens, and other legal difficulties afflicting Dennis. The 1930 U. S. census found Charles and Tyline in Saint Joseph, Missouri, with a one-year-old daughter Jacqueline.[6] He was listed in Saint Joseph city directories as an architect as late as 1941.[a] The Dennis family relocated to California by the mid-1940s, where Charles was listed in the Burbank city directories as a carpenter in 1946 and a draftsman in 1949. Tyline died in 1975 and Charles in 1978, both in Los Angeles.[9]
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, 1922, 1924-1925, 1927-1928.
Educational & Professional Associations
Buildings & Projects
1920 Jefferson Avenue (1926), Lincoln, Nebraska.[5][10] Extant 2018, extensively remodeled.
2905 Georgian Court (1926), Lincoln, Nebraska.[5][10][c] Extant 2018.
3501 Dudley Street (1926), Lincoln, Nebraska.[5] Extant 2018.
1928 Jefferson Avenue, (1926), Lincoln, Nebraska.[11] Extant 2018.
W. C. DeVriendt House (1926), 2602 Woodsdale Boulevard, Lincoln, Nebraska.[15]
2132 Smith Street (1926), Lincoln, Nebraska.[12] Extant 2018.
3504 Mohawk Street (1926), Lincoln, Nebraska.[13][14] Extant 2018.
3510 Mohawk Street (1926), Lincoln, Nebraska.[13][14] Extant 2018.
1224 South 35th Street (1926), Lincoln, Nebraska.[13] Extant 2018.
2660 Ryons Street (1926), Lincoln, Nebraska.[5][14] Demolished.
Notes
a. The 1940 census listed the Dennis family in Saint Joseph, identifying Charles as a carpenter. His WWII draft registration card included their Saint Joseph address but recorded him as self-employed on a farm "6 mi. so. 4 mi. west of Tecumseh, Nebraska."[7][8]
b. Another Charles Dennis was active in the building trades in Lincoln during the 1920s. Charles Hartson Redford Dennis (1882-1946) was a plasterer, father of 10 children, married to (and divorced from) Sarah Elizabeth. He was interred at Wyuka Cemetery in Lincoln. The 1927 Lincoln city directory clearly lists both men, their professions,and their spouses. [EFZ]
c. Most of Charles Dennis' houses were stucco-clad and generally Spanish Colonial revival in style. Even some of his smaller examples, such as 2812 Jefferson Street, are quite elaborate, but the largest and most ornate is 2905 Georgian Court. The two story stucco, tile and frame house, with a Mission tile roof, was estimated to cost $13,000 to build, plus another $1000 for the garage.[10]
References
1. Ancestry.com. 1900 United States Federal Census, s.v. "George C. Dennis," [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2004.
2. Ancestry.com. 1910 United States Federal Census, s.v. "George C. Dennis," [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2006.
3. Ancestry.com. U.S., World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918, s.v. "Charles G. Dennis," [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2005.
4. (Lincoln) Nebraska State Journal (January 12, 1926), 8; and Lincoln (Nebraska) State Journal (May 19, 1926), 14.
5. "Some of the Homes Designed & Built by Use This Year" (advertisement), Lincoln (Nebraska) Star (November 7, 1926), 29.
6. Ancestry.com. 1930 United States Federal Census, s.v. "Tyline Dennis," [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2002.
7. Ancestry.com. 1940 United States Federal Census, s.v. "Tyline Dennis," [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012.
8. Ancestry.com. U.S., World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942, s.v. "Charles George Dennis," [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010.
9. Ancestry.com. California, Death Index, 1940-1997, s.v. "Tyline Dennis" and "Charles George Dennis," [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2000.
10. "Building Permits," (Lincoln) Nebraska State Journal (January 12, 1926), 8.
11. "Building Permits," (Lincoln) Nebraska State Journal (February 12, 1926), 12.
12. "Building Permits," (Lincoln) Nebraska State Journal (May 5, 1926), 10.
13. "Real Estate," (Lincoln) Nebraska State Journal (September 19, 1926), 11.
14. "Building Permits," (Lincoln) Nebraska State Journal (September 26, 1926), 10.
15. City of Lincoln Building Permit #15094, issued March 3, 1926.
Page Citation
E. F. Zimmer, “Charles George Dennis (1892-1978), Architect & Builder,” in David Murphy, Edward F. Zimmer, and Lynn Meyer, comps. Place Makers of Nebraska: The Architects. Lincoln: Nebraska State Historical Society, December 29, 2018. http://www.e-nebraskahistory.org/index.php?title=Place_Makers_of_Nebraska:_The_Architects Accessed, November 25, 2024.
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