William Alfred Freret, Jr. (1833-1911), Architect
William Alfred Freret, Jr. (often called "Will") was born in New Orleans in 1833 to William and Frances (nee Salkeld) Freret. Will's father and uncles operated their father's "Freret Cotton Press Company," the first large industrial firm in New Orleans. William Sr. also served two terms as the city's mayor in the 1840s. Will had experience superintending construction of major public buildings in Louisiana, including university buildings and the rebuilding of the State Capitol in Baton Rouge, which was burned during the Civil War.[1][2] He had also served as an "Artificer" in the Confederate Army. Will married Caroline "Carrie" Lewis in 1865 and they had two daughters and a son, William Alfred Freret III, who also became an architect.[2] As early as 1886, there were rumors in Nebraska newspapers that Freret would be appointed as the U. S. Treasury's Supervising Architect to replace M. E. Bell. Freret's federal appointment did not occur until the summer of 1887 and he resigned in March of 1889, a brief tenure but not unusual in that demanding and politically fraught office.[1][3] Freret returned to his architectural practice in New Orleans, where he died in 1911.[4]
This page is a contribution to the publication, Place Makers of Nebraska: The Architects. See the Format and contents of Nebraska architect entries page for more information on the compilation and page organization.
Contents
Education & Professional Associations
1868, listed as "State Engineer" on "Board of Supervisors" of Louisiana State Seminary of Learning and Military Academy.[5]
Buildings & Projects
Notes
a.
References
1. Antoinette J. Lee, "Will. A. Freret" in Architects to the Nation: The Rise and Decline of the Supervising Architect's Office (New York: Oxford University Press, 2000), 142-147.
2. Ancestry.com. U.S., Find a Grave® Index, 1600s-Current, s.v. "William Alfred Freret," [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012.
3. "Bell's Days Numbered," Nebraska (City) Daily News-Press (October 22, 1886), 1.
4. "Col. Wm. A. Freeret [sic] Dead," Atlanta (Georgia) Journal (December 6, 1911), 9.
5. Ancestry.com. U.S., School Catalogs, 1765-1935, s.v. "Major Wm A Freret," [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012.
12. W. A. Freret, Annual Report of the Supervising Architect to the Secretary of the Treasury for the year ending September 30, 1887 (Washington: Government Printing Office, 1887), 40.
Other Sources
Page Citation
E. F. Zimmer, “William Alfred Freret, Jr. (1833-1911), Architect,” in David Murphy, Edward F. Zimmer, and Lynn Meyer, comps. Place Makers of Nebraska: The Architects. Lincoln: Nebraska State Historical Society, July 11, 2024. http://www.e-nebraskahistory.org/index.php?title=Place_Makers_of_Nebraska:_The_Architects Accessed, October 30, 2024.
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