Harry Livingston French (November 21, 1871 – January 16, 1928) was an American architect based in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. He designed in a variety of styles, including classical architecture and Gothic revival. His built works included numerous banks, schools, and armories.
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7a/Harry_Livingston_French.jpg/200px-Harry_Livingston_French.jpg)
Biography
editHarry Livingston French was born at Plymouth, Pennsylvania, on November 21, 1871, the son of politician, author, and building contractor Samuel Livingston French and his wife, Harriet Seville Turner.[1] French attended Cornell University, where he was editor of The Cornellian (Cornell's annual yearbook), a member of the junior honorary society Aleph Samach, and a member of the senior honor society Sphinx Head. He also joined the Phi Kappa Psi fraternity and through that organization became a member of the Irving Literary Society. He graduated in 1894 with a Bachelor of Science in Architecture.[2]
In 1897, French and the Canadian-born architect Frederick McCormick formed McCormick & French,[3] an architectural partnership based in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. Their built works included the interior of the Luzerne County Courthouse, the Nesbitt Theater, and several banks, including the 1906 Second National Bank, considered by some to be Wilkes-Barre's first skyscraper.[4]
French was a member of the Architectural League of New York.
On June 28, 1910, French married Anne Lee Worden of Wilkes-Barre. Their son, Livingston Paine French, was born at Wilkes-Barre on May 6, 1911.
Harry Livingston French died at New York City on January 16, 1928.[5] His business partner, Frederick McCormick died on September 2, 1929.[6]
McCormick & French's built work
editAmong the completed buildings of French's firm, McCormick & French, are the following:
- The Stegmaier Brewing Company; Wash House, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania (built 1896).[7]
- Nesbitt Theater, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania (completed October 1897).[8]
- Hotel Oneonta, Harveys Lake, Pennsylvania (built 1898; destroyed by fire in 1919).
- The Stegmaier Brewing Company; Wagon Shed, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania (built 1899).[9]
- The Hospital for the Insane, later called Retreat State Hospital, Newport Township, Pennsylvania (completed 1900).[10]
- The Stegmaier Brewing Company; Stables, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania (built 1901).[11]
- The Sisters of Christian Charity, Holy Family Convent, Danville, Pennsylvania (built 1902).[12]
- The Stegmaier Brewing Company; Bottling House, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania (built 1902).[13]
- The Hospital for the Insane (Additional Wings), Newport Township, Pennsylvania (built 1905).
- The Stegmaier Brewing Company; Bottling House Addition, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania (built 1905).[14]
- Hotel Redington, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania (built 1906).[15]
- The Derr Apartment House, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania (built 1906).[16]
- Central High School, Plymouth, Pennsylvania (second high school building, built 1906).[17]
- The Stegmaier Brewing Company; Cold Storage Building, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania (built 1907).[18]
- Plymouth National Bank, Plymouth, Pennsylvania (built 1907).[19]
- First Eastern Bank, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania (built 1907).[20]
- The Hazard Wire Rope Works (power plant, rope mill and warehouse), Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania (built 1907).[21]
- Armory, National Guard of PA, Pittston, Pennsylvania (dedicated February 7, 1907).
- Armory, National Guard of PA, Columbia, Pennsylvania (dedicated March 13, 1907).
- Armory, National Guard of PA, Easton, Pennsylvania (dedicated October 17, 1907).
- The Bennett & Phelps Apartment House, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania (built 1907).[22]
- Armory, National Guard of PA, Pine Grove, Pennsylvania (built 1908).
- Armory, National Guard of PA, Williamsport, Pennsylvania (built 1908).
- Interior, Luzerne County Court House, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania (built 1909).[23]
- Trucksville M.E. Church, Trucksville, Pennsylvania (built 1910).[24]
- The YWCA Building, Franklin Street, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania (dedicated October 12, 1910).
- Armory, National Guard of PA, Co. B, 8th Regiment, Tamaqua, Pennsylvania (built c. 1910).
- Armory, National Guard of PA, Honesdale, Pennsylvania (built 1911).[25]
- The Susquehanna Coal Co. Office Building, Main Street, Nanticoke, Pennsylvania (dedicated May 1, 1911).
- First National Bank, Plymouth, Pennsylvania (built 1915).[26]
- St. Mary's R.C. Church, Berwick, Pennsylvania (dedicated July 1917).[27]
- Nesbitt Memorial Hospital, Kingston, Pennsylvania (completed 1929).[28]
Gallery
edit-
Hotel Oneonta Harveys Lake, Pennsylvania (built 1898).
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Hotel Oneonta Harveys Lake, Pennsylvania (built 1898).
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Holy Family Convent, Danville, Pennsylvania (built 1902).
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The Hotel Redington in Wilkes-Barre, PA (built 1906).
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The Second National Bank in Wilkes-Barre, PA (built 1906).
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The Central High School in Plymouth, PA (built 1906).
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Plymouth National Bank, Plymouth, PA (built 1907).
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Armory, Columbia, Pennsylvania (dedicated 1907).
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Armory, Easton, Pennsylvania (built 1907).
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Armory, Tamaqua, Pennsylvania (built about 1910).
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The YWCA Building in Wilkes-Barre, PA (built 1910).
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Armory, Honesdale, Pennsylvania (built in 1910).
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The First National Bank in Plymouth, PA (built 1915).
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Nesbitt Memorial Hospital, Kingston, Pennsylvania (completed 1929).
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ The Evening News (Wilkes-Barre, PA), January 17, 1928, page 3.
- ^ Cornell Alumni News, Obituary: Harry L. French, Vol. XXX, No. 20, February 26, 1928, p. 248. Retrieved 13 May 2010.
- ^ Luzerne County Courthouse History, Luzerne County, retrieved 12 January 2022
- ^ "Luzerne County Courthouse History". August 19, 2006. Archived from the original on 17 March 2018. Retrieved 12 May 2010.
- ^ The Evening News (Wilkes-Barre, PA), January 17, 1928, page 3.
- ^ Wilkes-Barre Record, September 3, 1929, page 3.
- ^ National Register of Historic Places, Nomination Form, March 28, 1979.
- ^ Wilkes-Barre Record, October 29, 1897, page 7.
- ^ National Register of Historic Places, Nomination Form, March 28, 1979.
- ^ The Wilkes-Barre News, February 13, 1900, page 7.
- ^ National Register of Historic Places, Nomination Form, March 28, 1979.
- ^ Danville Morning News, May 31, 1902, page 2.
- ^ National Register of Historic Places, Nomination Form, March 28, 1979.
- ^ National Register of Historic Places, Nomination Form, March 28, 1979.
- ^ Wilkes-Barre Times, October 4, 1906
- ^ Wilkes-Barre Times-Leader, July 23, 1906, page 8.
- ^ Wilkes-Barre Times, March 23, 1905, March 23, 1905
- ^ National Register of Historic Places, Nomination Form, March 28, 1979.
- ^ Wilkes-Barre Times, September 7, 1907
- ^ National Register of Historic Places, River Street Historic District. Retrieved 13 May 2010.
- ^ Wilkes-Barre Times, May 8, 1907, page 10.
- ^ Wilkes-Barre Times, April 6, 1908.
- ^ Kashatus, William C., "Courthouse centennial: Luzerne County's cornerstone", The Citizens Voice, September 20, 2009. Retrieved 13 May 2010.
- ^ The American Contractor, July 23, 1910, p.49.
- ^ Wayne County Historical Society, "The first Pennsylvania State Armory" Archived 2011-10-11 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 23 July 2012.
- ^ Wilkes-Barre Times-Leader, August 17, 1915
- ^ The American Contractor Magazine, January 29, 1916, page 48.
- ^ Wilkes-Barre Record, November 15, 1929, page 20