Theodore C. Link, FAIA, (March 17, 1850 – November 12, 1923) was a German-born American architect and newspaper publisher. He designed buildings for the 1904 World's Fair,

Louisiana State University Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as Louisiana State University (LSU), is an American Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louis ...

, and the Mississippi State Capitol. His best known work is in the

Richardsonian Romanesque Richardsonian Romanesque is a architectural style, style of Romanesque Revival architecture named after the American architect Henry Hobson Richardson (1838–1886). The revivalism (architecture), revival style incorporates 11th- and 12th-century ...

style, specifically the St. Louis Union Station (1894), and the Second Presbyterian Church (1899). The Theodore Link Historic Buildings (c. 1911) in University City are three private residences on Delmar Boulevard that are listed on the National Register of Historic Places listings in St. Louis County, Missouri.

Early life

Theodore Carl Link was born on March 17, 1850, near

Heidelberg Heidelberg (; ; ) is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, fifth-largest city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, and with a population of about 163,000, of which roughly a quarter consists of studen ...

, Germany. He was trained in engineering at the

University of Heidelberg Heidelberg University, officially the Ruprecht Karl University of Heidelberg (; ), is a public university, public research university in Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Founded in 1386 on instruction of Pope Urban VI, Heidelberg is List ...

and the

École Centrale Paris École or Ecole may refer to: * an elementary school in the French educational stages normally followed by Secondary education in France, secondary education establishments (collège and lycée) * École (river), a tributary of the Seine flowing i ...

Career

Link immigrated to the United States, arriving in St. Louis in 1873 to work for the Atlantic and Pacific Railroad company. He married Annie Fuller on September 22, 1875. That year, St. Louis surveyor Julius Pitzman recommended him to the job of superintendent of public parks for St. Louis. In 1889, Link joined the

American Institute of Architects The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is a professional organization for architects in the United States. It is headquartered in Washington, D.C. AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach progr ...

and started his own private architectural practice. After a four-year interim as a German-language newspaper publisher in

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, second-most populous city in Pennsylvania (after Philadelphia) and the List of Un ...

, Link returned to St. Louis just after the turn of the century as one of the architects for the 1904 World's Fair. In 1901, he won the competition to design the new Mississippi State Capitol building in Jackson, which was completed two years later. He also "designed most of the buildings for LSU when the campus was relocated in the 1920s."

Death and legacy

Link died in

Baton Rouge Baton Rouge ( ; , ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It had a population of 227,470 at the 2020 United States census, making it List of municipalities in Louisiana, Louisiana's second-m ...

while working on the new

campus, and was interred at Bellefontaine Cemetery in St. Louis. In 1995 was awarded a star on the St. Louis Walk of Fame.

Work

Among the 100+ buildings he designed: * 1869 Monticello Seminary (now Lewis and Clark Community College),

Godfrey, Illinois Godfrey is a village in Madison County, Illinois, United States. The population was 17,825 at the 2020 census. Godfrey is located within the River Bend portion of the Greater St. Louis metropolitan area. History The village is named for Captai ...

* 1891 gates and several houses for two of St. Louis's private places, Westmoreland Place and Portland Place * 1894 St. Louis Union Station, modeled on the fortifications of

Carcassonne Carcassonne is a French defensive wall, fortified city in the Departments of France, department of Aude, Regions of France, region of Occitania (administrative region), Occitania. It is the prefectures in France, prefecture of the department. ...

, with architect Edward Cameron * 1899 Second Presbyterian Church, 4501 Westminster Place, St. Louis * 1901 St. John's United Methodist Church, 5000 Washington Place * 1901 Wabash Railroad Station and Railway Express Agency, 780 East Cerro Gordo Street,

Decatur, Illinois Decatur ( ) is the largest city in Macon County, Illinois, United States, and its county seat. The city was founded in 1829 and is situated along the Sangamon River and Lake Decatur in Central Illinois. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 ...

* 1902 Wabash Railroad Station, Danville, Illinois * 1903 Wabash Pittsburgh Terminal, Liberty Avenue at Ferry Street, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania * 1903 Mississippi State Capitol,

Jackson, Mississippi Jackson is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Mississippi, most populous city of the U.S. state of Mississippi. The city sits on the Pearl River (Mississippi–Louisiana), Pearl River and is locate ...

* 1904 Palace of Mines and Metallurgy at the 1904 World's Fair (razed) * 1904 Reid Hall and campus master plan for

Washington and Lee University Washington and Lee University (Washington and Lee or W&L) is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Lexington, Virginia, United States. Established in 1749 as Augusta Academy, it is among ...

* 1906 Barr Branch, St. Louis Public Library * 1908 Wednesday Club building and auditorium in St. Louis, Missouri * 1910 Roberts Shoe (International Shoe) Company Building, St. Louis, with ornament influenced by

Louis Sullivan Louis Henry Sullivan (September 3, 1856 – April 14, 1924) was an American architect, and has been called a "father of skyscrapers" and "father of modernism". He was an influential architect of the Chicago school (architecture), Chicago ...

* 1911 Theodore Link Historic Buildings, 7100, 7104 and 7108 Delmar Blvd, University City, Missouri * 1919–1923, master plan and nine buildings for the

, including the Memorial Tower, with W. T. Trueblood

Images

File:Westmoreland Place.jpg, Westmoreland Place gates, St. Louis, Missouri File:Portland Place.jpg, Portland Place gates, St. Louis, Missouri Image:Decatur, IL train station.jpg, Wabash Station, Decatur, Illinois File:Annual report of the Railroad and Warehouse Commission of the State of Illinois (1902) (14572966008).jpg, Wabash Station, Decatur, Illinois Image:04PalaceMines.JPG, Palace of Mines and Metallurgy, 1904 World's Fair Image:Mississippi State Capitol building.jpg, Mississippi State Capitol Image:PostcardGrandHallOfUnionStationStLouis1909.jpg, Grand Hall, St. Louis Union Station File:ReidHall.jpg, Reid Hall, Washington and Lee University File:St. Louis - Roberts, Johnson & Rand Bldg.JPG, Roberts Shoe Company Building, St. Louis, Missouri Image:Memorial tower at LSU.jpg, Memorial Tower at

LSU Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as Louisiana State University (LSU), is an American Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louis ...

File:4a12732u.tif, Wabash Pittsburgh Terminal, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

References

External links

*
Online photo and biography

Theodore C. Link Zoological Gardens Sketchbook
i
Digital Collections
at the St. Louis Public Library
Louisiana State University Architectural Drawings by Theodore Link
Louisiana Digital Library, Baton Rouge, La.
Theodore C. Link Collection
finding aid at th
St. Louis Public Library
{{DEFAULTSORT:Link, Theodore Carl 1850 births 1923 deaths Emigrants from the German Empire to the United States Architects from St. Louis 19th-century American architects Fellows of the American Institute of Architects Heidelberg University alumni People from the Grand Duchy of Baden Burials at Bellefontaine Cemetery American railway architects 20th-century American architects