Edgar Marks Lazarus (June 6, 1868 – October 2, 1939) was an American architect who was prominent in the

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...

, area for more than 45 years. He was best known as the architect of the Vista House on Crown Point in the

Columbia River Gorge The Columbia River Gorge is a canyon of the Columbia River in the Pacific Northwest of the United States. Up to deep, the canyon stretches for over as the river winds westward through the Cascade Range, forming the boundary between the state ...

Early life and education

Edgar Lazarus was born on June 6, 1868, in

Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

, Maryland. He was a descendant of the Colonial Jews of

Charleston, South Carolina Charleston is the List of municipalities in South Carolina, most populous city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint of South Carolina's coastline on Charleston Harbor, an inlet of the Atla ...

, and was the son of a

Confederate A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a political union of sovereign states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...

soldier.

Career

Clatsop County Courthouse - Astoria Oregon

Lazarus came to Portland in 1892 with a

letter of introduction The letter of introduction, along with the visiting card, was an important part of polite social interaction in the 18th and 19th centuries. It remains important in formal situations, such as an ambassador presenting his or her credentials (a ...

to a prominent citizen. He formed a partnership with William M. Ellicott that same year. Lazarus & Ellicott continued until 1895, after which Lazarus practiced alone until 1910. For a year he partnered with Morris H. Whitehouse and J. André Fouilhoux as Lazarus, Whitehouse & Fouilhoux. In 1911, he formed Lazarus & Logan with Frank Logan; the firm lasted until 1914. Lazarus then practiced alone for the rest of his career. He was a member of the

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

chapter of 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 ...

(AIA) and was elected a

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of the institute in 1895. Early in his career, Lazarus designed many houses for notable Portlanders, especially among the city's Jewish community. His residential designs were predominantly

shingle style The shingle style is an American architectural style made popular by the rise of the New England school of architecture, which eschewed the highly ornamented patterns of the Eastlake style in Queen Anne architecture. In the shingle style, Engli ...

, but with Lazarus' unique design, including unusual shapes and extremely steeply pitched roofs. In 1905, he designed the domed Palace of Agriculture for the

Lewis and Clark Centennial Exposition The Lewis and Clark Centennial Exposition, commonly also known as the Lewis and Clark Exposition, and officially known as the Lewis and Clark Centennial and American Pacific Exposition and Oriental Fair, was a worldwide World's fair, exposition h ...

in the

Baroque style The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from the early 17th century until the 1750s. It followed Renaissance art and Mannerism and preceded the Rococo (i ...

. Lazarus also designed early alterations to

Pioneer Courthouse The Pioneer Courthouse is a federal courthouse in Portland, Oregon, United States. Built beginning in 1869, the structure is the oldest federal building in the Pacific Northwest, and the second-oldest west of the Mississippi River. Along with ...

, was the resident architect for the U.S. Customhouse, and designed the first

Multnomah Athletic Club The Multnomah Athletic Club (MAC) is a private social club, social and sports club, athletic club in Portland, Oregon, United States. It was founded in 1891 as the Multnomah Amateur Athletic Club, a coordinating body for team and individual spor ...

building at SW 10th and Yamhill streets, all in Portland. When Oregon started licensing architects in 1919, he received license #21 under a grandfather clause.

Vista House

His most important work, completed in 1918, was the Vista House, an

observatory An observatory is a location used for observing terrestrial, marine, or celestial events. Astronomy, climatology/meteorology, geophysics, oceanography and volcanology are examples of disciplines for which observatories have been constructed. Th ...

that also serves as a memorial to

Oregon pioneers Oregon ( , ) is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington, while the Snake River delineates much ...

and as a comfort station for travelers on the

Historic Columbia River Highway The Historic Columbia River Highway is an approximately scenic highway in the U.S. state of Oregon between Troutdale, Oregon, Troutdale and The Dalles, Oregon, The Dalles, built through the Columbia River Gorge between 1913 and 1922. As the firs ...

. The building shows great sensitivity to its site at Crown Point in the

near Corbett, and is listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

(NRHP). After completing the Vista House, Lazarus was engaged in a long, bitter dispute with the Oregon State Board of Control regarding his fees for both Vista House and his work at the Oregon State Hospital. The controversy brought him unfavorable attention in the press, and this may have harmed his career, as he did little important work after the incident.

Works

* Frederick V. Holman House, Portland, 1892 (demolished 2016) * George F. Heusner House, Portland, 1894 (NRHP) *Apperson Hall, Oregon Agricultural College (now

Oregon State University Oregon State University (OSU) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Corvallis, Oregon, United States. OSU offers more than 200 undergraduate degree programs and a variety of graduate and doctor ...

), Corvallis, 1898–1899 (NRHP contributing) *Mitchell Playhouse (now the Gladys Valley Gymnastics Center), Oregon Agricultural College, Corvallis, 1898 (NRHP contributing) ODCDomeBuilding1

* Morrow County Courthouse, Heppner, 1903 (NRHP) * Ahavai Sholom Synagogue, Portland, 1904 (demolished 1978) * Clatsop County Courthouse, Astoria, 1904–1907 (NRHP) * John S. Bradley House, Portland, 1906 (NRHP) * Taft Hotel, Portland, 1906 (NRHP) *George L. Campbell House, Portland, 1910 (Lazarus, Whitehouse & Fouilhoux) *J. C. Campbell Flats, Portland, 1910 (Lazarus, Whitehouse & Fouilhoux) * Wickersham Apartments, Portland, 1910 (NRHP) (Lazarus, Whitehouse & Fouilhoux) *Edward A. King House, Portland, 1910 *

Oregon State Hospital Oregon State Hospital is a public psychiatric hospital in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the state's capital city of Salem, Oregon, Salem with a smaller satellite campus in Junction City, Oregon, Junction City opened in 2014. Founded in ...

Receiving Ward (the "Dome Building"), 1909 (NRHP contributing), and south wing of the "J Building", 1912 (demolished 2009), Salem * Vista House, Corbett, 1918

Later life, death and legacy

Lazarus was an avid horseman, artist, real estate entrepreneur, and ardent advocate for the architectural profession. In 1931, Lazarus' wife Fanny inherited a large fortune from a New York uncle. Lazarus died on October 2, 1939, in Portland, survived by his wife. In 2011, Edward H. Teague, head of the Architecture and Allied Arts Library at the

University of Oregon The University of Oregon (UO, U of O or Oregon) is a Public university, public research university in Eugene, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1876, the university is organized into nine colleges and schools and offers 420 undergraduate and gra ...

, and curator of the digital collection ''Building Oregon: Architecture of Oregon and the Pacific Northwest'', presented his discovery of several works not previously attributed to Lazarus, including some that are still standing in Portland.

References

External links

*
Edgar M. Lazarus, Architect: Life and Legacy
by Edward H. Teague, Architecture & Allied Arts Library, University of Oregon
Historic images of Edgar Lazarus works
from the University of Oregon digital archives {{DEFAULTSORT:Lazarus, Edgar M. 1868 births 1939 deaths American Jews Fellows of the American Institute of Architects Jewish architects Architects from Baltimore Architects from Portland, Oregon