Ezra Frank Kysor (1835–1907) was an American

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs, and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

from

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. He is believed to be the first professional architect to practice in

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural List of regions of California, region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Its densely populated coastal reg ...

Biography

Early life

Ezra Kysor was born on August 6, 1835, in

Cattaraugus, New York Cattaraugus is a village in Cattaraugus County, New York, United States. The population was 996 at the 2020 census. The village lies in the northeast part of the town of New Albion, north of Salamanca. History In 1828, the brothers Calvin an ...

."Ezra Frank Kysor (Architect)"
''http://pcad.lib.washington.edu/''. Pacific Coast Architecture Database. n.d. Web. Around the age of thirty, he traveled west to

Virginia City, Nevada Virginia City is a census-designated place (CDP) that is the county seat of Storey County, Nevada, United States, and the largest community in the county. The city is a part of the Reno, Nevada, Reno–Sparks, Nevada, Sparks Reno, NV Metropolitan ...

Career

Upon his arrival in Virginia City c.1865, Kysor established himself as a carpenter. He may also have maintained an architectural office. By 1868, however, he had settled in

, as an architect. He practiced alone until March 1875, when he established Kysor & Mathews with Walter J. Mathews (1850-1947). This firm was dissolved in April 1876. He was again alone until 1879, when John F. Hennessy (1853-1924) became a member of Kysor & Hennessy. Hennessy, who was born in

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

and came to the United States in 1875 or 1876, left Los Angeles for

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

in late 1880. Upon Hennessy's departure, Kysor made his chief draftsman,

Octavius Morgan Charles Octavius Swinnerton Morgan DL, JP, FRS, FSA (15 September 1803 – 5 August 1888), known as Octavius Morgan, was a British politician, historian and antiquary. In 1840, in his capacity as a JP he served on the Grand Jury at Monmouth ...

(1850-1922), a member of Kysor & Morgan. In 1886, John A. Walls (1858-1922) was added, the firm becoming Kysor, Morgan & Walls. It was around this time the Kysor began to withdraw from practice, to focus on real estate speculation. He retired from the firm completely in 1890, which became Morgan & Walls.

Personal life

He was married to Clara Perry. They had a son, Charles H. Kysor (1883-1954), who was also an architect.

Architectural works

Private practice, 1868-1875

Episcopal Church of Our Savior, 535 W. Roses Rd.
San Gabriel, CA (1869–71) *

Pico House The Pico House is a historic building in Los Angeles, California, dating from its days as a small town in Southern California. Located on 430 North Main Street, it sits across the old Los Angeles Plaza from Olvera Street and El Pueblo de Los � ...

, 494 N. Main St., Los Angeles, CA (1869–70) * Merced Theatre, 420 N. Main St., Los Angeles, CA (1870) * William Workman House (Remodeling), 15415 E. Don Julian Rd., Industry, CA (1870) * Congregation B'nai B'rith, 218 S. Broadway, Los Angeles, CA (1872–73) - Demolished. * Samuel C. Foy House, 1337 Carroll Ave., Los Angeles, CA (1872) *

Los Angeles High School Los Angeles High School is the oldest public high school in the Southern California region and in the Los Angeles Unified School District. Its colors are royal blue and white and the teams are called the Romans. Los Angeles High School is a publ ...

, N. Broadway & Temple St., Los Angeles, CA (1872–73) - Demolished. * Ducommun Building, 304 N. Main St., Los Angeles, CA (1874) - Demolished. *

Farmers and Merchants Bank of Los Angeles Farmers and Merchants Bank (F&M) was a lending institution (1871−1952) based in Downtown Los Angeles, California. It is recognized both for its architecture and its pivotal role in the economic development of early Los Angeles. Other, non-relat ...

second building, west side of Main St. south of Plaza, Los Angeles, CA (1874) - Demolished. * Harris Newmark House, 233 S. Broadway, Los Angeles, CA (1874) - Demolished.

Kysor & Mathews, 1875-1876

* Anaheim Hotel, 182 W. Center St.,

Anaheim, CA Anaheim ( ) is a city in northern Orange County, California, United States, part of the Greater Los Angeles area. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 346,824, making it the most populous city in Orange County, the tenth-most ...

(1875) - Demolished. * Cardona Block, 118 N. Main St., Los Angeles, CA (1875) - Demolished. * R. C. Cathedral of St. Vibiana (Completion), 214 S. Main St., Los Angeles, CA (1875–76) * Herman W. Hellman House, 125 W. 4th St., Los Angeles, CA (1875) - Demolished. * McDonald Block, 129-131 N. Main St., Los Angeles, CA (1876) - Demolished.''Los Angeles Herald'' 1 Jan. 1876. * William H. Perry House, 3800 Homer St., Los Angeles, CA (1876)

Private practice, 1876-1878

* Joseph Mullally House, 850 N. Broadway, Los Angeles, CA (1876) - Demolished. * Hellman & Mascarel Block, 230-240 N. Main St., Los Angeles, CA (1878) - Demolished.

Kysor & Hennessy, 1879-1880

* Horticultural Pavilion, Temple St., Los Angeles, CA (1879) - Burned.

Kysor & Morgan, 1880-1886

* University Building,

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in ...

, Los Angeles, CA (1880) * Garnier Block, 501 N. Main St., Los Angeles, CA (1882–83)"Plaza House, 507-511 North Main Street, Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, CA". ''https://www.loc.gov/''. n.d. Web. *

Hotel Nadeau The late-Victorian-era Downtown of Los Angeles in 1880 was centered at the southern end of the El Pueblo de Los Ángeles Historical Monument, Los Angeles Plaza area, and over the next two decades, it extended south and west along Main Street ( ...

, 202 W. 1st St., Los Angeles, CA (1882–83) - Demolished 1932. * Grand Opera House, 110 S. Main St., Los Angeles, CA (1883–84) - Demolished. *

First Baptist Church First Baptist Church may refer to: Canada *First Baptist Church (Toronto), Ontario *First Baptist Church (Ottawa), Ontario * First Baptist Church (Halifax), Nova Scotia, involved in the founding of Acadia University United States Alabama *First ...

, 556 S. Broadway, Los Angeles, CA (1883–84) - Demolished. * Placentia School, Placentia & Chapman Aves.,

(1884) - Demolished. * Los Angeles Infirmary, 1111 W. Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles, CA (1884) - Demolished. * Trinity M. E. Church, 522 S. Broadway, Los Angeles, CA (1884) - Demolished.

Kysor, Morgan & Walls, 1886-1890

* Law Building, 125 Temple St., Los Angeles, CA (1886) - Demolished. * Los Angeles National Bank Building, 100-104 N. Spring St., Los Angeles, CA (1886–87) - Demolished. * Abstract Title & Insurance Co. Building, 203 New High St., Los Angeles, CA (1887) - Demolished.''Los Angeles Herald'' 20 Nov. 1887. * Granite Bank Building, 230 S. Myrtle Ave., Monrovia, CA (1887) - Demolished. *

Hazard's Pavilion Hazard's Pavilion was a large auditorium in Los Angeles, California, at the intersection of Fifth and Olive Streets. Showman George "Roundhouse" Lehman had planned to construct a large theatre center on the land he purchased at this location, bu ...

, 427 W. 5th St., Los Angeles, CA (1887) - Demolished 1905. * Los Angeles Orphans' Home, 817 Yale St., Los Angeles, CA (1887) - Demolished. * Palomares Hotel, 350 N. Garey Ave.,

Pomona, CA Pomona ( ) is a city in eastern Los Angeles County, California, United States. Pomona is located in the Pomona Valley, between the Inland Empire and the San Gabriel Valley. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city's population was ...

(1887) - Burned 1911. * Michael Sanders House, 1345 Carroll Ave., Los Angeles, CA (1887) * Turn Halle, 321 S. Main St., Los Angeles, CA (1887) - Demolished. * Gates Building, 215 W. 5th St., Los Angeles, CA (1888) - Demolished.''Inland Architect and News Record'' Dec. 1888: xvi. * Frank Sabichi House, 2437 S. Figueroa St., Los Angeles, CA (1888) - Demolished. * Annex Building, State Normal School, S. Grand Ave., Los Angeles, CA (1889) - Demolished. * Gymnasium, State Normal School, S. Grand Ave., Los Angeles, CA (1890) - Demolished."A Muscle Factory". ''Los Angeles Herald'' 30 Aug. 1890.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kysor, Ezra F. 1835 births 1907 deaths Architects from Los Angeles 19th-century American architects