Frank Shaver Allen (1860–1930), usually known as F. S. Allen was a significant

Joliet, Illinois Joliet ( ) is a city in Will County, Illinois, Will and Kendall County, Illinois, Kendall counties in the U.S. state of Illinois, located southwest of Chicago. It is the county seat of Will County, Illinois, Will County. It had a population of ...

-based American architect noted for his

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 ...

school designs.

Early life and career

Frank Shaver Allen was born in 1860 in

Galesburg, Illinois Galesburg is a city in Knox County, Illinois, United States. The city is northwest of Peoria, Illinois, Peoria. At the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census, its population was 32,195. It is the county seat of Knox County and the principal cit ...

. He seems to have received some training in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

.Christ Episcopal Church NRHP Registration Form (1982) By 1880, he was practicing architecture in

Streator, Illinois Streator is a city in LaSalle County, Illinois, LaSalle and Livingston County, Illinois, Livingston counties in the U.S. state of Illinois. The city is situated on the Vermilion River (Illinois River tributary), Vermilion River approximately so ...

. In 1886, Allen formed a partnership with John H. Coxhead, the firm being Allen & Coxhead. The partnership was dissolved the following year when Coxhead relocated to

St. Paul, Minnesota Saint Paul (often abbreviated St. Paul) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of Ramsey County. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 311,527, making it Minnesota's second-most populous city a ...

. Following the dissolution of this partnership Allen moved to Joliet, where he did much of his best-known work. In 1893, an exhibit of his work in school architecture at the

World's Columbian Exposition The World's Columbian Exposition, also known as the Chicago World's Fair, was a world's fair held in Chicago from May 5 to October 31, 1893, to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the New World in 1492. The ...

received an award from the exposition commission, which led to significant expansion of his practice."Architect Allen's Advance," ''School Board Journal'' 16, no. 3 (March 1898): 11. After being commissioned for work in California, he moved to Los Angeles in 1904 with his family, settling in

Pasadena Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commercial d ...

. He originally maintained his practice from Pasadena, but moved it to

Los Angeles 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, ...

in 1907. Allen was also an

Egyptologist Egyptology (from ''Egypt'' and Greek , ''-logia''; ) is the scientific study of ancient Egypt. The topics studied include ancient Egyptian history, language, literature, religion, architecture and art from the 5th millennium BC until the end ...

Alleged kidnapping incident, retirement and death

In 1910, Allen was arrested for having an Altadena boy in his Los Angeles hotel room. The ''Los Angeles Times'' wrote that: "The boy, in whose company he was when arrested, is the same who was reported missing some time ago. No trace of him could be found by the police until he walked into his home in Altadena with the explanation that he had been in San Francisco with Allen. The matter was reported to the District Attorney's office, and an investigation was begun which resulted in last night's arrests. Allen is one of the most prominent architects in Southern California. He has been reckoned as a leader in his profession in this end of the State, and has occupied a high position in society. His family is of the most exclusive in the fashionable circles of Pasadena and Altadena." By early the next year, the felony charge was dropped. The ''Los Angeles Times'' reported that "The felony charge against F. S. Allen, a Pasadena architect, was ordered dismissed on motion of Deputy District Attorney Harry Alexander, on the ground it would be impossible to secure sufficient evidence to convict Allen." Though other details of this incident are not known, it likely hastened the end of Allen's architectural career, who retired in 1915. He later operated a music store. He died in California on August 26, 1930.Frank Shaver Allen
Pacific Coast Architecture Database. Accessed October 27, 2022.

Legacy

Allen was responsible for a number of buildings that have been listed on the United States

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 ...

Architectural works

External links

Frank Shaver Allen website

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Allen, Frank Shaver 1860 births 1930 deaths American Egyptologists People from Joliet, Illinois Architects from Illinois Architects from California