James W. McLaughlin (November 1, 1834 – March 4, 1923) was a

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking River (Kentucky), Licking and Ohio Ri ...

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

architect. He studied to be an architect working under famed

James Keys Wilson James Keys Wilson (April 11, 1828 – October 21, 1894) was a prominent architect in Cincinnati, Ohio.American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

serving in the Union Army. During the late 19th century, he became a popular builder in Cincinnati. In 1870, he helped organize the Cincinnati 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 ...

; that year, he was selected as a Fellow of the AIA, serving on its board.

Early life

James W. McLaughlin was born on November 1, 1834, the second son of William and Mary McLaughlin. His family was "largely" Scots-Irish and his father William was an early Cincinnati merchant who had moved in 1818 to the developing city from

Sewickley, Pennsylvania Sewickley is a borough in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, west northwest of Pittsburgh along the Ohio River. It is a residential suburb of the Pittsburgh metropolitan area. The population was 3,907 at the 2020 census. The Sewick ...

outside Pittsburgh. His younger sister Mary Louise McLaughlin became a ceramic artist. When the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

broke out, McLaughlin left his architectural practice to serve in the Union Army. During the war he became a

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...

in the infantry body guard of General John C Fremont. He also was a Special Artist for

Frank Leslie’s Illustrated Newspaper ''Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper'', later renamed ''Leslie's Weekly'', was an American illustrated literary and news magazine founded in 1855 and published until 1922. It was one of several magazines started by publisher and illustrator Fra ...

. After the war he published "a book illustrated with his vivid vignettes of army life based on his experiences with General Fremont in California."

Architectural career

At the age of 15, McLaughlin entered the tutelage of

James Keys Wilson James Keys Wilson (April 11, 1828 – October 21, 1894) was a prominent architect in Cincinnati, Ohio. In 1855, the first year of his independent practice, he built the dry goods store on West Fourth Street. Architect

Samuel Hannaford Samuel Hannaford (10 April 1835 – 7 January 1911) was an American architect based in Cincinnati, Ohio. Some of the best known landmarks in the city, such as Music Hall and City Hall, were of his design. The bulk of Hannaford's work was d ...

was his rival in the city.Walter E. Langsa
James W. McLaughlin
, ''Biographical Dictionary of Cincinnati Architects, 1788–1940'' McLaughlin's design for the

Cincinnati Zoological Gardens The Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden is the second oldest zoo in the United States, founded in 1873 and officially opening in 1875. It is located in the Avondale neighborhood of Cincinnati, Ohio. It originally began with in the middle of the ...

(1874–1875) "produced the earliest completed structures specifically for that purpose in the United States, and displayed his sense of humor and flexibility in housing specimens in buildings inspired by their geographical and ethnically associated origins."

Affiliations

McLaughlin helped organize the Cincinnati Chapter of the

in 1870. He served as the group's president from 1878–1882 and 1889–1893. He was made a Fellow of the

in 1870, served on its board, and "was active in their national meetings, including that held in Cincinnati in 1889, when the AIA and the Western Society of Architects merged."

Projects

* St. Francis Seraph Church (1859) at 1600 Vine Street in Cincinnati * Old Main Library (1868–1870) * Motch Jewelers (ca. 1871) building at 613 Madison Avenue in Covington, KY * Cincinnati Zoo Historic Structures at 3400 Vine Street in Cincinnati, Ohio (a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a National Register of Historic Places property types, building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the Federal government of the United States, United States government f ...

* Stores for

John Shillito Company John Shillito & Co. (commonly known as Shillito's) was Cincinnati's first department store. History In 1817, John Shillito (November 1808 – September 1879) arrived in Cincinnati (from Greensburg, Pennsylvania). The nine-year-old lad was s ...

dry goods business, including its headquarters store (1878), a luxury 10-floor building that was considered a retail palace. This was renovated and adapted for residences in what is called The Lofts at Shillito Place . * Cincinnati Gas, Coke & Light Co. building, an Italianate structure that stands at 305 West Fourth Street and Plum Street (it was converted into an apartment building). *Hamilton County Courthouse, Ohio (1884 rebuilding), a reconstruction "after a riot and fire" destroyed 30 years later * original Cincinnati Art Museum building (1882–1886), "the oldest extant museum building in the Midwest" that has "been almost entirely swallowed up in later additions, but his interiors have recently been restored to approximately their original form and once again demonstrate their structural, functional, and systemic validity." * Bishop's Place in Clifton (1885) *

Art Academy of Cincinnati The Art Academy of Cincinnati is a private college of art and design in Cincinnati, Ohio. It was founded as the McMicken School of Design in 1869, and was a department of the University of Cincinnati, and later in 1887, became the Art Academy ...

building (1885–1888) * Sol P. Kineon-John Uri Lloyd house (1887) Clifton Avenue * Machinery Hall for the 1888 Cincinnati Centennial Exposition "straddled" the Miami and Erie Canal * Wayne County Courthouse, Richmond, Indiana (1889–1890) between 3rd, 4th, Main and South A Streets in Richmond Indiana. 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) * First Unitarian Church, Cincinnati (1888–1889) at Reading Road and Linton Street, 2901 Reading Road Cincinnati, Ohio, credited to James C. McLaughlin * Sir Alfred T. Goshorn house(1890–1891) Clifton Avenue. Includes a staircase salvaged from the library of a house designed by

Frank Furness Frank Heyling Furness (November 12, 1839 – June 27, 1912) was an American architect of the Victorian era. He designed more than 600 buildings, most in the Philadelphia area, and is remembered for his diverse, muscular, often inordinately scaled ...

* Y.M.C.A. Building, Cincinnati (1890–1891) "later adapted as the Shubert Theater" * Ohio State Building at the

1893 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 ce ...

in Chicago. McLaughlin was chief architect for the project. * Sir Alfred T. Goshorn House at 3540 Clifton Avenue in Cincinnati, Ohio * Grace Church Cincinnati at 3626 Reading Road. Credited to McLaughlin and Albert C. Nash, and listed on the NRHP. *

John Uri Lloyd House John Uri Lloyd House is a registered historic building in Cincinnati, Ohio, listed in the National Register on March 7, 1973. Lloyd was an American pharmacist who was a leader in the eclectic medicine movement and influential in the developme ...

3901 Clifton Avenue in Cincinnati. Listed on the NRHP. * Mabley & Carew Building (1907) 12 floors (destroyed) Emporis * Mabley & Carew Department Store, 6 floors, 1881 (destroyed) * McAlpin building (1873), on Fourth Street, a 6-floor building adjacent to an earlier building designed by

James Keys Wilson James Keys Wilson (April 11, 1828 – October 21, 1894) was a prominent architect in Cincinnati, Ohio.McAlpin website
/ref>

References

;Further reading * - Total pages: 243 * - Total pages: 104 *

External links

*
James W. McLaughlin
in the

Cincinnati and Hamilton County Public Library Cincinnati and Hamilton County Public Library (CHPL) is a public library system in the United States. In addition to its main library location in downtown Cincinnati, Ohio, CHPL operates 40 regional and branch locations throughout Hamilt ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:McLaughlin, James W. 1834 births 1923 deaths People from Sewickley, Pennsylvania American people of Scotch-Irish descent Union army officers Architects from Cincinnati Burials at Spring Grove Cemetery Military personnel from Pennsylvania