John Marshall (1864–1949) was a Scottish-born 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 ...

in practice in

Devils Lake, North Dakota Devils Lake is a city in and the county seat of Ramsey County, North Dakota, United States. The population was 7,192 at the 2020 census, and was estimated to be 7,314 in 2024. It is named after the nearby lake called Devils Lake. The first ho ...

, from 1905 until 1946.

Life and career

John Marshall was born April 12, 1864, in

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

. Circa 1889, at the age of 25, Marshall immigrated to the United States, initially settling 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 ...

. He worked as a contractor and architect in Illinois, Indiana and Nebraska. In 1895 he came to

North Dakota North Dakota ( ) is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the indigenous Dakota people, Dakota and Sioux peoples. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north and by the U.S. states of Minneso ...

, establishing a homestead in Ramsey County near what would become Starkweather. By 1904 he had given up farming, and was practicing as an architect in Starkweather. In 1905 he moved to Cando, and shortly thereafter to Devils Lake. When he moved to Devils Lake he formed a brief partnership with a Mr. Sarles, but spent the majority of his forty-year career as an independent practitioner. He retired from practice in 1946. Marshall was a member of the North Dakota Association of Architects and served as its president.

Personal life

Marshall was married in 1892 to Amanda E. Kaley in Chicago. She died in 1942, and Marshall chose to retire shortly thereafter. He died October 5, 1949, in Devils Lake at the age of 85. At the time of his death, he was noted as having been the oldest living architect in the state. and

Legacy

At least three of his works are 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

* Starkweather Community Church (former), Main St,

Starkweather, North Dakota Starkweather is a city in Ramsey County, North Dakota, United States. The population was 100 at the 2020 census. Starkweather was founded in 1902. Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all land. ...

(1919) * Newport Apartments, 601 7th St NE,

(1929, NRHP 1988) * Marshall Building, 205 5th St NE,

(1930)Devils Lake Commercial District NRHP Registration Form
(1989) * Memorial Building, 508 4th Ave NE,

(1934) * Central High School (former), 325 7th St NE,

(1936–37, NRHP 2003) and * Roxy Theatre, 714 3rd St,

Langdon, North Dakota Langdon is a city in Cavalier County, North Dakota, United States. It is the county seat of Cavalier County. The population was 1,909 at the 2020 census. Langdon was designated as the county seat in 1884, was founded in 1885, and was incorporat ...

(1936, NRHP 1998)Roxy Theatre NRHP Registration Form
(1998)

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Marshall, John 1864 births 1949 deaths Architects from North Dakota People from Ramsey County, North Dakota Scottish emigrants to the United States 19th-century American architects 20th-century American architects