Troy Laundry Building (Portland, Oregon)

The Troy Laundry building, located at 1025 South East Pine in Portland, Oregon is a mixture of colonial, Egyptian and Renaissance revival architecture. With its large windows, tall brick walls, and decorative brick work, it is a site to behold, and knowing that it was build in 1913 makes it even more spectacular. It was built by Portland Native Architect Ellis Lawrence.

Troy Laundry Building
Portland Historic Landmark[1]
The Troy Laundry Building in 2013
Location1025 SE Pine Street
Portland, Oregon
Coordinates45°31′15″N 122°39′19″W
Built1913
ArchitectEllis F. Lawrence
Architectural styleColonial Revival
MPSPortland Oregon’s Eastside Historic and Architectural Resources, 1850-1938
NRHP reference No.89000102
Added to NRHPMarch 8, 1989

Architecture

The Troy Laundry building is classified as a colonial revival architecture building[2], but other aspects of architecture is seen throughout it. The towering brick work with the tall, double layered windows is an example of this. As well as the decorative brick work in even intervals high upon the walls. Renaissance revival architecture drew inspiration from a wide range of classical Italian modes.[3]Nineteenth century architects and critics gained inspiration from rich things as early fifteenth century expression artwork and architecture; they also included styles such as Baroque and Mannerist. The divergent forms of Renaissance architecture in different parts of Europe make it difficult to define and recognize new, or Neo-Renaissance, architecture.

The building also has aspects of Egyptian Revival architecture. Such architecture has motifs and imagery that resemble that of ancient Egypt[4]. High stone walls and angular features are the key designs for this. The angular wall faces and design of the upper portions of the Troy Laundry building are excellent depictions of such stylistic choice. Public awareness is often attributed to Napoleon’s conquest of Egypt and the defeat of the French Navy at the Battle of the Nile in 1798. Even during Napoleon’s scientific expedition in Egypt, the monumental size of their architecture is noted in the publication of the trip.[5]

Colonial Revival architecture can be attributed to angular brickwork, small stacked windows, and symmetrical features, all of which can be seen on the Troy Laundry Building. Colonial Revival style is often associated with Centennial Exhibitions, which reawakened Americans to the architectural traditions of the colonial past.[6]It wasn’t until 1910 that the Colonial Revival movement really took in American society, where forty percent of United States homes built during the subsequent twenty year period were built in this style.

History

The Troy Laundry Company

The Troy Laundry was established in 1889 by John F. Tait. Tait came to Portland from Scotland, where he had apprenticed in the laundry trade[7]. His knowledge of the business and his spectacular management skills led to the establishment of a successful and one of the longest running laundry businesses in the city of Portland. The original Troy Laundry building was located on the west side of the river, but was destroyed by a fire in 1984. At that time Tait moved the laundry into a building on the east side[8]. In 1892, Tait ran advertisements for the laundry which showed how large his operation was; he even had places where laundry could be picked up throughout Portland, Vancouver, and Oregon City. Troy Laundry was one of two large laundries which catered to both commercial and individual clients[9]. Within in twenty five years Tait and his company expanded greatly. His staff increased to over one hundred fifty people. By 1913, the laundry had outgrown its earlier building, and the Troy Laundry building was built. Then, at the corner of 10th and Pine. Tait was one of the first people in the laundry industry to switch to an eight-hour work day. The new building incorporated a variety of innovative features: a large employee dining room and lounge, its own electrical generators, new engines that ran forty four washers, and twenty two extractors. It had the, then, standard oil burner dryers and steam equipment, but also housed the new drying system, the tumbler; this technology was considered revolutionary at the time. Tait’s system allowed his business to handle over six hundred thousand dollars worth of work a week; his business represented a customer base of ten thousand residential, industrial, and commercial clients.

Ellis F. Lawrence

Ellis F. Lawrence was born in Malden, Massachusetts in 1879[10]. He received his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in architecture from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, which was the first school of architecture in the United States. After graduating in 1902, Lawrence worked for three architectural firms: Codman and Despradelle, Andrews Jacques and Rantoul, and John Calvin Stevens. Lawrence was greatly influenced by his work with Despradelle, his former studio instructor, as well as John Calvin Stevens.  In 1906 Lawrence headed west where he intended to open an office in San Francisco. He stopped in Portland, Oregon along the way to visit a friend and former M.I.T graduate. It was then that Lawrence decided to move to Portland. He joined his friend, E.B. McNaughton, and engineer Henry Raymond in partnership in November 1906.[11].[1] Lawrence was their chief designer. In February of 1910 Lawrence left the firm to pursue independent work until 1913. A former classmate and friend from M.I.T. William G. Holdford joined him in partnership. Ormond Bean and Fred Allyn joined that partnership in 1928. Bean left the firm in 1933, and both Allyn and Holdford left in 1940.

Lawrence’s first design in Portland was his home located in the Irvington neighborhood of Northeast Portland. In 1914 Lawrence founded the University of Oregon School of Architecture and Allied Arts in Eugene, Oregon. He organized the school around teaching methods which rejected the traditional philosophy. He believed in integration of all the arts. Lawrence eventually became acquainted with many of the Portland’s most influential businessmen; Like John Tait. He also knew many nationally known figures such as Frank Lloyd Wright, and the Olmstead brothers. [12]

[1] “University of Oregon Libraries.” University of Oregon Libraries, library.uoregon.edu/architecture/oregon/lawrence

[1] United States Department of the Interior; National Register of Historic Places Registration form. Troy Laundry Building. Federal Register No.: 10024-0018 (January 27, 1989)

Further reading
  • K. Zisman; J. Koler; J. Morrison; B. Grimala; A. Yost (August 15, 1988). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Troy Laundry Building" (pdf). National Park Service. Cite journal requires |journal= (help)

See also

References
  1. Portland Historic Landmarks Commission (July 2014), Historic Landmarks -- Portland, Oregon (XLS), retrieved September 10, 2014.
  2. United States Department of the Interior; National Register of Historic Places Registration form. Troy Laundry Building. Federal Register No.: 10024-0018 (January 27, 1989)
  3. Roth, Leland M., and Amanda C. R. Clark. American Architecture: a History. Routledge, 2019.
  4. Roth, Leland
  5. McAlester, V., Matty, S. P., & Clicque, S. (2018). A field guide to American houses: The definitive guide to identifying and understanding America's domestic architecture. New York: Alfred A. Knopf.
  6. Roth, Leland
  7. United States Department of the Interior; National Register of Historic Places Registration form. Troy Laundry Building. Federal Register No.: 10024-0018 (January 27, 1989)
  8. Ellis Fuller Lawrence Papers, 1909-1929  PDF.” Archives West: Ellis Fuller Lawrence Papers, 1909-1929, archiveswest.orbiscascade.org/ark:/80444/xv35243.
  9. Dept. of Interior
  10. Ellis Fuller Lawrence Papers
  11. University of Oregon Libraries.” University of Oregon Libraries, library.uoregon.edu/architecture/oregon/lawrence
  12. National Register of Historic Places; Multiple Property Documentation form. Architecture of Ellis F. Lawrence. Federal Register No.: 1024-0018 (September 04, 1990)
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