William Martin Aiken

William Martin Aiken (April 1, 1855 – December 7, 1908) was an American architect who served as Supervising Architect of the United States Treasury and oversaw and participated in the design and construction of numerous federal buildings during his appointment that now reside on the National Register of Historic Places.

William Martin Aiken
BornApril 1, 1855
Charleston, South Carolina, US
DiedDecember 7, 1908
OccupationArchitect

Early life

William Aiken was born in Charleston, South Carolina and educated at The University of the South from 1872 to 1874. He taught at his alma mater in his last year of attendance and moved to Charleston to teach a special course in architecture. In 1877, he moved to Boston, MA and continued to teach Architecture at MIT until 1879. After leaving MIT, he served under in the office of noted American architect Henry Hobson Richardson and left in 1883 to serve under other architects until 1886. He left Boston to start his own practice in Cincinnati, Ohio.[1]

Supervising Architect

Aiken was appointed as Supervising Architect of the United States Treasury and sworn in on April 1, 1895. During his short tenure, he oversaw the design of many notable federal buildings such as the Denver and Philadelphia mints. He resigned his position on June 30, 1897 to practice architecture in New York with Bruce Price and act as a consultant architect to the City of New York.[2][3]

Death

Aiken died on December 7, 1908 during an operation at a New York City Hospital.[4]

Notable buildings
  • Denver Mint (Initial Design) – Denver, Colorado[5]
  • Philadelphia Mint – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania[3]
  • Bandstand, White Point Garden, Charleston, SC[6]
  • The Historic Federal Building, Pueblo, Colorado
  • U.S. Post Office and Courthouse, San Francisco, California
  • Castle Station US Post Office – Saginaw, Michigan[7]
  • Allegheny Post Office – Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania[8]
  • East 23rd Street Bathhouse – New York City (with Arnold W. Brunner)
  • Customs House Museum and Cultural Center (1898 Federal Post Office and Customs House) - Clarksville, Tennessee
gollark: Are you in the lobby invisibly?
gollark: * lobbypocalypse
gollark: I *think* so.
gollark: I think OVH does £3/month or so ones.
gollark: I got that far, but have no idea what that first block should be.

References
  1. Leonard, John William; Marquis, Albert Nelson (1903). Who's Who in America (1903–1905 ed.). A.N. Marquis and Company. p. 12.
  2. Taylor, James Knox (December 1908). "In Memoriam — William Martin Aiken" (reprint). The American Architect and Building News. James R. Osgood & Co. XCIV (1722): 213. Retrieved 2007-11-15.
  3. Aiken, William Martin (1906). "The Architecture of our Government Buildings". In La Follette, Robert (ed.). The Making of America. The Making of America Co. p. 279. William Aiken Martin Bruce Price.
  4. McLean, Robert Craik, ed. (Jan–Jun 1909). "The Western Architect, Volume 13". Minneapolis, Minnesota: American Institute of Architects. p. 24. Cite magazine requires |magazine= (help)
  5. "The Federal Presence – U.S. Mint Buildings Across the Nation". US Treasury. Retrieved 2007-11-14.
  6. "The Williams Music Pavilion". Charleston News & Courier. Apr 17, 1907. p. 12. Retrieved Sep 27, 2013.
  7. National Park Service. "Historical Society of Saginaw County :: Castle Building". Historical Society of Saginaw County. Archived from the original on 2007-11-02. Retrieved 2007-11-07.
  8. "Background Information". Children's Museum of Pittsburgh. Retrieved 2007-11-14.
Preceded by
Jeremiah O'Rourke		 Office of the Supervising Architect
1895–1897		 Succeeded by
James Knox Taylor
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