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299:- The only theater designed by William Ward Watkin and important as Houston’s only surviving example of a historic movie palace. Built in 1926 in the neoclassical architectural style. Part of the Main Street/Market Square Historic District listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Saved from demolition in 1990 thru adaptive reuse as a private special events facility it is renamed The Majestic Metro.
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Watkin also conducted a commercial architectural practice in parallel with his academic position. This enabled him to participate in creating a number of notable projects. Most were built in the
Houston area, but a few were outside the area. For example, he designed the campus of
189:(now named Lovett Hall), a power plant and Mechanical Laboratory, and one dormitory with a dining hall, located on 300 acres (120 ha) two miles southwest of downtown on an unpaved Main Street. The cornerstone of the Administration Building was laid in 1911.
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Watkins established a traveling architectural fellowship in 1928, which enabled one student per year to travel abroad while studying architecture. The fellowship was renamed for its founder in 1953 and is now the
William Ward Watkin Traveling Fellowship.
207:, the President of Rice Institute, offered Watkin a faculty position in architectural engineering when the Institute opened in 1912. Watkin was promoted to assistant professor in 1915 and full professor in 1922.
289:- The original MFAH structure was designed by Watkin in the early 1920s and opened to the public in 1924. Other architects have expanded the building, which has been renamed as the
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Watkin married Annie Ray
Townsend in 1914. They had three children, two daughters and a son. His first wife died in 1928. His second wife was Josephine Cockerel, who died in 1987.
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in 1912, and remained on the Rice faculty until his death. Concurrently, he also designed a number of important projects, mostly in the
Houston area.
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In addition to his duties at Rice, Watkin designed a large number of structures, many of which are architecturally significant.
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279:- Watkins designed the former main building, which opened in downtown Houston in 1926, and was later renamed the
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January 21, 1886. His parents were Fred Ward and Mary Mathilda (née Hancock) Watkin. The family moved to
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In this capacity, he would continue to work on newer buildings for the campus and nearby, such as:
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Watkins later became the head of the architecture department, a position he held until his death.
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and earned a B.S. degree in architecture in 1908. After graduating, he spent a year in Europe.
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Harry
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273:- The original structure was designed by Watkin in 1922, located in Houston's Hermann Park.
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In 1927, he became a full professor and maintained that rank until his death in 1952.
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196:(now named Rice University) and was the firm's representative supervisor there.
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Watkin's first major assignment was to oversee construction of a new school in
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University
Builder: Edgar Odell Lovett and the Founding of the Rice Institute
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Cram, Goodhue & Ferguson sent Watkin to
Houston to work on plans for the
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Robert and Agnes Cohen House (1927), which houses the faculty club.
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to supervise construction of the newly created Rice
Institute (now
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Founder and chair of
Architecture Department at Rice University
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He died and was interred at Forest Park Cemetery in Houston.
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102:. He was the founder of the Architecture Department of
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William Ward Watkin architectural records, 1903-1956
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519:Guide to the William Ward Watkin papers, 1903-1956
465:"Best Renovation/Restoration: 500 Fannin Building"
226:Chemistry Building (1925), later renamed Keck Hall
146:Upon returning to the US in 1909, Watkin moved to
442:"Historic 500 Fannin gets a facelift — Slideshow"
94:(January 21, 1886 – June 24, 1952) was an
303:Wilson Stationery and Printing company building
283:. This building is still in use by the public.
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531:Guide to the Watkin family papers, 1899-1999
497:. Baton Rouge: Louisiana University Press.
533:, Woodson Research Center, Rice University
521:, Woodson Research Center, Rice University
305:, 500 Fannin Street, Houston, Texas. 1932.
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265:500 Fannin Street (1932, restored 2013)
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527:, Rice Digital Scholarship Archive
440:Zucker, Shaina (1 February 2013).
327:Trinity Episcopal Church (Houston)
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567:University of Pennsylvania alumni
150:to join the architecture firm of
557:20th-century American architects
154:. In 1910, the firm sent him to
323:Philosophical Society of Texas
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287:Museum of Fine Arts, Houston
171:William Marsh Rice Institute
152:Cram, Goodhue & Ferguson
142:Cram, Goodhue & Ferguson
317:Watkin was a member of the
291:Caroline Wiess Law Building
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444:. Houston Business Journal
257:Other significant projects
127:University of Pennsylvania
469:ENR Texas & Louisiana
42:Boston, Massachusetts, US
383:Handbook of Texas Online
98:primarily practicing in
16:Houston, Texas architect
587:Rice University faculty
582:Architects from Houston
493:Boles, John B. (2007).
187:Administration Building
572:Architects from Boston
562:Architecture educators
404:"R-3 Repository: Home"
277:Houston Public Library
271:Miller Outdoor Theater
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220:Rice Fieldhouse (1920)
123:Danville, Pennsylvania
430:Boles (2007), p. 166.
379:"William Ward Watkin"
297:Ritz Theater, Houston
281:Julia Ideson Building
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247:Texas Tech University
148:Boston, Massachusetts
119:Boston, Massachusetts
411:scholarship.rice.edu
319:Houston Country Club
67:Architect, Professor
240:Commercial practice
117:Watkin was born in
92:William Ward Watkin
23:William Ward Watkin
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205:Edgar Odell Lovett
131:Paul Philippe Cret
58:Houston, Texas, US
504:978-0-8071-3275-3
463:Poirier, Louise.
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75:1910 – 1952
72:Years active
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53:(1952-06-24)
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474:15 February
448:15 February
416:February 3,
215:Autry House
541:Categories
345:References
169:named the
113:Early life
35:1886-01-21
96:architect
388:July 12,
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321:, the
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137:Career
407:(PDF)
499:ISBN
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48:Died
29:Born
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