Maurice E. Kressly
Encyclopedia
Maurice E. Kressly was an American
architect
practicing in Pennsylvania
and central Florida
in the middle years of the twentieth century. Kressly was well known as a school architect in both states, as well as for designing romantic Mediterranean Revival and Tudor Revival residences in the Orlando
area. While his name appears spelled both “Kressly” and “Kressley” in contemporary texts, the proper spelling is without the second “e”.
, on October 11, 1892, the son of James and Lucinda A. (Martz) Kressly. He was one of a family of six children, five boys and one girl. They grew up in the family home at 100 Hanover Street, Wilkes-Barre. Maurice’s father James was a carpenter and contractor. He graduated from high school in his home town in 1910.
Kressly studied architecture at Pennsylvania State University
and graduated in the class of 1915. He was a charter member of the Omega Chapter Theta Chi
Fraternity, at State College, Pennsylvania
. Kressly entered the Second Training Company, Coast Artillery Corps, at Fort Monroe
, Virginia
, and was commissioned first lieutenant. He attained the rank of captain and was assigned to the office of the chief of artillery.
Following service during World War I
, Kressly took fourth place in an architectural competition to design a community center building to be built of white pine
. In 1918, Kressly was married to Louise V. Madden, of Wilkes-Barre.
, where he organized the firm of Maurice E. Kressly & Co. His office was located at 212-214 North Third, Harrisburg. For the next several years he specialized in the design of school buildings, including schools that were built at Greensburg
, Ridgway
and Rockport, Pennsylvania. Kressly also served as an assistant of the School Board Bureau of Pennsylvania.
, establishing a practice at 239-240 Church and Main Building; he practiced architecture in Orlando for the next two decades.
Kressly was among no more than a dozen architecture firms active in Orlando in the 1920s, including Ryan and Roberts (Ida Annah Ryan
and Isabel Roberts
), Frank L. Bodine
, Fred E. Field
, David Hyer
, Murry S. King
, George E. Krug
, Howard M. Reynolds
, Frederick H. Trimble
and Percy P. Turner
. Each of these architects is notable, and together these firms were supportive colleagues in promoting excellence in the built environment in Florida, as one can learn by reading the links to each.
Two of central Florida's most notable, exuberant, and easily seen Mediterranean Revival-style homes were designed by Kressly. Winter Park's
"Casa de la Esquina" (1922), on the corner of Palmer Avenue and Alabama Drive, and College Park's "Casa Alameda" at 754 Seville Place, Orlando. Both homes exhibit the careful attention to massing and detail for which Kressly was known, as well as a theatricality that sets them apart from neighboring homes in the same style. "Casa Alameda" may be ranked high among Kressly's work, which can compare favorably with the designs of his Orlando contemporary, architect James Gamble Rogers II
(see for instance Rogers' "Casa Feliz" in Winter Park).
Typical of Kressly’s residential work is the home at 1338 Ivanhoe Boulevard; it was built in about 1936 in the Tudor Revival style. An example of Kressly’s educational buildings is the St James Cathedral School, 505 Ridgewood Street, Orlando, dating to 1928. The main entrance and details show a Northern Italian Renaissance
style. Kressly also designed the Kaley School, 1600 East Kaley Avenue, another Tudor Revival style building, constructed in 1936. His own home in Orlando stood at 752 Palm Dr. W.
In 1942, Kressly left Orlando and joined the Stone & Webster Engineering Corp., 49 Federal St., Boston
, Massachusetts.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
architect
Architect
An architect is a person trained in the planning, design and oversight of the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to offer or render services in connection with the design and construction of a building, or group of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the...
practicing in Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
and central Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
in the middle years of the twentieth century. Kressly was well known as a school architect in both states, as well as for designing romantic Mediterranean Revival and Tudor Revival residences in the Orlando
Orlando, Florida
Orlando is a city in the central region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat of Orange County, and the center of the Greater Orlando metropolitan area. According to the 2010 US Census, the city had a population of 238,300, making Orlando the 79th largest city in the United States...
area. While his name appears spelled both “Kressly” and “Kressley” in contemporary texts, the proper spelling is without the second “e”.
Early life and education
Maurice Elias Kressly was born in Wilkes-Barre, PennsylvaniaWilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania
Wilkes-Barre is a city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, the county seat of Luzerne County. It is at the center of the Wyoming Valley area and is one of the principal cities in the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre metropolitan area, which had a population of 563,631 as of the 2010 Census...
, on October 11, 1892, the son of James and Lucinda A. (Martz) Kressly. He was one of a family of six children, five boys and one girl. They grew up in the family home at 100 Hanover Street, Wilkes-Barre. Maurice’s father James was a carpenter and contractor. He graduated from high school in his home town in 1910.
Kressly studied architecture at Pennsylvania State University
Pennsylvania State University
The Pennsylvania State University, commonly referred to as Penn State or PSU, is a public research university with campuses and facilities throughout the state of Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 1855, the university has a threefold mission of teaching, research, and public service...
and graduated in the class of 1915. He was a charter member of the Omega Chapter Theta Chi
Theta Chi
Theta Chi Fraternity is an international college fraternity. It was founded on April 10, 1856 as the Theta Chi Society, at Norwich University, Norwich, Vermont, U.S., and was the 21st of the 71 North-American Interfraternity Conference men's fraternities.-Founding and early years at Norwich:Theta...
Fraternity, at State College, Pennsylvania
State College, Pennsylvania
State College is the largest borough in Centre County in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. It is the principal city of the State College, Pennsylvania Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Centre County. As of the 2010 census, the borough population was 42,034, and roughly double...
. Kressly entered the Second Training Company, Coast Artillery Corps, at Fort Monroe
Fort Monroe
Fort Monroe was a military installation in Hampton, Virginia—at Old Point Comfort, the southern tip of the Virginia Peninsula...
, Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
, and was commissioned first lieutenant. He attained the rank of captain and was assigned to the office of the chief of artillery.
Following service during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, Kressly took fourth place in an architectural competition to design a community center building to be built of white pine
Eastern White Pine
Pinus strobus, commonly known as the eastern white pine, is a large pine native to eastern North America, occurring from Newfoundland west to Minnesota and southeastern Manitoba, and south along the Appalachian Mountains to the northern edge of Georgia.It is occasionally known as simply white pine,...
. In 1918, Kressly was married to Louise V. Madden, of Wilkes-Barre.
In Pennsylvania
Kressly first established his practice in Wilkes-Barre, at 314 South Fourteenth Street. In 1923, Kressly relocated to Harrisburg, PennsylvaniaHarrisburg, Pennsylvania
Harrisburg is the capital of Pennsylvania. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 49,528, making it the ninth largest city in Pennsylvania...
, where he organized the firm of Maurice E. Kressly & Co. His office was located at 212-214 North Third, Harrisburg. For the next several years he specialized in the design of school buildings, including schools that were built at Greensburg
Greensburg, Pennsylvania
Greensburg is a city in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, United States, and a part of the Pittsburgh Metro Area. The city is named after Nathanael Greene, a major general of the Continental Army in the American Revolutionary War...
, Ridgway
Ridgway, Pennsylvania
Ridgway is a borough in and the county seat of Elk County, Pennsylvania, United States.-History:Ridgway was founded by Philadelphian shipping merchant Jacob Ridgway and James Gillis. Jacob Ridgway earned substantial wealth both in Philadelphia and abroad in London. He constantly sent sums of money...
and Rockport, Pennsylvania. Kressly also served as an assistant of the School Board Bureau of Pennsylvania.
In Florida
In 1925, Kressly relocated to Orlando, FloridaOrlando, Florida
Orlando is a city in the central region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat of Orange County, and the center of the Greater Orlando metropolitan area. According to the 2010 US Census, the city had a population of 238,300, making Orlando the 79th largest city in the United States...
, establishing a practice at 239-240 Church and Main Building; he practiced architecture in Orlando for the next two decades.
Kressly was among no more than a dozen architecture firms active in Orlando in the 1920s, including Ryan and Roberts (Ida Annah Ryan
Ida Annah Ryan
Ida Annah Ryan was a pioneering United States woman architect. She was born on November 4, 1873 at Waltham, MA, one of five children of Albert Morse Ryan and Carrie S. Jameson. Albert Morse Ryan was a Waltham city employee and historian who also ran a milk business. She graduated from the Waltham...
and Isabel Roberts
Isabel Roberts
Isabel Roberts was a Prairie School figure, member of the architectural design team in the Oak Park Studio of Frank Lloyd Wright and partner with Ida Annah Ryan in the Orlando, Florida architecture firm, “Ryan and Roberts”. It is fair to say that Roberts is an under-appreciated member of Wright’s...
), Frank L. Bodine
Frank L. Bodine
Frank Lee Bodine was an American architect who practiced in Asbury Park, New Jersey and in Orlando, Florida in the first four decades of the twentieth century....
, Fred E. Field
Fred E. Field
Frederick E. Field was an American architect who practiced in Providence, Rhode Island, and Orlando, Florida, in the period between 1883 and 1927.Frederick E Field was born November 7, 1861. His professional training took place at Cornell University...
, David Hyer
David Hyer
David Burns Hyer was an American architect who practiced in Charleston, South Carolina and Orlando, Florida during the first half of the twentieth century, designing civic buildings in the Neoclassical Revival and Mediterranean Revival styles.-Biography:...
, Murry S. King
Murry S. King
Murry S. King was Florida's first registered architect, a noted American architect with a successful practice in Orlando, Florida, in the 1910s and 1920s....
, George E. Krug
George E. Krug
George Edward Krug was an American architect who practiced in Greater New York City , Sao Paulo, Brazil and Orlando, Florida....
, Howard M. Reynolds
Howard M. Reynolds
Howard Montalbert Reynolds, Sr. was an American architect practicing in Orlando, Florida in the 1920s. He designed gracefully proportioned, notable public buildings in the prevailing fashionable styles of the 1920s, including Mediterranean Revival, Colonial Revival, Spanish Colonial, Egyptian...
, Frederick H. Trimble
Frederick H. Trimble
Frederick H. Trimble was an American architect practicing in Central Florida from the early 1900s through the 1920s, working in the Colonial Revival, Spanish Colonial Revival and Prairie Style....
and Percy P. Turner
Percy P. Turner
Percy Pamorrow Turner was an American architect who, in the 1920s-1950s practiced in Baltimore Maryland, Houston, Texas, Orlando, Florida and Miami, Florida.-Early years:...
. Each of these architects is notable, and together these firms were supportive colleagues in promoting excellence in the built environment in Florida, as one can learn by reading the links to each.
Two of central Florida's most notable, exuberant, and easily seen Mediterranean Revival-style homes were designed by Kressly. Winter Park's
Winter Park, Florida
Winter Park is a suburban city in Orange County, Florida, United States. The population was 24,090 at the 2000 census. According to the U.S. Census Bureau's 2006 estimates, the city had a population of 28,083. It is part of the Orlando–Kissimmee Metropolitan Statistical Area...
"Casa de la Esquina" (1922), on the corner of Palmer Avenue and Alabama Drive, and College Park's "Casa Alameda" at 754 Seville Place, Orlando. Both homes exhibit the careful attention to massing and detail for which Kressly was known, as well as a theatricality that sets them apart from neighboring homes in the same style. "Casa Alameda" may be ranked high among Kressly's work, which can compare favorably with the designs of his Orlando contemporary, architect James Gamble Rogers II
James Gamble Rogers II
James Gamble Rogers II was a celebrated American architect practicing primarily in Winter Park, Florida in the middle years of the twentieth century. He is noted for suavely elegant residential and commercial work, in the Spanish Revival, Mediterranean Revival, French Provincial and Colonial...
(see for instance Rogers' "Casa Feliz" in Winter Park).
Typical of Kressly’s residential work is the home at 1338 Ivanhoe Boulevard; it was built in about 1936 in the Tudor Revival style. An example of Kressly’s educational buildings is the St James Cathedral School, 505 Ridgewood Street, Orlando, dating to 1928. The main entrance and details show a Northern Italian Renaissance
Italian Renaissance
The Italian Renaissance began the opening phase of the Renaissance, a period of great cultural change and achievement in Europe that spanned the period from the end of the 13th century to about 1600, marking the transition between Medieval and Early Modern Europe...
style. Kressly also designed the Kaley School, 1600 East Kaley Avenue, another Tudor Revival style building, constructed in 1936. His own home in Orlando stood at 752 Palm Dr. W.
In 1942, Kressly left Orlando and joined the Stone & Webster Engineering Corp., 49 Federal St., Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, Massachusetts.