Leon B. Senter
Leon B. Senter | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | Leon Bishop Senter March 5, 1889 |
| Died | September 16, 1965 (aged 76) Tulsa, Oklahoma, U.S. |
| Other names | Leon Senter, Sr. |
| Occupation | Architect |
| Years active | 1912–1965 |
| Practice |
|
Leon Bishop Senter (March 5, 1889 – September 16, 1965) was an American architect who worked primarily in Oklahoma. Although not formally educated in architecture, he became Oklahoma's first licensed architect in 1925 and designed several buildings on the National Register of Historic Places.
Background
Senter was born in
correspondence school to study architectural engineering, including basic drafting and building design.[1] He also gained experience under local draftsmen and architects.[b]
He worked as a steel superintendent in 1910 for a
Oak Cliff, Texas[1]
By 1912, he had secured a position with the Smith, Rae, and Lovitt architectural firm in draftsman and specification writer.[c] When the partners decided to open a new office in Okmulgee, Oklahoma in 1915, Senter was named branch manager there while the other partners remained in Kansas City between.[2] In 1918, he was made a full partner in the firm (renamed Smith, Rea, Lovitt & Senter) and remained in Okmulgee.[4]
After Frank Rea died in 1920, the partnership was dissolved. In 1924, it was reformed as Smith & Senter, headquartered in Okmulgee. Senter became the first architect in Oklahoma to become a
Registered Architect in 1925, after the state enacted a law requiring registration of architects. He carried License Number 1 for the rest of his career.[4]
In 1928, Senter opened an office in
Tulsa at the request of millionaire Waite Phillips, whom Senter met earlier in Okmulgee when Philips was in the oil business and they were neighbors. Phillips hired Senter to design the Philcade Building, a nine-story annex to the Philtower Building. The Tulsa office of Smith & Senter was the first tenant of the Philtower Building.[1] By 1933, Senter was working independently and renamed the firm Senter and Associates. He son, Leon B. Senter, Jr., who had also become an architect, joined the firm. Senter remained active there until his death in 1965.[2][4]
Building in Okmulgee
Senter designed of several significant buildings during his time in Okmulgee. These include:
- Orpheum Theatre (1919), a
- Okmulgee Country Club and Golf Course, (1920). As of 2018, it still stands at 1400 S Mission Lane in Okmulgee, and was added to the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). When it opened, the facility had a clubhouse, golf course, tennis courts and croquet ground. The article said the State Historic Preservation Office described it as "an exceptional example of the Bungalow/Craftsman style clubhouse.[6]
- Commerce Building, 117-121 S. Grand (1921), at eight stories, it was the tallest office building built during the Okmulgee oil boom and most ornate.[e][2][5]
- McCullough Building (1926), a six-story, red brick and terracotta office building at the corner of fifth and Grand in the Okmulgee Downtown Historic District (ODHD).[2][5] The sixth floor has served as the Masonic Temple for much of the building's history.[5]
- Carnegie Library, individually listed on the National Register of Historic Places.[5]
Buildings in Tulsa
Coliseum
The
acoustical engineers on the staff of Smith and Senter ... makes the coliseum's acoustics perfect for conventions, theatrical attractions and musical entertainments." [7] The building was the first indoor ice rink south of the Mason–Dixon line and home of the Tulsa Oilers from 1929 until it was destroyed by fire in 1952.[8]
Other buildings
The Tulsa Foundation for Architecture compiled the following list of projects completed by Leon Senter after he moved his office to Tulsa:[2]
- Saracen Revivalstyle (destroyed by fire after a lightning strike in 1952)
- Philcade Building (1929-1930) Art Deco style, NRHP listed
- Skelly Stadium University of Tulsa - Skelly Stadium (1930)
- Tulsa Fire Alarm Building (1931), NRHP listed
- Tulsa Municipal Airport Administration Building (1932, Smith & Senter)
- Union Bus Depot (1935) Art Deco style
- Will Rogers High School (1939) Art Deco style, NRHP listed
- Stanolind Building or AmocoEast Building, Streamline/Art Moderne style
- Booker T. Washington High School (1950)
- Mayo Motor Inn (1952)
- First Baptist Church Educational Building (1953)
- Downtown Tulsa YMCA (1953) International style
- Continental Baking Company (1956)
- St. John's Hospital (south and west additions)
- Carter Oil Company Research Laboratory
- Page Belcher Federal Building and United States Post Office (1967), International style
Architectural style
Although Senter was sometime labeled primarily a designer of
International style.[4]
Professional honors and recognition
Senter was elected as a Fellow of the
Historical American Building Survey.[10] He was made a Fellow of the International Institute of Arts and Letters (Geneva, Switzerland) in 1962.[10] In 1963, he was recognized by the City of Tulsa for "his many contributions to the city" with a Bronze Key. He had served on the City Planning Board for 19 years.[10]
Personal life
On November 2, 1910, he married Murriel Houghton a native of Streator, Illinois,[1] with whom he had three children, including Leon B. Senter, Junior, who also became an architect.[4]
Notes
- ^ Various sources report the locality as Morris, Morse, Topeka and Johnson County, Shawnee County, Wyandotte County. Given that one source says he attended elementary school in Topeka (Shawnee County), that may be the birthplace. There is also a Morse neighborhood of Overland Park (Johnson County), another possibility.
- ^ No source indicates he attended any university or college. However the Tulsa Foundation for Architecture biography credits Senter with earning a certificate in Architectural Engineering from International Correspondence Schools (ICS).[2]
- ^ The individual partners were: Charles A. Smith, Frank S. Rea and Walter Y. Lovitt.[2]
- ^ Credited to Smith, Rea, Lovitt & Senter in the ODHD NRHP nomination form
- ^ Credited to Smith & Senter in the ODHD NRHP nomination form
- ^ It is unclear what role Smith was playing by this time, and even whether he had moved to Tulsa himself, since it seems that Senter was rapidly becoming credited with all of the firm's designs.
References
- ^ Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Tulsa Foundation for Architecture (TFA). "Leon Bishop Senter, FAIA. 1889-1965." Accessed March 4, 2020.
- ^ Commission, Texas Historical. "Bridge, Houston St, Dallas | THC.Texas.gov - Texas Historical Commission". www.thc.texas.gov. Retrieved 22 July 2019.
- ^ a b c d e f Everette, Dianna. "Senter, Leon Bishop, Sr.(1889-1965)." The Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture. Accessed March 3, 2020.
- ^ a b c d e "National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Okmulgee Downtown Historic District". National Park Service. Retrieved February 21, 2022. With accompanying pictures
- ^ "Real estate briefs from The Oklahoman for April 28, 2018." The Oklahoman. April 28, 2018. Accessed March 6, 2020.
- ^ "Hail The Coliseum, Tulsa's New Palace of Wonders And Its Men!". Tulsa Tribune. Tulsa City-County Library. 1928-12-30. Retrieved 2022-02-23.
- ^ "The Tulsa Coliseum". Tulsa Oilers. 11 December 2018. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
- Newspapers.com.
- ^ Newspapers.com.
