Frederick Augustus Tompson (August 10, 1857 – February 2, 1919) was an American architect from Portland, Maine.

Life and career

Tompson was born in Portland in 1857, to John A. Tompson and Mary Elizabeth Libby. In 1876, after graduating Portland High School, he entered the office of

Francis H. Fassett Francis Henry Fassett (June 25, 1823 – November 1, 1908) was an American architect in Maine who built as many as 400 homes and buildings throughout the state. Working in the Victorian High Gothic and Queen Anne styles, he especially influ ...

, Maine's most prominent architect at the time. He worked his way up through the office until 1886, when he was promoted to partner in the new office of Fassett & Tompson. That association lasted until the end of 1890, and Tompson opened his own office in January 1891. He remained in private practice until his death. In 1894, he married Harriet Lane Larrabee. The couple lived at 33 Carroll Street in Portland. Harriet died in 1908, three years after which Tompson married for a second time, to Leontine F. Farrington. He was elected an Associate of the American Institute of Architects on December 2, 1901. Tompson's practice was succeeded by Charles O. Poor, Tompson's chief assistant. Later that year Poor formed a partnership with John P. Thomas. Poor died in 1922, and Thomas opened an office under his own name in 1923. He became one of Maine's most successful architects.

Death

Tompson died on February 2, 1919, aged 61. He was interred in Portland's Evergreen Cemetery, alongside his first wife. His second wife remarried after Tompson's death, and was buried beside her third husband in Oregon, Illinois, upon her death in 1921. His mother survived him by three months. After her death, aged 89, she was interred in Black Point Cemetery in Scarborough, Maine.

Legacy

Tompson was the designer of several of Portland's most prominent turn-of-the-century structures, and his West house of 1911 remains the city's largest private residence. Several of Tompson's works have been placed on the National Register of Historic Places, and several others are contributing properties of listed historic districts.

Architectural works

* Rich Building, 106 Exchange St, Portland, Maine (1892)"Portland Waterfront NRHP Nomination". 1974. * Walker Memorial Hall, Highland Rd,

Bridgton, Maine Bridgton is a town in Cumberland County, Maine, United States. The population was 5,418 at the 2020 census. A resort area in Maine's Lakes Region, Bridgton is home to Bridgton Academy, a private preparatory school, and the Four on the Fourth Roa ...

(1892, NRHP 1983) * Castle-in-the-Park, Deering Oaks, Portland, Maine (1894)Bibber, Joyce K. and Earle G. Shettleworth, Jr. ''Postcard History Series: Portland''. 2007. *

Walker Memorial Library The Walker Memorial Library is the public library of Westbrook, Maine, United States. It is located at 800 Main Street, in an architecturally distinguished French Chateauesque building designed by Frederick A. Tompson and built in 1894. It was ...

, 800 Main St, Westbrook, Maine (1894, NRHP 1980) * Portland Armory, 20 Milk St, Portland, Maine (1895) * George Thornton Edwards–Charles Miller double house, 83-7 Highland St, Portland, Maine (1895) * John W. D. Carter house, 384 Spring St, Portland, Maine (1897)"Western Promenade Historic District NRHP Nomination". 1984. * Emerson School, 13 Emerson St, Portland, Maine (1897) * Charles O. Haskell house, 52 Neal St., Portland, Maine (1897) * YMCA Building, 7 Congress Sq, Portland, Maine (1897, demolished) * Henry P. Cox house, 231 Western Promenade, Portland, Maine (1898) * Deering High School (former), 552 Stevens Ave, Portland, Maine (1898) * Howard C. Smith house, 23 Bramhall St, Portland, Maine (1900) * Union Mutual Life Insurance Building, 120 Exchange St, Portland, Maine (1900) * Frederick A. Tompson house, 33 Carroll St, Portland, Maine (1901) * Walker Manual Training School, 45 Casco St, Portland, Maine (1901) *

Everett Chambers The Everett Chambers or Hotel Everett is a historic mixed-use commercial and residential building at 47-55 Oak Street in Downtown Portland, Maine. Built in 1902 to a design by local architect Frederick Tompson, it is an important surviving example ...

, 51 Oak St, Portland, Maine (1902, NRHP 2004) * Adam P. Leighton house, 261 Western Promenade, Portland, Maine (1902–03, NRHP 1982) * State Street Entrance, Deering Oaks, Portland, Maine (1902–04) * Samuel Wilde Memorial Chapel, Evergreen Cemetery, Portland, Maine (1902) * Colonial Hotel, 179-185 High St, Portland, Maine (1904, demolished) * Portland Children's Hospital, 68 High St, Portland, Maine (1908, NRHP 2012)''Engineering Record'' 3 July 1909: 70. * Trelawny Building, 655 Congress St, Portland, Maine (1909) *

Masonic Temple A Masonic Temple or Masonic Hall is, within Freemasonry, the room or edifice where a Masonic Lodge meets. Masonic Temple may also refer to an abstract spiritual goal and the conceptual ritualistic space of a meeting. Development and history In ...

, 415 Congress St, Portland, Maine (1911, NRHP 1982) * George F. West house, 181 Western Promenade, Portland, Maine (1911) *

Portland Exposition Building The Portland Exposition Building, also known as The Expo, is a sports and exhibition venue (convention center) building complex in Portland, Maine, Portland, Maine. The complex includes five inter-connected buildings with 24,000 square feet of e ...

, 239 Park Ave, Portland, Maine (1914) * Joseph W. Whitney house, 22 Clifford St, Portland, Maine (1916)

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tompson, Frederick A. 1857 births 1919 deaths Architects from Portland, Maine 19th-century American architects 20th-century American architects American Institute of Architects