Francis J. Keally (1889 - 1978) was an American architect and pioneering preservationist, based in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

. Keally's design credits include the Oregon State Capitol in Salem, Oregon in 1938, in a one-time association with

Trowbridge & Livingston Trowbridge & Livingston was an architectural practice based in New York City in the early 20th-century. The firm's partners were Samuel Beck Parkman Trowbridge and Goodhue Livingston. Often commissioned by well-heeled clients, much of the fir ...

; the

Former Embassy of Iran in Washington, D.C. The Former Embassy of Iran in Washington, D.C. was the Imperial State of Iran's diplomatic mission to the United States. Direct bilateral Iran–United States relations between the two governments were severed following the Iranian Revolution in 1 ...

; and the main building of the Brooklyn Public Library. Keally was born in Pittsburgh, and first trained in architecture at the

Carnegie Institute of Technology Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) is a private research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. One of its predecessors was established in 1900 by Andrew Carnegie as the Carnegie Technical Schools; it became the Carnegie Institute of Technology ...

in 1912, then moving to the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...

. Twelve pages of his travel sketches from two years in Europe were published in ''Pencil Points'' of June 1928, raising his professional profile. Keally's first major commission was won in a national competition with 75 entries—a federally-funded monument to the First Permanent Settlement of the West, erected in Harrodsburg, Kentucky, in what was then Pioneer Memorial State Park. Keally's partner in the competition entry was the architectural sculptor Ulric Ellerhusen. Three years later the same team of Keally and Ellerhusen won the national competition for the Oregon State Capitol, with Keally aligning himself with the larger New York firm of

. Later he would partner with Alfred Morton Githens. Keally also taught at

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

and the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public land-grant research university in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States. ...

, and served as president of the

Municipal Art Society The Municipal Art Society of New York (MAS) is a non-profit membership organization for preservation in New York City, which aims to encourage thoughtful planning and urban design and inclusive neighborhoods across the city. The organization was ...

of New York. He became a

Fellow of the American Institute of Architects Fellow of the American Institute of Architects (FAIA) is a postnominal title or membership, designating an individual who has been named a fellow of the American Institute of Architects (AIA). Fellowship is bestowed by the institute on AIA-member ...

in 1948.

Work

* four-story parish story addition to the

St. Luke's Lutheran Church Saint Luke's Lutheran Church, also known as The German Evangelical Lutheran Congregation of Saint Luke's and St. Luke's Evangelical Lutheran Church, is a historic Lutheran church located on Restaurant Row at 308 West 46th Street between Eig ...

, West 46th Street, NYC, 1922 * monument to the First Permanent Settlement of the West, Harrodsburg, Kentucky, 1935 * Oregon State Capitol, as design architect, with

, Salem, Oregon, 1938 * Barbour Residence, 1119 Scenic Drive, Sequoyah Hills, Knoxville, Tennessee, with landscape architect Arthur F. Brinkerhoff, 1940 *

Virginia State Library The Library of Virginia in Richmond, Virginia, is the library agency of the Commonwealth of Virginia. It serves as the archival agency and the reference library for Virginia's seat of government. The Library moved into a new building in 1997 an ...

, Richmond, Virginia, 1940 (Githens & Keally) * main building of the Brooklyn Public Library.

Grand Army Plaza Grand Army Plaza, originally known as Prospect Park Plaza, is a public plaza that comprises the northern corner and the main entrance of Prospect Park in the New York City borough of Brooklyn. It consists of concentric oval rings arranged as s ...

Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

, 1941 (Githens & Keally) * Joint University Library, consolidating the libraries of

Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private research university in Nashville, Tennessee. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and rail magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provided the school its initial $1-million ...

, George Peabody College for Teachers, and

Scarritt College for Christian Workers Scarritt College for Christian Workers was a college associated with the United Methodist Church in Nashville, Tennessee, USA. The campus is now home to Scarritt Bennett Center. History of Scarritt College (1892–1988) The Scarritt College for C ...

, now part of the Jean and Alexander Heard Library, with local architect Henry C. Hibbs as primary designer and Githens & Keally as consulting library specialists, 1941 * Ford Foundation Library aka "Henry-Ford-Bau",

Free University of Berlin The Free University of Berlin (, often abbreviated as FU Berlin or simply FU) is a public research university in Berlin, Germany. It is consistently ranked among Germany's best universities, with particular strengths in political science and t ...

, Berlin, Germany, as library consultant associated with German architects Sobotka, Mueller, 1954 *

Amerika-Gedenkbibliothek The Amerika-Gedenkbibliothek (AGB; en, America Memorial Library) is one of the largest public libraries in Berlin, Germany. It was co-financed by a donation from the United States. The building was designed by American and German architects, inc ...

(America Memorial Library), Berlin, Germany, as library consultant associated with German architects Jobst Kreuer Wille Bornemann, 1954 *

Luxembourg American Cemetery and Memorial Luxembourg American Cemetery and Memorial is a Second World War American military war grave cemetery, located in Hamm, Luxembourg City, Luxembourg. The cemetery, containing 5,074 American war dead, covers and was dedicated in 1960. It is adminis ...

Hamm, Luxembourg Hamm is a quarter in eastern Luxembourg City, in southern Luxembourg. It is the home of the Luxembourg American Cemetery and Memorial, the final resting place of 5,076 American servicemen, including General Patton. , the quarter has a popula ...

, one of the American Battle Monuments, dedicated 1960 (Keally & Patterson) *

, 1962 * additions to the

Detroit Public Library The Detroit Public Library is the second largest library system in the U.S. state of Michigan by volumes held (after the University of Michigan Library) and the 21st-largest library system (and the fourth-largest public library system) in the Uni ...

, Detroit, Michigan, with Cass Gilbert Jr., completed 1963 * St. John the Theologian Greek Orthodox Church, 353 E. Clinton Avenue, Tenafly, New Jersey, 1966 * Concord, New Hampshire public library (Githens & Keally)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Keally, Francis 1889 births 1978 deaths 20th-century American architects Architects from Pittsburgh Architects from New York City Fellows of the American Institute of Architects