James O. Douglas (1823 – unknown) was an American architect in

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

. He has been called a "noted Milwaukee society architect". Douglas was born in 1823 in

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

, emigrated to Canada in 1840, and came to

Milwaukee Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee is ...

in 1843. In Milwaukee he worked as a "carpenter and master workman," working on the old city hall, St. Gall's Church, St. John's Cathedral, and Holy Trinity Roman Catholic Church (Milwaukee, Wisconsin). He reportedly helped build Milwaukee's first bridge, c.1840, over the Milwaukee River. In 1847 he and his brother started a design and construction partnership. By 1859, "James and Alexander Douglas, Architects & Builders, erelocated on Oregon Street, between Grove . 5thand Monroe . 6thstreets." In 1863 he left that business to work for Northwestern Life Insurance. In 1872 he returned to architecture. With Historian Alexander Carl Guth calls Douglas "a very emotional man, likewise...very pompous and always on his dignity, both in manner and dress," and relates an anecdote in which "a stranger came to ouglas'office looking for a prominent architect by the name of enry C.Koch. Douglas straightaway disclaimed all knowledge of such a man and informed the stranger that he was now standing in the presence of the most eminent architect of the day and that he had better take due heed of same. It is needless to say that this stranger was none other than a prospective client for Koch, but Douglas made such an impression on the man that he rightway icengaged him as his architect." A number of his works are listed on the U.S.

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

. One, Sunnyhill Home, is further designated a U.S.

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...

. Works include (attribution):

* Grace Episcopal Church (built 1855-1858), 6 N. Carroll St., Madison, WI, NRHP-listed * St. Paul's Episcopal Church (built 1859), 413 S. 2nd St.,

Watertown, WI Watertown is a city in Dodge and Jefferson counties in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Most of the city's population is in Jefferson County. Division Street, several blocks north of downtown, marks the county line. The population of Watertown was 22, ...

, NRHP-listed * Chapel of St. Mary the Virgin (built 1866), 2 mi. SW of Nashotah on

Nashotah House Nashotah House is an Anglicanism, Anglican seminary in Nashotah, Wisconsin. The seminary opened in 1842 and received its official charter in 1847. The institution is independent and generally regarded as one of the more theologically Conservatism, ...

Rd.

Nashotah, WI Nashotah is a village in Waukesha County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 1,395 at the 2010 census. The village took its name from the nearby Nashotah Lakes. Education Nashotah House, a seminary of The Episcopal Church, is in Nashot ...

, NRHP-listed * Sunnyhill Home (built 1874), also known as ''Dr. Fisk Holbrook Day House'', 8000 W. Milwaukee Ave.,

Wauwatosa, WI Wauwatosa (; known informally as Tosa; originally Wau-wau-too-sa or Hart's Mill) is a city in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 48,387 at the 2020 census. Wauwatosa is located immediately west of Milwaukee, and is a pa ...

, NRHP-listed * Elias A. Calkins Doublehouse (built 1875), 1612-1614 E. Kane Pl., Milwaukee, WI, NRHP-listed *Harry B. Walker House (built ca. 1878), 3130 W. Wells St., Milwaukee, WI * Lovejoy House (built c.1880s), 220 St. Lawrence Ave.,

Janesville, WI Janesville is a city in Rock County, Wisconsin, United States. It is the county seat and largest city in the county. It is a principal municipality of the Janesville, Wisconsin, Metropolitan Statistical Area and is included in the Madison–Jane ...

, NRHP-listed * Stack Flats (built 1881 or 1883, razed 1967), 803-5 W. Wisconsin Ave., Milwaukee, WI * Sanford R. Kane House (built 1883), 1841 N. Prospect Ave., Milwaukee, WI, NRHP-listed * T.B. Scott Mansion (built 1888), 601 S. Center Ave., Merrill, WI * Charles Quarles House (built 1891), 2531 N. Farwell Ave., Milwaukee, WI, NRHP-listed * Kane Apartments (built 1896), 1503, 1509, & 1515 E. Kane Pl., Milwaukee, WI *William J. Turner House (built 1887), 743 N. 25th St., Milwaukee, WI *One or more works in Merrill, WI's Center Avenue Historic District, Roughly bounded by Cedar, Park, Third, Center and Seventh Sts., NRHP-listed

References

External links

1895 Steel Engraving Portrait Milwaukee WI Architect James Douglas Architecture - Original Steel Engraving
for sale at Amazon, image viewable {{DEFAULTSORT:Douglas, James Architects from Wisconsin Architects from Milwaukee 1823 births Year of death missing