Jens Fredrick Larson (10 August 1891 – 6 May 1981),
sometimes credited as Jens Frederick Larson, was an American pilot and architect known for designing several
Colonial Revival style
The Colonial Revival architectural style seeks to revive elements of American colonial architecture.
The beginnings of the Colonial Revival style are often attributed to the Centennial Exhibition of 1876, which reawakened Americans to the archi ...
college campuses:
Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College (; ) is a private research university in Hanover, New Hampshire. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, it is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution. Although founded to educate Native A ...
,
Bucknell University
Bucknell University is a private liberal arts college in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1846 as the University at Lewisburg, it now consists of the College of Arts and Sciences, Freeman College of Management, and the College of Engineering. ...
,
Colby College
Colby College is a private liberal arts college in Waterville, Maine. It was founded in 1813 as the Maine Literary and Theological Institution, then renamed Waterville College after the city where it resides. The donations of Christian philanthr ...
,
Wake Forest University
Wake Forest University is a private research university in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Founded in 1834, the university received its name from its original location in Wake Forest, north of Raleigh, North Carolina. The Reynolda Campus, the un ...
, and others.
[ For an extensive list of campuses and buildings that Larson designed, see Appendix I, pp. 96–105.] He served as pursuit pilot and a
flying ace
A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ace is varied, but is usually co ...
in
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
.
Early life
Born in
Waltham, Massachusetts
Waltham ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, and was an early center for the labor movement as well as a major contributor to the American Industrial Revolution. The original home of the Boston Manufacturing Company, th ...
in 1891, Larson worked at a Boston architecture firm and then won a scholarship to the
Harvard architecture school, where he studied from 1910 to 1912, and where Harvard's Colonial/
Georgian style
Georgian architecture is the name given in most English-speaking countries to the set of architectural styles current between 1714 and 1830. It is named after the first four Monarchy of the United Kingdom, British monarchs of the House of Hano ...
campus may have influenced Larson's preferred architectural style.
[ After Harvard, he worked for the architectural firm Brown & Vallance in Montreal.][ During this time he spent about a year in Great Britain, where he apprenticed with Sir ]John James Burnet
Sir John James Burnet (31 May 1857 – 2 July 1938) was a Scotland, Scottish Edwardian architecture, Edwardian architect who was noted for a number of prominent buildings in Glasgow and London. He was the son of the architect John Burnet (arch ...
in Glasgow and then with Thomas Edward Colcutt in London, and then returned to Montreal.[
]
Military service
After the outbreak of World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
, Larson joined the Canadian Army
The Canadian Army (french: Armée canadienne) is the command responsible for the operational readiness of the conventional ground forces of the Canadian Armed Forces. It maintains regular forces units at bases across Canada, and is also respo ...
, where he was known as "Swede".[ After service with the field artillery for nineteen months, he transferred to the ]Royal Flying Corps
"Through Adversity to the Stars"
, colors =
, colours_label =
, march =
, mascot =
, anniversaries =
, decorations ...
on 19 October 1916.[ He served with the 24 and 34 Training Squadrons.][ On 31 July 1917, he became one of the original pilots of No. 84 Squadron, equipped with SE-5s.][ He earned nine official victories, the last of which was an LVG twin-seater which crashed inside Allied lines after he knocked out the observer.][ Larson was hospitalized in 1918 and did not see any further combat service.][
]
Architecture
Larson returned to Canada in January 1919 before making his home in Hanover, New Hampshire
Hanover is a town located along the Connecticut River in Grafton County, New Hampshire, United States. As of the 2020 census, its population was 11,870. The town is home to the Ivy League university Dartmouth College, the U.S. Army Corps of Eng ...
, where he was architect in residence at the Ivy League
The Ivy League is an American collegiate athletic conference comprising eight private research universities in the Northeastern United States. The term ''Ivy League'' is typically used beyond the sports context to refer to the eight schools ...
school Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College (; ) is a private research university in Hanover, New Hampshire. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, it is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution. Although founded to educate Native A ...
from 1919 to 1947.[ According to scholar Rod Andrew Miller, Larson's 1928 ]Baker Memorial Library
The Baker-Berry Library is the main library at Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire. The fresco, '' The Epic of American Civilization'', was painted by José Clemente Orozco in the lower level of the library, and is a National Historic La ...
at Dartmouth "garnered much attention"; Miller quoted a June 1930 letter to Larson from Princeton University
Princeton University is a private university, private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial Colleges, fourth-oldest ins ...
librarian James T. Gerould that said: "The longer I study the Dartmouth building the more thoroughly convinced I am that, in its adaptation to purpose, it is the best building we have in the country."[ Larson's work was part of the architecture event in the art competition at the ]1932 Summer Olympics
The 1932 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the X Olympiad and also known as Los Angeles 1932) were an international multi-sport event held from July 30 to August 14, 1932 in Los Angeles, California, United States. The Games were held duri ...
. He became a member of the Association of American Colleges
The American Association of Colleges and Universities (AAC&U) is a global membership organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States. It works to improve quality and equity in undergraduate education and advance liberal education. ...
Commission on College Architecture, and in 1933 he coauthored with Archie Palmer
Archie MacInnes Palmer (1896-1985) was an American educator and academic administrator who served as 8th president of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga from 1938 to 1942.
Biography
Palmer was born May 9, 1896, in Hoboken, New Jersey, ...
the book ''Architectural Planning of the American College''. In the 1930s he redesigned the campuses of the Little Ivy
The Little Ivies are an unofficial group of small, academically competitive private liberal arts colleges in the Northeastern United States. The term Little Ivy derives from these schools' small student bodies, standards of academic excellence, ...
schools Bucknell University
Bucknell University is a private liberal arts college in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1846 as the University at Lewisburg, it now consists of the College of Arts and Sciences, Freeman College of Management, and the College of Engineering. ...
and Colby College
Colby College is a private liberal arts college in Waterville, Maine. It was founded in 1813 as the Maine Literary and Theological Institution, then renamed Waterville College after the city where it resides. The donations of Christian philanthr ...
. He was awarded the Legion of Honour
The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon, ...
in France for his design of the Maison Internationale at the Cité Internationale Universitaire de Paris
Cité may refer to: Places
* Cité (Paris Métro), the metro station on the ''Île de la Cité''
* Cité (Quebec), type of municipality in Quebec
* Citadel, the historical centre of an old city, originally fortified
* Housing estate, a group of ho ...
, which opened in 1936.[ Among other projects, he designed buildings for the ]Institute for Advanced Study
The Institute for Advanced Study (IAS), located in Princeton, New Jersey, in the United States, is an independent center for theoretical research and intellectual inquiry. It has served as the academic home of internationally preeminent scholar ...
, Lehigh University
Lehigh University (LU) is a private research university in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania in the Lehigh Valley region of eastern Pennsylvania. The university was established in 1865 by businessman Asa Packer and was originally affiliated with the Epis ...
, University of Louisville
The University of Louisville (UofL) is a public research university in Louisville, Kentucky. It is part of the Kentucky state university system. When founded in 1798, it was the first city-owned public university in the United States and one of ...
,[ and ]St. Francis Xavier University
St. Francis Xavier University is a public undergraduate liberal arts university located in Antigonish, Nova Scotia, Canada. It is a member of the Maple League, a group of primarily undergraduate universities in Eastern Canada.
History
St. Franc ...
. He completed a full design for the University of Louisville, but the project was quashed in part due to World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
.[ He eventually settled in North Carolina, where he designed the new ]Wake Forest College
Wake Forest University is a private research university in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Founded in 1834, the university received its name from its original location in Wake Forest, north of Raleigh, North Carolina. The Reynolda Campus, the un ...
campus in Winston-Salem
Winston-Salem is a city and the county seat of Forsyth County, North Carolina, United States. In the 2020 census, the population was 249,545, making it the second-largest municipality in the Piedmont Triad region, the 5th most populous city in N ...
, North Carolina
North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...
, and he retired in 1971.[ He died in Winston-Salem on 6 May 1981.]
Other architects that Larson respected included Ralph Adams Cram
Ralph Adams Cram (December 16, 1863 – September 22, 1942) was a prolific and influential American architect of collegiate and ecclesiastical buildings, often in the Gothic Revival style. Cram & Ferguson and Cram, Goodhue & Ferguson are partner ...
and Charles A. Platt
Charles Adams Platt (October 16, 1861 – September 12, 1933) was a prominent American architect, garden designer, and artist of the "American Renaissance" movement. His garden designs complemented his domestic architecture.
Early career Pai ...
.[
]
Gallery
For more than fifty years, Jens Fredrick Larson designed almost exclusively in Colonial Revival style
The Colonial Revival architectural style seeks to revive elements of American colonial architecture.
The beginnings of the Colonial Revival style are often attributed to the Centennial Exhibition of 1876, which reawakened Americans to the archi ...
before and during the period when the extremely different mid-century modern architecture was rising in popularity.[ Several of his buildings echo the structure of ]Independence Hall
Independence Hall is a historic civic building in Philadelphia, where both the United States Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution were debated and adopted by America's Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Fa ...
in Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
(see also Independence Hall replicas and derivatives).[
File:Baker-Library-Dartmouth-College-Hanover-New-Hampshire-05-2018a.jpg, ]Baker Memorial Library
The Baker-Berry Library is the main library at Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire. The fresco, '' The Epic of American Civilization'', was painted by José Clemente Orozco in the lower level of the library, and is a National Historic La ...
at Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College (; ) is a private research university in Hanover, New Hampshire. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, it is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution. Although founded to educate Native A ...
, building opened 1928
File:France Paris Cite Universitaire Maison internationale.jpg, Maison Internationale at the Cité Internationale Universitaire de Paris
Cité may refer to: Places
* Cité (Paris Métro), the metro station on the ''Île de la Cité''
* Cité (Quebec), type of municipality in Quebec
* Citadel, the historical centre of an old city, originally fortified
* Housing estate, a group of ho ...
(in the style of the Palace of Fontainebleau
Palace of Fontainebleau (; ) or Château de Fontainebleau, located southeast of the center of Paris, in the commune of Fontainebleau, is one of the largest French royal châteaux. The medieval castle and subsequent palace served as a residence ...
instead of Larson's usual Colonial Revival style), building opened 1936[
File:IAS Princeton.jpg, Fuld Hall at the ]Institute for Advanced Study
The Institute for Advanced Study (IAS), located in Princeton, New Jersey, in the United States, is an independent center for theoretical research and intellectual inquiry. It has served as the academic home of internationally preeminent scholar ...
(rear view), building opened 1939[
File:University of Louisville Louis D. Brandeis School of Law, Louisville, Kentucky (97173062).jpg, ]Louis D. Brandeis School of Law
The University of Louisville Louis D. Brandeis School of Law, commonly referred to as The University of Louisville School of Law, U of L Brandeis School of Law, or the Brandeis School of Law, is the law school of the University of Louisville. ...
at the University of Louisville
The University of Louisville (UofL) is a public research university in Louisville, Kentucky. It is part of the Kentucky state university system. When founded in 1798, it was the first city-owned public university in the United States and one of ...
, building opened 1939
File:Miller Library, Colby College.jpg, Miller Library at Colby College
Colby College is a private liberal arts college in Waterville, Maine. It was founded in 1813 as the Maine Literary and Theological Institution, then renamed Waterville College after the city where it resides. The donations of Christian philanthr ...
, building opened 1947
File:Trinity Lutheran Church (Worcester, Massachusetts).jpg, Trinity Lutheran Church in Worcester, Massachusetts
Worcester ( , ) is a city and county seat of Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Named after Worcester, England, the city's population was 206,518 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the second-List of cities i ...
, begun 1948 and completed in 1951. The design was heavily influenced by Scandinavian church architecture.
File:Bucknell University 2012 1.JPG, Ellen Clarke Bertrand Library at Bucknell University
Bucknell University is a private liberal arts college in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1846 as the University at Lewisburg, it now consists of the College of Arts and Sciences, Freeman College of Management, and the College of Engineering. ...
, building opened 1951
File:UpperQuad ACB.jpg, Wait Chapel
Wait Chapel is a building on the campus of Wake Forest University. It houses the Janet Jeffrey Carlile Harris Carillon of 48 bells. The chapel seats 2,250 people. The steeple reaches to 213 feet. It also houses the Williams Organ, donated by Walt ...
at Wake Forest University
Wake Forest University is a private research university in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Founded in 1834, the university received its name from its original location in Wake Forest, north of Raleigh, North Carolina. The Reynolda Campus, the un ...
, building opened 1956
File:ZSR ACB.jpg, Z. Smith Reynolds Library at Wake Forest University
Wake Forest University is a private research university in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Founded in 1834, the university received its name from its original location in Wake Forest, north of Raleigh, North Carolina. The Reynolda Campus, the un ...
, building opened 1956
See also
* List of World War I flying aces from the United States
The following is a list of flying aces from the United States of America who served in World War I
Overview
Even before the United States entry into World War I in April 1917, many Americans volunteered to serve in the armed forces of Great Bri ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Larson, Jens Fredrick
1891 births
1981 deaths
American World War I flying aces
Architects from Boston
Olympic competitors in art competitions
Royal Air Force personnel of World War I
Royal Air Force officers