John H. Christie (1878–1960) was an American architect who worked for the
Southern Pacific Railroad
The Southern Pacific (or Espee from the railroad initials- SP) was an American Class I railroad network that existed from 1865 to 1996 and operated largely in the Western United States. The system was operated by various companies under the ...
, and was the railroad's Chief Architect from 1924 to 1947.
Christie was born Johann Heinrich Christiansen in 1878, emigrated from Germany, and was naturalized as an American citizen in 1899. He studied architecture in Pennsylvania and Europe, then returned to
Oakland, California. He was hired by Southern Pacific as a junior draftsman in 1904 working for civil engineer John D. Isaacs, and was certified to practice architecture in California in 1913. Christie succeeded
Daniel J. Patterson
Daniel James Patterson (often referred to simply as D.J. Patterson) was an American architect around the turn of the 20th century. Much of his work was done for the Southern Pacific Railroad.
Patterson was born in Jefferson County, New York in 18 ...
as Chief Architect in 1924, and became a member of the
American Institute of Architects in 1926. He retired from Southern Pacific in 1947 but continued to work in private practice.
At least four stations Christie designed have been listed in the
National Register of Historic Places.
Works
*
Salem station (Oregon)
Salem station is an Amtrak train station in Salem, Oregon, United States. It is served by ''Amtrak Cascades'' corridor trains going to and from Portland, Oregon, as well as the long-distance ''Coast Starlight.'' Greyhound Lines and some regiona ...
, 500 13th Street SE, Salem, Oregon, 1918, Beaux Arts style, NRHP-listed
* Southern Pacific Depot, Mesa, Arizona, 1931,
burned 1989
*
San Jose Diridon Station, 65 Cahill Street, San Jose, California, 1935, Italian Renaissance Revival style, NRHP-listed
*
Union Station (Los Angeles), 800 North Alameda Street, Los Angeles, California, 1939, Spanish Colonial, Mission Revival and Art Deco styles, by
John and Donald Parkinson in collaboration with tenant railroad architects H. L. Gilman (
Santa Fe), J. H. Christie (
Southern Pacific), and J. R. Wirth (
Union Pacific), and landscape architect Tommy Tomson, NRHP-listed
*
Palo Alto (Caltrain station)
Palo Alto station (also called Palo Alto Transit Center) is an intermodal transit center in Palo Alto, California. It is served by Caltrain regional rail service, SamTrans and Santa Clara VTA local bus service, Dumbarton Express regional bus ...
, 95 University Avenue, Palo Alto, California, 1941, Streamline Moderne style, NRHP-listed
* remodeling of Southern Pacific's 1915 Fresno depot
* Grand Lake Lutheran Church complex, Oakland, California
Gallery
File:Elevation view of the Salem Passenger Station, view to west after rehabilitation. - Salem Passenger Station and Freight Depot, 500 Thirteenth Street Southeast, Salem, Marion, OR HABS OR-184-27.tif, Southern Pacific Railroad Station, Salem, Oregon
File:Diridon Station San Jose.JPG, Southern Pacific Railroad Diridon Station, San Jose, California
File:Union Station, Los Angeles, Calif (67305).jpg, Union Station, Los Angeles, California (contributor)
File:Palo Alto SP-Caltrain Station.jpg, Southern Pacific Station, Palo Alto, California
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Christie, John H.
1878 births
1960 deaths
American railway architects
20th-century American architects
German emigrants to the United States
Southern Pacific Railroad people