John W. Storrs (1920 – August 31, 2003) was an American architect in

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

. A native of

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...

, the

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 ...

veteran was known for designs in the

Northwest Regional style Northwest Regional style architecture is an architectural style popular in the Pacific Northwest between 1935 and 1960. It is a regional variant of the International style. It is defined by the extensive use of unpainted wood in both interiors and ...

. His notable works include

Salishan Lodge The Salishan (also Salish) languages are a family of languages of the Pacific Northwest in North America (the Canadian province of British Columbia and the American states of Washington, Oregon, Idaho and Montana). They are characterised by ag ...

, the original tasting room at the Sokol Blosser Winery, and the campus of the Oregon College of Art & Craft, among others.

Early life

Storrs was born in 1920 in

Bridgeport, Connecticut Bridgeport is the List of municipalities in Connecticut, most populous city and a major port in the U.S. state of Connecticut. With a population of 148,654 in 2020, it is also the List of cities by population in New England, fifth-most populous ...

. Growing up he joined the

Boy Scouts Boy Scouts may refer to: * Boy Scout, a participant in the Boy Scout Movement. * Scouting, also known as the Boy Scout Movement. * An organisation in the Scouting Movement, although many of these organizations also have female members. There are ...

and achieved the rank of

Eagle Scout Eagle Scout is the highest achievement or rank attainable in the Scouts BSA program of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA). Since its inception in 1911, only four percent of Scouts have earned this rank after a lengthy review process. The Eagle Sc ...

. He then attended

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 ...

New Hampshire New Hampshire is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...

where he was an all-American swimmer, and graduated in 1942. Storrs then joined the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

where he was in command of a sub chaser during World War II. Following the war, he graduated from the

Yale School of Architecture The Yale School of Architecture (YSOA) is one of the constituent professional schools of Yale University, and is generally considered to be one of the best architecture schools in the United States. The School awards the degrees of Master of Arc ...

with a master's degree in architecture in 1949. He married Frances, and had four children.

Career

After hearing a lecture by

architect

Pietro Belluschi Pietro Belluschi (August 18, 1899 – February 14, 1994) was an Italian-American architect. A leading figure in modern architecture Modern architecture, or modernist architecture, was an architectural movement or architectural style based up ...

, Storrs moved to

Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populous co ...

, in 1954 after practicing in

Fairfield, Connecticut Fairfield is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. It borders the city of Bridgeport and towns of Trumbull, Easton, Weston, and Westport along the Gold Coast of Connecticut. Located within the New York metropolitan area ...

, for a few years. In Portland, he got his big break when he received the commission for the

Portland Garden Club The Portland Garden Club is a historic building located in Portland, Oregon, United States.. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2005.. See also * National Register of Historic Places listings in Southwest Portland, Orego ...

in the Goose Hollow area of Southwest in 1956. Storrs next big project came in 1959 when he designed the Lumber Industry Pavilion at the

Oregon Centennial The Oregon Centennial was the 100th anniversary of the statehood of the U.S. state of Oregon. The day of the anniversary was February 14, 1959, but centennial events took place throughout the year. Festivities were held all over the state, with the ...

. The wood hyperbolic paraboloids were destroyed in 1962 by the

Columbus Day Storm The Columbus Day Storm of 1962 (also known as the Big Blow, and originally, and in Canada as Typhoon Freda) was a Pacific Northwest windstorm that struck the West Coast of Canada and the Pacific Northwest coast of the United States on October 12, ...

. He designed a similar one, Marineland at Pier 99, located along

Interstate 5 Interstate 5 (I-5) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the West Coast of the United States, running largely parallel to the Pacific coast of the contiguous U.S. from Mexico to Canada. It travels through the states of Califor ...

near the Washington border. The upper level and hyperbolic paraboloid roof of Marineland at Pier 99, formerly known as the Totem Pole Marina, located at 1415 North Pier 99 Street, was demolished in July 2023. Other projects designed by Storrs include the Oregon College of Art & Craft,

Lake Oswego Lake Oswego () is a city in the U.S. state of Oregon, primarily in Clackamas County, with small portions extending into neighboring Multnomah and Washington counties. Located about south of Portland and surrounding the Oswego Lake, the town was ...

Lakeridge High School Lakeridge High School is a four-year public secondary school in Lake Oswego, Oregon, a suburb south of Portland. The second high school in the Lake Oswego School District, it first opened in 1971. Academics In 1987, Lakeridge High School was honor ...

, the

World Forestry Center The World Forestry Center is a nonprofit educational institution in Portland in the U.S. state of Oregon. Located near the Oregon Zoo in Washington Park, the organization was established in 1964 as the Western Forestry Center, with the actual bui ...

at Washington Park in Portland, St. Mary's Catholic Church in Corvallis, Central Catholic High School in Portland, the Mazama Lodge, and Congregation Ahavath Achim, among others. He also designed Sokol Blosser Winery's original tasting room in 1977, with his final project as a conversion of a closed mattress factory into the John's Landing Water Tower building with retail and office space. Storrs' most notable design is the

resort at

Gleneden Beach, Oregon Gleneden Beach is an unincorporated community in Lincoln County, Oregon, United States. It is located on the Oregon Coast five miles south of Lincoln City, just south of the Salishan Spa and Golf Resort, along U.S. Route 101. Climate This re ...

, along the

Oregon Coast The Oregon Coast is a coastal region of the U.S. state of Oregon. It is bordered by the Pacific Ocean to its west and the Oregon Coast Range to the east, and stretches approximately from the California state border in the south to the Columbia ...

Later life

Storrs studied the culinary arts in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

in the 1970s, but only prepared meals for his family and friends. He died on August 31, 2003, in Portland at the age of 83.

References

External links

John Storrs Architectural PapersPeter Kerr House
{{DEFAULTSORT:Storrs, John 1920 births 2003 deaths Architects from Bridgeport, Connecticut Architects from Portland, Oregon Dartmouth College alumni Yale School of Architecture alumni United States Navy personnel of World War II Modernist architects American ecclesiastical architects