Leo M. J. Dielmann
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Leo Maria Joseph Dielmann (August 14, 1881 - December 21, 1969) was a prominent and prolific architect in Texas. He designed over 100 churches, with several of them, along with other buildings, now listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places. Dielmann was born in San Antonio, Texas to John C. Dielmann, a German immigrant, and Maria (Gros) Dielmann, the daughter of immigrants. His father was a stonemason who joined a construction and supply business, Pauly and Dielmann. An active Catholic layman, he was elected the first president of the St. Joseph's Society of St. Joseph's R.C. Church and then served as first president of the Deutsch Roemisch Katholischer Staatsverband von Texas (the Catholic State League of Texas). Leo M.J. Dielmann graduated from St Mary's College in San Antonio in 1898. Afterwards he studied architecture and engineering in Germany from about 1899 to 1901, including a visit to the
Exposition Universelle (1900) The Exposition Universelle of 1900, better known in English as the 1900 Paris Exposition, was a world's fair held in Paris, France, from 14 April to 12 November 1900, to celebrate the achievements of the past century and to accelerate developmen ...
in Paris that showcased
Art Nouveau Art Nouveau (; ) is an international style of art, architecture, and applied art, especially the decorative arts. The style is known by different names in different languages: in German, in Italian, in Catalan, and also known as the Modern ...
in art and architecture. He returned to spend three years in his father's business, before setting up his own practice. Like his father, Dielmann was a leading Catholic layman, as a member of the St. Joseph's Society of St. Joseph's R.C. Church, the Knights of Columbus,
Order of Alhambra The International Order of Alhambra is a Catholic fraternal order founded on February 29, 1904, in Brooklyn, New York, by William Harper Bennett. Since then it has spread throughout the United States and Canada, with plans to expand throughout ...
, San Antonio Liederkranz, the Beethoven Männerchor, and as president of the Harmonia Lodge of the
Sons of Hermann The Order of the Sons of Hermann (german: Der Orden der Hermanns-Soehne, also known as Hermann Sons ( ''Hermannssöhne'' ), is a mutual aid society for German immigrants that was formed in New York, New York on July 20, 1840,Fritz Schilo"Sons of ...
. He also served as a city council member in San Antonio in 1913 and 1914, and was a long-time member of the
San Antonio Public Library The San Antonio Public Library (SAPL) is the public library system serving the city of San Antonio, Texas. It consists of a central library, 29 branch libraries (as of the fall of 2017), and a library portal. SAPL was awarded the National Medal for ...
board of Trustees. In 1926, Deilmann completed Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church on San Antonio's West Side to serve its Mexican-American population. The red brick building is Romanesque, with strong elements of the Lombardy style. Dielmann's work included more than 100 church buildings from Houston to Marshall to Amarillo, but mostly across South Texas, as well as hundreds of commercial buildings, hotels, schools, and houses. His 12-story Frost Bank Building erected in 1922 was restored in 1994 to become the Municipal Plaza Building, housing the City Council chambers and city offices. Dielmann married Ella Marie Wagner, a daughter of German emigres, on April 25, 1911, and they had three children. He died on December 21, 1969, at the age of eighty-eight, and is buried in Holy Cross Cemetery in San Antonio. Notable works include: * The Fairmount Hotel, 401 S. Alamo San Antonio, Texas, NRHP-listed * Conventual Chapel at
Our Lady of the Lake University Our Lady of the Lake University (OLLU), known locally as the Lake, is a private Catholic university in San Antonio, Texas. It was founded in 1895 by the Sisters of Divine Providence, a religious institute originating in Lorraine, France, during ...
, 411 S.W. 24th St., San Antonio, Texas,
Gothic Revival Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...
style, built 1923 * LaBorde House, Store and Hotel, 601 E. Main St., Rio Grande City, Texas, NRHP-listed * Monastery of Our Lady of Charity, 1900 Montana, San Antonio, Texas, Italianate and Gothic architecture, NRHP-listed *
Nativity of Mary, Blessed Virgin Catholic Church Nativity of Mary, Blessed Virgin Catholic Church is a historic church located at 2833 Farm to Market Road 2672 in High Hill, Texas. The church, which was built in 1906, was designed by prominent Texas church architect Leo M.J. Dielmann. Dielma ...
, FM 2672,
High Hill, Texas High Hill is an unincorporated community in southwestern Fayette County, Texas, United States. It is located on Farm Road 2672, three miles northwest of Schulenburg, Texas. History The area was originally part of the E. Anderson league and was ...
, built 1906, NRHP-listed * Our Lady of Lourdes Church, 105 N. William St., Victoria, Texas, Romanesque Revival style, NRHP-listed * Park Hotel, known as the Plaza Hotel since 1919, 217 S. River St., Seguin, Texas, NRHP-listed, opened 1917 * Post Chapel (Fort Sam Houston), Bldg. 2200, Wilson St., San Antonio, Texas, NRHP-listed * Sacred Heart Catholic Church, 1633 S. Eighth St.
Abilene, Texas Abilene ( ) is a city in Taylor and Jones Counties in Texas, United States. Its population was 125,182 at the 2020 census, making it the 27th-most populous city in the state of Texas. It is the principal city of the Abilene metropolitan statis ...
, NRHP-listed * St. Mary's Catholic Church, 306 W. San Antonio St., Fredericksburg, Texas, gothic-inspired native stone structure, NRHP-listed * St. Mary's Catholic Church, 701 Church St.,
Brenham, Texas Brenham ( ) is a city in east-central Texas in Washington County, United States, with a population of 17,369 according to the 2020 U.S. census. It is the county seat of Washington County. Washington County is known as the "Birthplace of Texas, ...
, built 1935, NRHP-listed * St. James Catholic Church, 507 S. Camp St., Seguin, Texas,
Gothic Revival Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...
style in red brick, built 1914 * Hermann Sons Grand Lodge, 515 S. St. Mary's St., San Antonio, Art Deco style, built in 1938 *The Barr Building, 213–19 Broadway, San Antonio, Texas, built in 1912


References


External links


A Guide to the Leo M. J. Dielmann Papers, Drawings, and Photographs, 1847-1961
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dielmann, Leo M.J. 20th-century American architects Architects from San Antonio 1881 births 1969 deaths