Oliver W. Fontaine (born 1900) was an American architect from

Woonsocket, Rhode Island Woonsocket ( ), is a city in Providence County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 43,240 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, making it the sixth largest city in the state. Being Rhode Island's northernmost city, Woonsock ...

Biography

Oliver Fontaine was born in late 1900 in Woonsocket, Rhode Island to local architect

Walter F. Fontaine Walter F. Fontaine (January 12, 1871 – September 21, 1938) was an American architect of French Heritage from Woonsocket, Rhode Island. Early life Fontaine was born in Fitchburg, Massachusetts in 1871 to parents that had moved there fr ...

,''American Architects Directory''. New York: R. R. Bowker, 1955. then at the beginning of his successful career. He attended the Lowell Textile School,''American Architects Directory''. New York: R. R. Bowker, 1970. and entered the Fontaine office in 1921, along with his brother, Paul N. Fontaine. In 1935 they were admitted to the firm as partners, as Walter F. Fontaine & Sons. The partnership remained until 1938, when Walter Fontaine died when the

Hurricane of 1938 The 1938 New England Hurricane (also referred to as the Great New England Hurricane and the Long Island Express Hurricane) was one of the deadliest and most destructive tropical cyclones to strike Long Island, New York, and New England. The stor ...

destroyed the family summer home. The firm, now Walter F. Fontaine, Inc., existed until 1942, when Paul joined the war effort. Upon his brother's departure, Oliver Fontaine established his own Woonsocket office. He practiced alone until 1967, when he added Charles Seavor as partner. Seavor had been a designer in the office since at least 1963,Hope Village Historic District NRHP Nomination
1995. and would lead the office in the 1970s. Architect Joseph M. Mosher also worked for the Fontaine office in the 1930s and 1940s.

Architectural works

Walter F. Fontaine, Inc., 1938–1942

* 1939 – St. Antoine Hospice, 10 Rhodes Ave,

North Smithfield, Rhode Island North Smithfield is a town in Providence County, Rhode Island, United States, settled as a farming community in 1666 and incorporated into its present form in 1871. North Smithfield includes the historic villages of Forestdale, Primrose, Waterfo ...

** Demolished. * 1940 – Morin Heights, Woonsocket, Rhode Island * 1941 – Convent for St. Aloysius R. C. Church, 323 Rathbun St, Woonsocket, Rhode Island * 1942 – Bristol Worsted Mills, 345 Thames St,

Bristol, Rhode Island Bristol is a town in Bristol County, Rhode Island, US as well as the historic county seat. The town is built on the traditional territories of the Pokanoket Wampanoag. It is a deep water seaport named after Bristol, England. The population of B ...

Oliver W. Fontaine, 1942–1967

* 1948 – Barry Memorial Field, 44 Smithfield Rd, Woonsocket, Rhode Island * 1950 – Woonsocket High School Gymnasium, 357 Park Pl, Woonsocket, Rhode Island * 1952 – Ste Jeanne d'Arc School, 68 Dracut St,

Lowell, Massachusetts Lowell () is a city in Massachusetts, in the United States. Alongside Cambridge, It is one of two traditional seats of Middlesex County. With an estimated population of 115,554 in 2020, it was the fifth most populous city in Massachusetts as of ...

* 1955 – St. Louis de France R. C. Church, 221 W 6th St, Lowell, Massachusetts * 1955 – St. Mary's R. C. School, 30 Broad St,

Marlborough, Massachusetts Marlborough is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 41,793 at the 2020 census. Marlborough became a prosperous industrial town in the 19th century and made the transition to high technology industry in the ...

* 1959 – St. James R. C. School, 57 Division St,

Manville, Rhode Island Manville is a village in the town of Lincoln in Providence County, Rhode Island, United States. It is located at latitude 41.9616° North, longitude 71.4744° West. It has been assigned the ZIP Code 02838. It is a mill village that lies along the ...

''American Architects Directory''. New York: R. R. Bowker, 1962. * 1960 – St. Joseph's R. C. School, 1210 Mendon Rd, Woonsocket, Rhode Island * 1961 – St. Blaise R. C. Church, 1158 S Main St,

Bellingham, Massachusetts Bellingham () is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 16,945 at the 2020 census. The town sits on the southwestern fringe of Metropolitan Boston, along the rapidly growing "outer belt" that is Route 495. It ...

* 1961 – St. Frances Xavier Cabrini R. C. Church, 27 Hood Rd,

North Scituate, Massachusetts North Scituate is a census-designated place (CDP) in the town of Scituate in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 5,077 at the 2010 census. It was formerly known as Gannet Corner. Geography North Scituate is located ...

* 1962 – St. Anne R. C. School, 20 Como Rd,

Hyde Park, Massachusetts Hyde Park is the southernmost neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, United States. Situated 7.9 miles south of downtown Boston, it is home to a diverse range of people, housing types and social groups. It is an urban location with suburban chara ...

* 1963 – Hope Library, 374 North Rd,

Hope, Rhode Island The Hope Village Historic District is a historic rural mill settlement within Hope Village in Scituate, Rhode Island. Hope Village is located on a bend in the North Pawtuxet River in the southeastern corner of Scituate. Industrial activity has ...

* 1964 – St. Vincent de Paul R. C. School, 6 St Vincent de Paul St,

Anthony, Rhode Island Anthony (previously known as Greenville and The Quaker Village) is a village along Route 117 within the town of Coventry, Rhode Island near the villages of Washington and Quidnick on the southwestern banks of the Pawtuxet River (Flat River). The ...

* 1964 – Ste. Chretienne Academy (Former), 11 Harrison Rd,

Salem, Massachusetts Salem ( ) is a historic coastal city in Essex County, Massachusetts, located on the North Shore of Greater Boston. Continuous settlement by Europeans began in 1626 with English colonists. Salem would become one of the most significant seaports tr ...

** Now part of the south campus of

Salem State University Salem State University (Salem State or SSU) is a public university in Salem, Massachusetts. Established in 1854, it is the oldest and largest institute of higher education on the North Shore and is part of the state university system in Massa ...

. * 1966 – Convent for St. Joseph's R. C. Church, 22 Lyman St,

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 ...

** Demolished.

Oliver W. Fontaine Associates, from 1967

* 1969 – Joseph L. McCourt Middle School, 45 Highland Ave,

Cumberland, Rhode Island Cumberland is the northeasternmost town in Providence County, Rhode Island, United States, first settled in 1635 and incorporated in 1746. The population was 36,405 at the 2020 census, making it the seventh-largest municipality and the largest t ...

Seavor Associates

* 1974 – Our Lady, Queen of Martyrs, R. C. Church, 1409 Park Ave, Woonsocket, Rhode Island * 1974 – Marquette Credit Union Building, 191 Social St, Woonsocket, Rhode Island''Engineering News-Record'' Feb. 1974: 133. ** To this day, this is the tallest building in Woonsocket.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fontaine, Oliver W. 1900 births Year of death missing Architects from Woonsocket, Rhode Island Architects from Providence, Rhode Island Lowell Technological Institute alumni