Jessen Associates Inc. Records and Drawings

An Inventory of the Collection

Administrative History of Jessen Associates Inc.

Jessen Associates Inc. was organized in 1938 (or late 1937 according to early firm brochures) when architect brothers Harold E. (Bubi) Jessen and Wolf Ernst Jessen formed a partnership. Charles A. Millhouse joined the firm soon after (title blocks on architectural drawings from 1938-1940 read Bubi Jessen, Wolf Jessen, Charles Millhouse, Associated Architects). Title blocks from architectural drawings dating from 1941-1942 indicate that Richard Kuhlman worked with Jessen, Jessen and Millhouse during this time period. The firm discontinued its work in 1942 when all the members were absorbed into the military and/or government service.

The practice was revived in 1946 with the addition of Alton E. Greeven to the firm and the name of firm was changed to Jessen Jessen Millhouse & Greeven. Herbert C. Crume joined the firm in 1957 and made partner in the 1960s. In 1969 it was announced that the offices of Jessen Jessen Millhouse Greeven & Crume and Day & Newman combined to create Jessen Jessen Millhouse Greeven Crume Day & Newman. Understandably the name was shortened to Jessen Associates Inc. in the early 1970s.

Jessen Associates, Inc. most well known buildings in Austin, Texas include the Palmer Municipal Auditorium (1955-1958, with Page Southerland Page), Texas Supreme Court Building (1956-1959, with Mackie & Kamrath), St. Martin's Evangelical Lutheran Church (1958-1960), St. Ignatius Catholic Church (1963-1965), American-Statesman Building (1969-1971, 4th and San Antonio), Austin Public Faulk Central Library (1978) and Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (1980-1986).

Principals

Harold E. (Bubi) Jessen was born in Austin, Texas in 1908. He earned his Bachelor of Science in Architecture from the University of Texas in 1928, receiving the School Medal of the American Institute of Architect for that year. After serving as assistant in the UT Architectural Department the following year, he resumed his studies at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and received the degree of Master of Architecture in 1931. Bubi worked as a draftsman for Texas architects until he opened his own firm with his brother Wolf Jessen in 1938. Bubi was also a talented watercolorist.

Wolf E. Jessen was born in Austin in 1915. He graduated from the University of Texas with a degree of Bachelor of Architecture in 1936. He returned to UT to teach architecture directly after World War II before resuming the practice that would eventually become Jessen Associates, Inc. In addition to his career with Jessen Associates, Inc. Wolf was a flutist with the Austin Symphony Orchestra until his death in 1977.

Charles A. Millhouse, another Austinite, was born in 1907. He too graduated from the University of Texas with a Bachelor of Science in Architecture in 1929. In 1930, he returned to UT as an instructor in the Department of Architecture, a position he held for three years while doing graduate work. In 1934 Millhouse received an appointment as Group Chief in the Office of the Supervising Architect, Treasury Department, Washington, D.C. In December of 1937, he returned to Texas and engaged in private practice until called into service during World War II.

Alton E. Greeven, a native of San Antonio, Texas, was born in 1908. He studied architecture through correspondence courses and on the job with a variety of Texas architectural firms during the years 1925 through 1936. During this time, while in the employ of Robert Leon White, Architect, he acted as the Superintendent of Construction for several large projects built for the University of Texas. In 1937 he went to Louisiana and for two years was employed as superintendent of construction on Louisiana State Schools. In 1938 he returned to the University of Texas to become Chief Draftsman and Construction Superintendent for the Supervising Architects' Office before joining Jessen Associates, Inc.

Herbert C. Crume was born in Dallas, Texas in 1921. After attending Columbia University, he graduated from the University of Texas with a Bachelor of Architecture in 1947. After graduation he taught architecture classes at UT while working as a draftsman at Fehr & Granger, Architects. From 1949 to 1952 he worked in Chicago before returning to Austin to work as the Chief Designer-Planner with Fehr & Granger. He joined Jessen Associates, Inc in 1957.

Fred W. Day graduated from high school in Temple, Texas in 1943 and went on to receive a Bachelor of Architecture from the University of Texas in 1950. He worked for Ned A. Cole, Architect; Fehr & Granger, Architects; and Jessen Jessen Millhouse & Greeven before opening the firm Pendley and Day in 1958. In 1961 he established his own practice Fred Winfield Day, Architect. After several years of association with Jessen Jessen Millhouse & Greeven he was made principal in 1969.

Sanford L. Newman was born in Houston, Texas in 1927. He received Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering and Bachelor of Architecture degrees from the University of Texas. He worked as a designer engineer with firms in San Antonio and Houston before joining Jessen Associates, Inc.

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Scope and Contents

The Jessen Associates, Inc. collection contains office files, project files, photographs and architectural drawings dating from the early years of the initial partnership of Wolf and Bubi Jessen through the early 1980s, although the majority of the project related materials date from the mid-1940s through early 1970s.

The Office Files series (1936-1972) consists of certifications, financial records, real estate records, professional membership materials, legal documents, marketing materials and documents related to the partnership of Day and Newman. The financial records include partnership financial statements, office expenses for 1955-1961, and a sampling of vouchers from 1955-1959 that provide information about the salaries of employees and other expenses. In addition to designing buildings the principals at Jessen Associates, Inc were involved real estate development and formed partnerships and "accounts" for the purpose of purchasing, operating and selling real estate. The real estate records retained include correspondence, financial statements and legal documents pertaining to the purchase and sale of property. Marketing materials include brochures (booklets both hard and soft covered) that provide education and experience information about the principles in the firm as well as descriptions, details and photographic examples of their work. Present are brochures for Jessen Jessen & Millhouse; Jessen Jessen Millhouse & Greeven; and SOBA (State Office Building Architects) which was comprised of the architectural firms of Mackie and Kamrath of Houston, Jessen Jessen Millhouse & Greeven of Austin and Page Southerland Page of Austin. SOBA was formed to apply for the architectural commissions of the proposed State Courts Building, State Office Building and the State Capital alterations. In addition, there are materials from the partnership of Day & Newman before they joined Jessen Associates, Inc.

The Project Files series (1938-1976) contains documents related to the planning, designing, and construction of Jessen Associates, Inc projects. There are project files that correspond with approximately one-third of the sets of drawings held in this collection. Included in the files are correspondence with clients, building contractors, engineers and suppliers; contracts with owners and builders (Standard Form of Agreement Between Contractor and Owner for Construction of Buildings); financial records such as bids and bidders lists, invoices, certificates of payments, estimates for partial payments; specifications; submittals; change orders; punch lists and architect's monthly reports. Also included are construction photographs for a few of the projects. Project files are arranged by building type (educational, commercial, etc.) and then alphabetically by project name. When known the architect's job numbers are provided in the container list, which correspond with the job numbers on the architectural drawings.

The Drawings series (1937-1981) consists of 3420 drawings representing 271 projects. Included are plans, elevations, sections and details for commercial, ecclesiastical, educational, medical, public and residential designs. Notable examples of these are the Von Boeckmann-Jones Building, American-Statesman Building at 4th Street and San Antonio, Massengale Company Produce Plant, Palmer Municipal Auditorium, Texas Supreme Court Building, St. Martin's Lutheran Church, St. Ignatius Catholic Church, Faulk Central Library, Wayman Adams residence and renovations of Governor Shiver's (Woodlawn) residence. Jessen Associates, Inc. also worked on many projects for the Austin Independent School District including designing William B. Travis High School (South Austin High School) and renovations and additions to variety of schools in the 1940s and 1950.

Lastly, the Artwork series (undated) contains sketches and watercolors of buildings and landscapes. Included are a set of sketches of Mexico. Some of the art is signed by Wolf Jessen, while other drawings have no signature.

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Restrictions

Restrictions on Access

Open of all users.

Restrictions on Use

None.

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Related Material

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Separated Material

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Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

Jessen Associates, Inc. Records and Drawings (AR.2009.018). Austin History Center, Austin Public Library, Texas.

Acquisition Information

Donor #: DO/1986/020

Donation Date: 1986

Processing Information

Architectural drawings processed by Ida Scott in 1986. Finding aid created and encoded by Molly Hults in 2012.

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Detailed Description of the Collection

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