Frank Thayer

Name

Thayer, Frank

Personal Information

Birth/Death:
Occupation:    American architect
Location (state):    MN

AIA Affiliation

Not a member of the AIA.

Biographical Sources

Biographical Information:
Contributed by Northwest Architectural Archives, University of Minnesota Libraries, Minneapolis
      Frank Thayer was born in New York State about 1851. He moved to Minnesota about 1875 and established his practice in Mankato in 1885. In 1901, he was in partnership with Olof Hanson, an 1886 graduate of the National College for the Deaf (Gallaudet College), Washington, DC. Hanson was well known for his knowledge of the special architectural needs of the hearing impaired in an educational setting. On the strength of obtaining the commission for the Court House and Jail in Juneau, Alaska (1901), Thayer and Hanson closed their Mankato office in 1902 and moved to Seattle to be nearer the project. They afterward received other work in Alaska and Seattle, but the partnership ended about 1903 and each continued in practice alone.
      Thayer designed many prominent buildings in Mankato, such as the Swedish Lutheran Immanuel Church (Grace Lutheran), the Lorin Cray residence (1890s), the post office, J.H. Ray's Block, and Brett's Department Store (1895), as well as numerous residences. He also designed many buildings in southern Minnesota, including the Park Hotel (St. James, 1898); Murray County Court House (Slayton); the Lind House (New Ulm); and the Slade Hotel (Adrian, 1891).

Related Records

Partner of Olof Hanson

Archival Holdings

Northwest Architectural Archives, University of Minnesota Libraries, Minneapolis
      Frank Thayer collection (N 80)
      Collection contains 9 sheets of elevations and floor plans for the Dinehard-Holt residence in Slayton, Minnesota, designed by architect Frank Thayer.
For more information https://www.lib.umn.edu/naa

Publications