Alexander Architectural Archives

Wees (1861-1942) was a German-born architect who practiced in St. Louis and Paris, Texas. He settled in Paris, Texas after being called there to rebuild the city which was destroyed by fire in 1916. Reports, an oral interview, specifications, newspaper clippings, and drawings provide information about buildings that architect Wees designed for Rufus F. Scott in Paris, Texas.

Architects Harold E. (Bubi) Jessen (1908-1979) and Wolfe Jessen (1915-1977), both born in Austin, Texas and educated at the University of Texas. They opened Jessen and Jessen in 1938 and continued to practice in Austin with a range of partners for decades. The collection included papers, photographs, and drawings. Related materials can be found at the Austin History Center.

James G. Reeves was a landscape architect and educator. Reeves taught design and graphics at University of Michigan, University of California at Berkeley, California Polytechnic State University, Rice University, and Harvard Graduate School for Design. Reeves started working at Sasaki Walker and Associates (SWA Group) in Houston in 1970 and became head designer in 1989. Records include drawings, project lists and files, office records, professional correspondence, clippings, brochures, notes, and postcards.

James E. Flanders was one of Dallas' earliest architects who was instrumental in shaping the city’s direction and style of architecture. This collection contains material on Flanders, assembled by Jim Willis while conducting research for a website entitled James Edward Flanders; Dallas's First Architect. Records include Willis' correspondence and clippings, copies of historic documents, small historical publications, drawings, and photos about Flanders and his work.

Joel Warren Barna served as editor of Texas Architect magazine, the official publication of the Texas Society of Architects, from 1985-1995. The collection reflects the research and writing of Joel Warren Barna's 1992 award winning book, The See-through years: creation and destruction in Texas architecture and real estate, 1981-1991. Documents include manuscript drafts, proofs, correspondence, research files, papers, photographs, and slides.

During the better part of the twentieth century, John Astin Perkins was considered "the decorator of choice" in Dallas and was credited with bringing New York Style to that city. With a career spanning 70 years, his work encompassed schools, clubs, homes, office buildings, hotels, and department stores. Drawings, photographs, ledgers, correspondence, awards, ephemera, scrapbooks, and published materials document the architectural and interior designs of John Astin Perkins.

John G. York (1914-1980) was a modernist architect who practiced in the Texas Rio Grande Valley. York was appointed to the faculty at the University of Oklahoma School of Architecture in 1960 and eventually became dean. The collection includes architectural drawings and manuscript material documenting York's work as a solo architect in Texas and his continuing career as an architect while teaching at the University of Oklahoma.

John Wesley Jones was an architect who worked primarily in Fort Worth, Dallas, and San Antonio, Texas. Working predominantly on residential homes, Jones' architectural style is noted for his mid-century modern focus. The collection contains architectural drawings that span the length of his career.

Kent S. Butler was an urban, rural, and regional planner, community activist, and assistant professor at The University of Texas at Austin from 1978 to 2011. The collection documents Butler’s teaching, consulting, and community projects. Record types include research and project files, proposals, permits, presentation notes, correspondence, and documents relating to Butler's administrative faculty positions.

Lawrence W. Speck Associates was founded in January 1980. In 1988, Speck entered into a partnership with Page Southerland Page, later merging his practice with Page in order to concentrate on his duties as Dean of The University of Texas at Austin School of Architecture. The collection includes correspondence, specifications, job files, drawings, photographs, financial documents, presentation materials that document Speck’s career as an architect and as Dean of the School of Architecture.