5101 Nicollet Ave
Minneapolis, MN 55419, USA

Harry W Jones House (Elmwood) - National Register of Historic Places

Statement of Significance:
"Elmwood" is significant as the residence of one of Minneapolis' most noteworthy architects whose career spanned nearly fifty years of highly accomplished expertise in a wide variety of architectural styles. Jones designed "Elmwood" as a shingle-styled Norman chateau in 1887 and resided there until his death in 1935.

Harry Wild Jones was born on 9 June 1859 in Schoolcraft, Michigan, the son of a Baptist minister. He received his educational training at Brown University where he obtained a Bachelor of Arts Degree, after which he enrolled at Massachusetts Institute of Technology where he received a Bachelor of Science degree. Thereafter, Jones travelled and studied architecture in France and Italy. Upon his return, he gained entrance into the architectural profession as a draftsman in the office of Henry Hobson Richardson in Boston. (Many of Jones* designs of the late 1880s and early 1890s are distinctly "Richardsonian").

Jones settled in Minneapolis in 1883, and by 1885 he had opened his own architectural practice. During the early years, his work was of a general nature, concentrating primarily upon residential and commercial buildings. (Unfortunately, Jones' most significant "Richardsonian" work, the First National Bank of Commerce building has been demolished.)

By the turn of the century, Jones had turned his attention to primarily ecclesiastical architecture, resulting in the design of churches in such locations as China, India, and Burma as well as throughout the United States. One of the most noteworthy Jones designs in Minneapolis is the former Fowler Methodist Church (now the Scottish Rite Temple - listed on the National Register of Historic Places). Jones later designed and supervised the construction of the Lakewood Cemetery Chapel, patterned in the mode of a Byzantine church. Italian craftsmen were brought to Minneapolis to cover the entire interior with mosaics, a project which required three years to complete.

Harry Jones is recognized as a master of a variety of architectural styles applied to a variety of building types. In addition to the Romanesque and Near Eastern/Oriental motifs, Jones was accomplished in the Neo-Classic, Georgian Revival, Shingle, and Gothic Revival styles. His most important application of Gothicism is found in his design for a warehouse building for Butler Brothers in Minneapolis; this building is also listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

In addition to this practice, Harry Jones was active in civic as well as professional activities. He was professor of architecture at the University of Minnesota, lecturer on church architecture at the University of Chicago, president of the Minnesota Chapter of the American Institute of Architects, director of the State Art Society, a member of the Minneapolis Board of Park Commissioners, and district vocational officer for Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota and Montana for the Federal Board of Rehabilitation (Veterans Bureau).