Levi J. Dean
Encyclopedia
Biography
He was born in GassawayGassaway, West Virginia
Gassaway is a town in Braxton County, West Virginia, in the United States. The population was 901 at the 2000 census. Gassaway was incorporated in 1905 and named for Henry Gassaway Davis...
, Braxton County, West Virginia in 1878. His
father, George W. Dean served in the Confederate army and was a boat builder and millwright. His mother was Mary Jane Davis and he was one of thirteen children. Levi J. Dean married Ada Leonora Johnson in 1901, and they had three
children. Following Ada's death in 1910, he married Susie Ada Turner in 1912, and they had three children. Two of these, Keith and Brooks, became architects and practiced with Levi in the Huntington firm of Dean and Dean.
Dean studied architecture in Scranton, Pennsylvania
Scranton, Pennsylvania
Scranton is a city in the northeastern part of Pennsylvania, United States. It is the county seat of Lackawanna County and the largest principal city in the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre metropolitan area. Scranton had a population of 76,089 in 2010, according to the U.S...
. He began his practice, with mechanics,
in Charleston and relocated to Huntington
Huntington, West Virginia
Huntington is a city in Cabell and Wayne counties in the U.S. state of West Virginia, along the Ohio River. Most of the city is in Cabell County, for which it is the county seat. A small portion of the city, mainly the neighborhood of Westmoreland, is in Wayne County. Its population was 49,138 at...
in 1906. He briefly formed a partnership, but later went into business alone in 1910.
Dean designed and built an office for himself in 1927 in east Huntington, in the Moorish Revival style. After the sons joined the firm the offices were relocated to downtown Huntington.
Levi Dean completed a large number of commissions in his day. His worked is distributed throughout West Virginia and
into Kentucky and Ohio. He worked in practically every county in West Virginia. The majority of his commissions were school buildings and churches. He also did a large number of bank
Bank
A bank is a financial institution that serves as a financial intermediary. The term "bank" may refer to one of several related types of entities:...
s, county courthouse
Courthouse
A courthouse is a building that is home to a local court of law and often the regional county government as well, although this is not the case in some larger cities. The term is common in North America. In most other English speaking countries, buildings which house courts of law are simply...
s and additions, and private residences. The majority of the residential commissions were centered in Huntington, where he had a loyal following. During the Depression he performed a number of commissions for the Works Progress Administration
Works Progress Administration
The Works Progress Administration was the largest and most ambitious New Deal agency, employing millions of unskilled workers to carry out public works projects, including the construction of public buildings and roads, and operated large arts, drama, media, and literacy projects...
.
Individual listings on the National Register of Historic PlacesNational Register of Historic PlacesThe National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
- 1924-1925: Ricketts House (Huntington, West Virginia)Ricketts House (Huntington, West Virginia)Ricketts House, also known as the Stevens Residence, is a historic home located at Huntington, Cabell County, West Virginia. It was designed in 1924, and built in 1925. It is a large stone dwelling with a complex, low pitched hipped roof punctuated by four large stone chimneys and with large...
, listed on the National Register of Historic PlacesNational Register of Historic PlacesThe National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
in 1994. - 1940: R. T. Price HouseR. T. Price HouseR. T. Price House is a historic home located at Williamson, Mingo County, West Virginia. It was designed by noted West Virginia architect Levi J. Dean and built about 1940. It has a 1 1/2 story main block with one story east and west wings. It has side gable roofs, and is faced in red brick...
, Williamson, West VirginiaWilliamson, West VirginiaWilliamson is a city in Mingo County, West Virginia, USA, along the Tug Fork River. The population was 3,414 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Mingo County, and is the county's largest and most populous city. Williamson is home to Southern West Virginia Community and Technical College...
, listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1991. - 1940: Nicholas County CourthouseNicholas County CourthouseThe Nicholas County Courthouse in Summersville, West Virginia is a Neoclassical Revival building, designed in 1895 and not completed until 1898. The primary building material was locally-quarried Lower Gilbert Sandstone. A jail was added in 1910. A further addition was designed by Levi J. Dean in...
, Summersville, West VirginiaSummersville, West VirginiaSummersville is a town in Nicholas County, West Virginia, United States. The population was 3,194 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Nicholas County.-Geography:...
, listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1991.
Contributing properties to historic districts
- Clendenin Historic DistrictClendenin Historic DistrictClendenin Historic District is a national historic district located at Clendenin, Kanawha County, West Virginia. The district includes 38 contributing structures constructed between about 1890 and 1940...
- Downtown Richwood Historic DistrictDowntown Richwood Historic DistrictDowntown Richwood Historic District is a national historic district located at Richwood, Nicholas County, West Virginia. The district includes 51 contributing buildings in the central business district of Richwood. They consist of mostly two and three-story masonry commercial buildings from the...
- Matewan Historic DistrictMatewan Historic DistrictMatewan Historic District was the scene of the Battle of Matewan on May 19, 1920, during a coal miners' strike. It led to the Battle of Blair Mountain, the largest insurrection ever associated with the labor movement in the United States....
- Ripley Historic District