Murry S. King
Encyclopedia
Murry S. King (often spelled "Murray") was Florida's first registered architect, a noted American
architect
with a successful practice in Orlando
, Florida
, in the 1910s and 1920s.
Murry S. King was born on July 13, 1870 in East Deer Township, Allegheny County, near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
, the son of Robert and Mary King. He moved to Orlando from Pennsylvania in 1904.
From offices in Rooms 22 and 23 of the Watkins Block in Orlando, King designed handsome, dignified buildings, primarily in the Neo-Classical
, Spanish Revival, Renaissance Revival and Prairie Style. King is noted for civic buildings of lasting elegance and beauty, the best known of which may be his last completed work, the stately Orange County Courthouse building which is now the headquarters of the Orange County Regional History Center
(1927). Constructed of variegated Indiana limestone from the Clear Creek Quarries of the Indiana Limestone Company, the completion of the building was supervised by Murry S. King's son, James B. King.
Murry S. King was a charter member of the Florida State Association of Architects and served on the Florida State Board of Architecture. He was a member of the American Institute of Architects
.
King was the recognized leading architect among a group of architectural firms in Orlando in the 1920s. The others included: Frank L. Bodine
, Fred E. Field
, Frederick H. Trimble
, David Hyer
, George E. Krug
, Howard M. Reynolds
, Ryan and Roberts (Ida Annah Ryan
and Isabel Roberts
) and Percy P. Turner
. This group of architects was quite intentional about creating in Central Florida a style of architecture that was suited to the region. Here is how they described it in an article from The Florida Circle of May 1924:
"Just as architects of old created styles to harmonize with their environment, so have the architects of Florida been creating, from native motifs, a style that is carefully adapted to the climatic conditions and surroundings of the state. This style has an individuality all its own and should have a fitting name to express its origins . . . The Florida Association of Architects will give a prize of $25.00 for the name selected." Submissions were to be sent to King; the contest was to conclude in November 1924 and the winning name announced thereafter.
In 1890 Murry S. King married Ruth Ann ("Anna") Riley Dible. Their children were: Leroy (1890), Florence (1893), James B. (1894), Murry Jr (1896), Merrit (1896), and Edward (1901), Pearl (1903), all of whom were born in Pennsylvania. His son, James B. King entered into his architectural practice in the mid-1920s.
Mr. King's first name appears both as "Murry" and "Murray" in contemporary sources and in Orlando histories. It is spelled "Murray" in contemporary references such as his business listing in many issues of The Winter Park Post and Orlando telephone directories, as well as the excellent photograph and brief biographical sketch of "Murray S. King" available at the following: http://www.cfhf.net/orlando/people/king.htm However, a photograph of downtown Orlando with the sign outside his office, recently found by Orlando historians Joy Wallace Dickinson and Rick Kilby, shows the spelling as "Murry". One gathers that Mr. King was either unable to correct the frequent misspellings in print, or did not mind them, so long as people came to him for their architectural needs.
Murry S. King died in Orlando on Sep. 20, 1925. He is buried in Greenwood Cemetery, Orlando, Florida.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
architect
Architect
An architect is a person trained in the planning, design and oversight of the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to offer or render services in connection with the design and construction of a building, or group of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the...
with a successful practice in Orlando
Orlando, Florida
Orlando is a city in the central region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat of Orange County, and the center of the Greater Orlando metropolitan area. According to the 2010 US Census, the city had a population of 238,300, making Orlando the 79th largest city in the United States...
, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
, in the 1910s and 1920s.
Murry S. King was born on July 13, 1870 in East Deer Township, Allegheny County, near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
, the son of Robert and Mary King. He moved to Orlando from Pennsylvania in 1904.
From offices in Rooms 22 and 23 of the Watkins Block in Orlando, King designed handsome, dignified buildings, primarily in the Neo-Classical
Neoclassical architecture
Neoclassical architecture was an architectural style produced by the neoclassical movement that began in the mid-18th century, manifested both in its details as a reaction against the Rococo style of naturalistic ornament, and in its architectural formulas as an outgrowth of some classicizing...
, Spanish Revival, Renaissance Revival and Prairie Style. King is noted for civic buildings of lasting elegance and beauty, the best known of which may be his last completed work, the stately Orange County Courthouse building which is now the headquarters of the Orange County Regional History Center
Orange County Regional History Center
The Orange County Regional History Center is a private non-profit history museum located in downtown Orlando, Florida, United States. Located in the historic Orange County Courthouse, the five-story museum consists of exhibits presenting local and regional history starting from 12,000 years ago...
(1927). Constructed of variegated Indiana limestone from the Clear Creek Quarries of the Indiana Limestone Company, the completion of the building was supervised by Murry S. King's son, James B. King.
Murry S. King was a charter member of the Florida State Association of Architects and served on the Florida State Board of Architecture. He was a member of the American Institute of Architects
American Institute of Architects
The American Institute of Architects is a professional organization for architects in the United States. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach to support the architecture profession and improve its public image...
.
King was the recognized leading architect among a group of architectural firms in Orlando in the 1920s. The others included: Frank L. Bodine
Frank L. Bodine
Frank Lee Bodine was an American architect who practiced in Asbury Park, New Jersey and in Orlando, Florida in the first four decades of the twentieth century....
, Fred E. Field
Fred E. Field
Frederick E. Field was an American architect who practiced in Providence, Rhode Island, and Orlando, Florida, in the period between 1883 and 1927.Frederick E Field was born November 7, 1861. His professional training took place at Cornell University...
, Frederick H. Trimble
Frederick H. Trimble
Frederick H. Trimble was an American architect practicing in Central Florida from the early 1900s through the 1920s, working in the Colonial Revival, Spanish Colonial Revival and Prairie Style....
, David Hyer
David Hyer
David Burns Hyer was an American architect who practiced in Charleston, South Carolina and Orlando, Florida during the first half of the twentieth century, designing civic buildings in the Neoclassical Revival and Mediterranean Revival styles.-Biography:...
, George E. Krug
George E. Krug
George Edward Krug was an American architect who practiced in Greater New York City , Sao Paulo, Brazil and Orlando, Florida....
, Howard M. Reynolds
Howard M. Reynolds
Howard Montalbert Reynolds, Sr. was an American architect practicing in Orlando, Florida in the 1920s. He designed gracefully proportioned, notable public buildings in the prevailing fashionable styles of the 1920s, including Mediterranean Revival, Colonial Revival, Spanish Colonial, Egyptian...
, Ryan and Roberts (Ida Annah Ryan
Ida Annah Ryan
Ida Annah Ryan was a pioneering United States woman architect. She was born on November 4, 1873 at Waltham, MA, one of five children of Albert Morse Ryan and Carrie S. Jameson. Albert Morse Ryan was a Waltham city employee and historian who also ran a milk business. She graduated from the Waltham...
and Isabel Roberts
Isabel Roberts
Isabel Roberts was a Prairie School figure, member of the architectural design team in the Oak Park Studio of Frank Lloyd Wright and partner with Ida Annah Ryan in the Orlando, Florida architecture firm, “Ryan and Roberts”. It is fair to say that Roberts is an under-appreciated member of Wright’s...
) and Percy P. Turner
Percy P. Turner
Percy Pamorrow Turner was an American architect who, in the 1920s-1950s practiced in Baltimore Maryland, Houston, Texas, Orlando, Florida and Miami, Florida.-Early years:...
. This group of architects was quite intentional about creating in Central Florida a style of architecture that was suited to the region. Here is how they described it in an article from The Florida Circle of May 1924:
"Just as architects of old created styles to harmonize with their environment, so have the architects of Florida been creating, from native motifs, a style that is carefully adapted to the climatic conditions and surroundings of the state. This style has an individuality all its own and should have a fitting name to express its origins . . . The Florida Association of Architects will give a prize of $25.00 for the name selected." Submissions were to be sent to King; the contest was to conclude in November 1924 and the winning name announced thereafter.
In 1890 Murry S. King married Ruth Ann ("Anna") Riley Dible. Their children were: Leroy (1890), Florence (1893), James B. (1894), Murry Jr (1896), Merrit (1896), and Edward (1901), Pearl (1903), all of whom were born in Pennsylvania. His son, James B. King entered into his architectural practice in the mid-1920s.
Mr. King's first name appears both as "Murry" and "Murray" in contemporary sources and in Orlando histories. It is spelled "Murray" in contemporary references such as his business listing in many issues of The Winter Park Post and Orlando telephone directories, as well as the excellent photograph and brief biographical sketch of "Murray S. King" available at the following: http://www.cfhf.net/orlando/people/king.htm However, a photograph of downtown Orlando with the sign outside his office, recently found by Orlando historians Joy Wallace Dickinson and Rick Kilby, shows the spelling as "Murry". One gathers that Mr. King was either unable to correct the frequent misspellings in print, or did not mind them, so long as people came to him for their architectural needs.
Murry S. King died in Orlando on Sep. 20, 1925. He is buried in Greenwood Cemetery, Orlando, Florida.
Architectural Work – Partial Listing
- Wescot Beardall House, 214 S. Lucerne Circle, Orlando - 1912
- Yowell-Duckworth (later Ivey's) Department Store Building,1 South Orange Avenue, Orlando, FL – 1913
- First Presbyterian Church, Orlando, FL – 1914
- Robert McDonald Residence, Winter Park, Fl – before 1915
- Tiedkie Residence, Magnolia Avenue, Orlando, FL – before 1915
- Astor Hotel, 215-217 S. Orange Ave., Orlando, FL – before 1915
- Grand Theater, Orlando, FL – before 1915
- Seth B. Woodruff Residence, 236 S. Lucerne Circle, Orlando FL – 1916
- Phillips Theater, 23-19 S. Orange Ave., Orlando, FL - 1916
- C. J. Early Residence (demolished), 711 Main Ln., Orlando, FL - 1920
- L. M. Autrey Residence, 108 Hillcrest Avenue, Orlando, FL - 1921
- Athens Theater, 124 N. Florida Avenue, Deland, Florida – 1921-1922
- Angebilt Hotel (now offices and retail space), 37 North Orange Avenue, Orlando, FL - 1921-1923
- Watkins Block offices, Orlando, FL - before 1923
- Hotel Wyoming - additions, 424 Magnolia Avenue, Orlando, FL – 1923
- State Bank and Trust Company Building (One North Orange), Orlando FL - 1923
- Albertson Public Library, 165 E Central Avenue, Orlando, FL – 1923
- Park Lake Presbyterian Church, 309 E Colonial Dr., Orlando, FL - 1924
- Rose Building, 49 North Orange Avenue, Orlando, FL - 1924
- Orange County CourthouseOld Orange County Courthouse (Florida)The old Orange County Courthouse, located in Orlando, Florida, United States, serves as the home of the Historical Society of Central Florida and the Orange County Regional History Center. Constructed in 1927, the Courthouse stands in the vicinity of a number of previous judicial buildings. An...
(now Orange County Regional History Center); 812 E. Rollins St., Orlando FL - 1926-7 - 803 Lake Adair Blvd., Orlando - 1926
- 729 Alameda Street, Orlando - 1927