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R. Brognard Okie
Born (1875-06-26 ) June 26, 1875Died 27 December 1945(1945-12-27) (aged 70) Alma mater
University of Pennsylvania Occupation Architect Years active 1898-1945
Merestone in
New Garden Township, Pennsylvania , built in 1942, is an example of Okie's popular Pennsylvania-farmhouse style.
Richardson Brognard Okie Jr. (1875-1945) was an American architect. He is noted for his
Colonial-Revival houses and his sensitive restorations of historic buildings.
Biography
Betsy Ross House in
Philadelphia was restored by Okie between 1937 and 1941.
Okie was born in
Camden, New Jersey , to Dr. Richardson B. and Clara Mickle Okie.
[1] He grew up in
Chester County, Pennsylvania , graduated from the architecture program at the
University of Pennsylvania in 1897, and briefly studied in Europe.
[2] He gained practical experience from a summer (1896) spent with William L. Price. After college he was employed by Arthur S. Cochran and soon became his associate.
[1] In 1899, he formed a partnership with architects
H. Louis Duhring Jr. and Carl Ziegler, that lasted until 1918. He practiced independently until his death in 1945. In his later years he was joined by his son Charles (b. 1915).
[2]
He designed a re-creation of
George Washington 's
"President's House" as an attraction at the 1926
Sesquicentennial Exposition in
Philadelphia ; a re-creation of
Pennsbury Manor ,
William Penn 's manor house on the
Delaware River , as a museum for the
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania ; and restored the
Betsy Ross House in Philadelphia as a museum. He also designed dozens of exquisitely-detailed Colonial-Revival houses in the suburbs surrounding Philadelphia. He bought his own house, "Hillside" in
Radnor, Pennsylvania , in 1901, and tinkered with it periodically. It remains in his family's possession.
[3]
A number of his works are listed on the U.S.
National Register of Historic Places .
[4] Okie's papers are held by the
Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission in
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania .
[5]
Selected works
Alterations to
Bolingbroke Mansion , King of Prussia Road,
Radnor, Pennsylvania (1901 and 1908).
[6] Now the rectory of St. Martin's Episcopal Church.
Overfields (Joseph W. Sharp, Jr., house), Sugartown Road,
Berwyn, Pennsylvania (1902).
Addition to
Pine Forge Mansion , Pine Forge Road and Douglass Drive, Pine Forge,
Douglass Township, Berks County, Pennsylvania (1919), NRHP-listed.
[4]
Appleford , 770 Mount Moro Road,
Villanova, Pennsylvania (1920s).
Re-creation of
The President's House ,
Sesquicentennial Fairgrounds , Philadelphia (1925–26, demolished). Headquarters for the
Daughters of the American Revolution during the 1926
World's Fair .
Squirrel Run (S. Hallock duPont residence), 9 Barley Mill Road,
Wilmington, Delaware (1926–27).
Restoration of
Roughwood , 107 Old Lancaster Road,
Devon, Pennsylvania (1928–30), NRHP-listed.
[4]
Additions to Hillside, King of Prussia Road,
Radnor, Pennsylvania (1929).
[7] Okie's own house.
Restoration of Paxton Church, Sharon Street,
Paxtang, Pennsylvania (1930).
[8]
Library addition to
Buena Vista , 661 South Dupont Highway,
Saint Georges, Delaware (1932), NRHP-listed.
[4]
[9]
Alterations to Mansion House,
Reading Furnace Historic District , Mansion Rd.,
Warwick Township, Pennsylvania (1936), NRHP-listed.
[4]
Re-creation of
Pennsbury Manor ,
Falls Township, Bucks County, Pennsylvania (1936–39), NRHP-listed.
[4]
[10]
Restoration of
Betsy Ross House , 239 Arch Street, Philadelphia (1937–41).
Commissioned to design the Hopeman Estate Home in Waynesboro, Virginia for Mr. A.A. Hopeman Jr.
Building at the junction of Goshen and Providence Roads in Willistown Township designed by R. Brognard and his son, Charles.
[11] Additions to
South Brook Farm , Street and Bird Roads,
East Marlborough Township, Chester County, Pennsylvania (1940), NRHP-listed.
[4] Now the
New Bolton Center of the
University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine .
Restoration of
St. Peter's Church in the Great Valley , St. Peter's Road,
East Whiteland Township, Chester County, Pennsylvania (1940s), NRHP-listed.
[4]
[12]
Merestone , Yeatman's Station Rd.,
New Garden Township, Pennsylvania (1942), NRHP-listed.
[4] The 3-acre property straddles the border between Pennsylvania and Delaware.
White Horse Historic District , Goshen and Providence Roads,
Willistown Township, Pennsylvania , NRHP-listed.
[4]
The Moore-Irwin House
[13] in
King of Prussia . Okie twice provided additions and restoration for owner Alexander D. Irwin in the 1930's, '40's. The estate was formerly General
Peter Muhlenberg's Headquarters' during the
Revolutionary War Winter Encampment at
Valley Forge , and is where
George Washington wrote in his diary of lodging and fishing during a break in the
Constitutional Convention , while also meeting there with two other
Founding Fathers ,
Gouverneur Morris and
Robert Morris .
[14]
Addition to Abraham Hall House, 7005 Goshen Road (1930s). A later addition is attributed to Charles Okie.
Restoration of White Horse Inn, 6154 Goshen Road (c. 1940). The stone building was moved about 100-feet back from the highway.
Restoration of Mary Yarnall House, 7002 Goshen Road (1940s). Charles Okie designed the garage, c. 1950.
Restoration of Charles Mendenhall House, 7004 Goshen Road (1940s). Charles Okie designed the garage, c. 1950.
Restoration of Caleb Yarnall House, 7008 Goshen Road (1949). Charles Okie.
Gallery
St. Martin's Episcopal Church, Radnor, Pennsylvania. Bolingbroke (background, right) was restored by Okie.
Pennsbury Manor , Falls Township, Pennsylvania (re-created 1936-39).
South Brook Farm , East Marlborough Township, Pennsylvania (restored 1940).
References
Further reading
Garrison, James B. (2013). Stone Houses: Traditional Homes of R. Brognard Okie . New York: Rizzoli.
ISBN
978-0-8478-4078-6 .
External links
International National Other