George Henri Desmond

George Henri Desmond (commonly known as G. Henri Desmond; February 22, 1874 – July 3, 1965) was an American architect from Watertown, Massachusetts. He designed several notable buildings, including the expanded Maine State House in Augusta, Maine,^[1] and the Fidelity Trust Building in Portland, Maine.^[2]

Desmond was born in Watertown, Massachusetts, in 1874, to Dennis Desmond and Mary Ann Fennell. He was educated in the Boston public schools.^[1]

In 1910, Desmond designed the Fidelity Trust Building in Portland, Maine, which was the state's first skyscraper.^[2] Hugo Kuehne was a draftsman for Desmond.

Desmond was partner in the firm of Desmond & Lord, which he established with Israel P. Lord in 1912.^[3] Their office was at 15 Beacon Street,^[3] which was the former home of Codman and Despradelle. The vacancy came about after the death of Désiré Despradelle.^[3]

In 1916, he was also working for the Boston Park Department.^[1]

The Desmond & Lord office moved to 1 Beacon Street in 1928, then to 6 Beacon Street.^[1]

Both Desmond and Lord had retired by 1961, but their business continued into the 1970s.^[1]

• 1908 – Sterling Inn, Sterling, Massachusetts^[4]
• 1909 – Central Fire Station, Chelsea, Massachusetts^[5]
• 1909 – Chelsea Trust Company Building, Chelsea, Massachusetts^[6]
  • Extant but reclad at an unknown date
• 1910 – Fidelity Trust Building, Portland, Maine^[7]
  • Maine's first skyscraper
• 1910 – Maine State House expansion and reconstruction, Augusta, Maine^[8]
  • Only the granite walls and portico of Charles Bulfinch's building were preserved; Desmond's redesign doubled the length of the building and added a higher dome and all-new interiors
• 1912 – All Souls Chapel, Poland Spring, Maine^[9]
  • NRHP-listed
• 1915 – Elephant House, Franklin Park Zoo, Roxbury, Boston^[10]: 65
  • Demolished
• 1915 – Elks' Home, Providence, Rhode Island^[11]
  • Demolished
• 1918 – Portland High School, Portland, Maine^[12]
  • Designed by Miller & Mayo, architects, with G. Henri Desmond, associate architect; NRHP-listed
• 1921 – Hyde Park Municipal Building, Hyde Park, Boston^{[13]: 275–276}
• 1923 – Clapp Memorial Building, Portland, Maine^[14]
• 1923 – Press Herald Building, Portland, Maine^[15]
• 1927 – Omni Parker House, Boston^[13]: 58
• 1931 – Winter Hill Cooperative Bank Building, Somerville, Massachusetts^[16]
  • Built for the use of the Highland Trust Company, Somerville Institution for Savings and the Winter Hill Cooperative Bank, of which only the latter survived the Great Depression
• 1937 – Malden High School, Malden, Massachusetts^[17]
• 1939 – Calvin Coolidge Bridge, Connecticut River, Northampton and Hadley, Massachusetts^[18]
  • Designed by Maurice A. Reidy, consulting engineer, with Desmond & Lord, architects
• 1939 – Suffolk County Courthouse, Boston^[13]: 53
• 1949 – Roosevelt Towers, Cambridge, Massachusetts^[13]: 292
• 1949 – St. Ignatius of Loyola Catholic Church, Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts^[19]
• 1949 – White Stadium, Franklin Park, Roxbury, Boston^[10]: 50
• 1956 – Burton M. Cross Building, Augusta, Maine^[20]
  • Designed by Miller & Beal, Inc., architects, with Desmond & Lord, associate architects
• 1962 – Furcolo Hall, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, Massachusetts^[21]

In 1903, Desmond married Maud Vasti Hollis, a native of New York, with whom he had one child: son George Henri Desmond Jr. The family lived at the corner of Braemore Road and Commonwealth Avenue in Boston, in a house which Desmond designed.^[1] Desmond became a widower in 1938, but it is not known if he remarried.

He was a member of the Boston Art Club, Boston Real Estate Exchange, the Point Shirley Club and the Cumberland Club in Portland, Maine.^[1]

After retiring, Desmond moved to Marblehead Neck, Massachusetts. He died in Salem, Massachusetts, in 1965 at the age of 91. He was interred in Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

• List of American architects