User:JPRiley/Desmond

The firm eventually known as Desmond & Lord was founded in 1907 by G. Henri Desmond (1876-1965).Edwin M. Bacon, "G. Henri Desmond," The Book of Boston: Fifty Years' Recollections of the New England Metropolis (Boston: Book of Boston Company, 1916): 241. He was a sole practitioner until 1916, when he was joined by Israel P. Lord (1881-1973)."Personal," American Contractor 37, no. 12 (March 18 1916): 89. After independently designing a number of prominent buildings in New England, they served as coordinating architects for Paul Rudolph on some of his major projects. These were the campus of what is now known as the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth and the Government Service Center in Boston. REVISE THIS

The firm was incorporated in 1960, the shareholders being Desmond, Lord and D. Richard "Dick" Thissen Jr. (1920-1995). Thissen was a salesman who had joined the firm in 1953, and had a talent for bringing work into the office.

[https://archive.org/details/finalreporttogen47mass/page/n5/mode/2up Final Report to the General Court of the Special Commission Concerning State and County Buildings], vol. 4 (Boston: Commonwealth of Massachusetts, 1980) Lord retired from active practice in 1961,"Israel Lord, retired architect," Boston Globe, April 28 1973, 32. and Desmond died in 1965. Thissen eventually purchased Lord's share of the company later in the 1960s, and assumed full control. After political scandal damaged the firm's reputation and prospects, it was sold in 1979 to the nationally-active, San Francisco-based firm of John Carl Warnecke & Associates."Thissen architectural firm sold to planning, design group," Boston Globe, August 23 1979, 25. This arrangement intended that Desmond & Lord would remain semi-independent, with its ownership shares held by Warnecke & Associates. However, contracts and business were soon transferred to Warnecke & Associates. The Desmond & Lord name was phased out of active use in 1980."Firm changes," Architectural Record 1980, no. 9 (September 1980): 135.

The Boston office of Warnecke & Associates was acquired by Cannon Design in 1983. The office then practiced as Warnecke Cannon until 1985, when the Warnecke name was dropped. Since this time, CannonDesign has maintained a Boston presence.Lynne Deninger, "[https://www.cannondesign.com/news-insights/community/the-evolution-of-our-boston-practice/ The Evolution of Our Boston Practice]", cannondesign.com, CannonDesign, October 26 2015.

As a corporation, Desmond & Lord Inc. technically existed until 1990, when it was involuntarily dissolved.Corporation records search, Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

Shoddy design and construction techniques had been noticed in some of the firm's major projects beginning in the late 1960s. Thissen was known in political circles but his influence only became known in 1978, when he was photographed behind Edward J. King at a party celebrating King's win in the Democratic gubernatorial primary.Chris Black, "King's friend Thissen - a man who gets around," Boston Globe, October 8 1978, 11. It was revealed that Thissen was a major donor to King, and inquiries into projects awarded to Desmond & Lord by the Massachusetts Port Authority while it was under the direction of King began. It was found that Desmond & Lord recieved almost all design contracts awarded during King's directorship, from 1963 to 1974, in addition to receving an outsized proportion of all design contracts awarded by the Commonwealth.

Severe structural problems then emerged at the Cape Cod Community College, designed by the firm some years before, prompting lawsuits. In 1979 investigations into the firm were brought under the umbrella of the Special Commission Concerning State and County Buildings, then investigating the MBM scandal.Robert J. Rosenthal, "State contract probe reportedly subpoenas companies' records," Boston Globe, November 16 1978, 19.

Although it was found that Thissen illegally funnelled corporate money to political campaigns by laundering it through members of his staff. It was believed that he did this with the aim of then recieving additional design contracts. However, investigations into Thissen's activities were dropped in 1981 and he was not convicted of any wrongdoing."Short Circuts," Boston Globe, August 30 1981, 1. Lawsuits relating to design and construction defects were eventually settled."D. Richard Thissen," Boston Globe, January 5 1981, A18-19.

George Henri Desmond was born February 22, 1874 in Watertown, Massachusetts."[https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/150359578/george-henri-desmond George Henri Desmond]", https://www.findagrave.com, Find A Grave, August 8 2015. He attended the public schools of Watertown and received his architectural training in the office of Winslow & Bigelow."George Henri Desmond, Designed Parker House," Boston Globe, July 5 1965, 44. In 1907 he initiated his own practice, associating with Lord in 1916.

In 1903 Desmond married Maud Vasti Hollis of New York. They had one son. She died in 1938. Desmond later retired to Marblehead, Massachusetts, where he died July 3, 1965.

Israel Pierre Lord was born December 12, 1881 in Somerville, Massachusetts to Israel P. and Catherine (Fee) Lord."[https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/156842941/israel-pierre-lord Israel Pierre Lord]", https://www.findagrave.com, Find A Grave, January 8 2016. He attended public schools and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, from which he graduated in 1903. In 1908, after five years of professional work, he was awarded the Rotch Travelling Scholarship, which enabled two years of study and travel abroad.Technology Architectural Record 4, no. 2 (March 1911): 31. When he returned to Boston in 1910, he entered the office of Codman & Despradelle. Upon the death of Constant-Désiré Despradelle in 1912, he and three other associates of the firm were made principals.{{efn|name=CD|In addition to Lord, these associates were William Atkinson, Ralph D. Emerson and W. S. Wells."Alumni Notes," Technology Architectural Record 6, no. 1 (December 1912): 21.}} He remained with Codman & Despradelle until joining Desmond in 1916. In addition to his practice, Lord taught in the Department of Architecture of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology from 1914 to 1917.

Lord was married to Mary Isabella Duncan, and they had three children. He died at home in Chestnut Hill, April 28, 1973.

David Richard Thissen Jr. was born in Chicago in 1920. He was a graduate of Worcester Academy and the University of Miami. During World War II he worked for Pratt & Whitney and the Lockheed Corporation."David R. Thissen Jr.," Boston Globe, August 30 1995, 29. He was later employed by the Bay State York Company until 1953, when he joined Desmond & Lord. After the political scandal and his sale of Desmond & Lord Inc. to Warnecke, he was appointed vice-president in the Boston office. He continued in the role of vice-president through the firm's later iterations, Warnecke Cannon and Cannon Boston. He died in Arlington, August 28, 1995.

In the early years of his practice, Desmond employed Hugo Kuehne, who would become a noted architect and educator in Texas. Kuehne was in the office from 1908 to 1910, when he moved to Austin to develop an architectural school at the University of Texas."Tech Men in the Public Eye," Technology Review 12, no. 4 (October 1910): 461.

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