Cecil Eldridge Bryan
Bryan pictured around 1950
BornMarch 26, 1878
Irving, Illinois, U.S.
DiedMarch 24, 1951(1951-03-24) (aged 72)
Resting placeMountain View Mausoleum, Altadena, California
NationalityAmerican
OccupationArchitect
SpouseEthel Goembel Bryan

Cecil Eldridge Bryan (March 26, 1878 – March 24, 1951) was an American architect and inventor active in the first half of the 20th century. He designed over eighty mausoleums, at least one of which is now on the National Register of Historic Places. Upon his death, the Los Angeles Times called him the "dean of mausoleum builders."

Life and career

Bryan was born on March 26, 1878, in Irving, Illinois,[1] to Louis Negallian Bryan and Martha Alice Davis. He was the first of their two known children; Mabel was born four years later.

After completing his education, he went to work under Frank Lloyd Wright for a year, followed by another year with Ralph Modjeski, known for his work with reinforced concrete.[1]

Bryan married Ethel Goembel, with whom he had two known children: Cecil Eldridge Bryan Jr. and Paul Goembel Bryan.

By 1912, Bryan was building mausoleums for the National Mausoleum Company[2] (later the International Mausoleum Company).[3] He went on to build over eighty such structures in seventeen states; nineteen of these were in Illinois. Many of them included stained glass by Louis Comfort Tiffany.[1]

Notable selected works

Death

Bryan died on March 24, 1951, aged 72. He was interred in the Mountain View Mausoleum in Altadena, California, one of his own buildings,[1] as were his wife and children. In his obituary, the Los Angeles Times called him the "dean of mausoleum builders."[3]

Cheryl and Cecil E. Bryan III have been attempting to locate all of their grandfather's Community Mausoleums.[1]

Bryan has a suite named for him at the Central Schoolhouse Inn in Geneseo, Illinois.[7] He restored the building in 1914.[8]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "CECIL E. BRYAN". Beecher Mausoleum. Retrieved 2022-03-17.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 "Community Mausoleums, Part One: Early 20th Century". Oak and Laurel Cemetery Preservation, LLC. Retrieved 2022-03-17.
  3. 1 2 "Beecher Mausoleum". National Park Service. Retrieved 2022-03-17.
  4. ↑ reporter, By Angie Leventis Lourgos, Chicago Tribune. "Beecher's century-old mausoleum teetering on ruin". chicagotribune.com. Retrieved 2022-03-17.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  5. ↑ "Mountain View Mausoleum". California By Choice. Retrieved 2022-03-17.
  6. ↑ "Sunnyside Mausoleum, Long Beach—Clarence L. Jay, Architect; Cecil E. Bryan, Engineer | Architectural Digest | 1929 Volume VII Issue 3". Architectural Digest | The Complete Archive. Retrieved 2022-03-17.
  7. ↑ "Cecil Eldridge Bryan Suite". www.centralschoolhouseinn.com. Retrieved 2022-03-17.
  8. ↑ "About Us". www.centralschoolhouseinn.com. Retrieved 2022-03-17.
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