Richard Franklin Graf (1863–1940) was an American architect active primarily in Knoxville, Tennessee and the vicinity in the early 20th century. His works include Stratford Mansion (1910), Sterchi Building (1921),Ann Bennett, National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form for Stratford, 23 March 2009. St. John's Lutheran Church (1913),Knoxville Historic Zoning Commission, The Future of Knoxville's Past: Historic and Architectural Resources in Knoxville, Tennessee, October 2006. Retrieved: 23 May 2011. and the Journal Arcade (1924). His home, the Prairie School-inspired Graf House, is considered Knoxville's first modern home.Knoxville: Fifty Landmarks. (Knoxville: The Knoxville Heritage Committee of the Junior League of Knoxville, 1976), pp. 22, 29. Several buildings designed by Graf have been listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Biography

Graf was born in Nashville, Tennessee in 1863. His grandfather was one of several families to immigrate from Switzerland to Morgan County in the late 1840s (Morgan County's Swiss immigrants also included the grandparents of one of Graf's future clients, James G. Sterchi). Graf had relocated to Knoxville by 1884, when he was working at the Burr & Terry Sash Factory in what is now the Old City.Norwood's Knoxville City Directory (Cottonbelt Publishing Company, 1884), p. 183.

In 1887, Graf cofounded a contracting firm, Vinson and Graf, which operated in Knoxville until 1891. In the early 1890s, Graf worked as a supervisor for the Knoxville Cabinet and Mantel Company. In 1894, he joined the firm of noted mail-order architect George Franklin Barber (1854–1915), and was elevated to associate in 1901. He and Barber were still working together as late as 1907, when they designed a new building for Mechanics' National Bank.Daily Bulletin of the Manufacturers' Record, 20 June 1907. Retrieved: 23 May 2011.

Graf eventually formed an architectural firm with his two sons, John R. Graf and Herbert Graf, as supervising architect. In 1910, the firm designed an elaborate Neoclassical mansion, Stratford, for James G. Sterchi, as well as two buildings– the Bandstand and the Liberal Arts Building– for the Appalachian Exposition at Chilhowee Park.Plaque at the Chilhowee Park Bandstand, Knoxville, Tennessee.East Tennessee Historical Society, Lucile Deaderick (ed.), Heart of the Valley: A History of Knoxville, Tennessee (Knoxville, Tenn.: East Tennessee Historical Society, 1976), p. 49. Three years later, Graf designed the Gothic-style St. John's Lutheran Church, which still stands across from Old Gray Cemetery on Broadway.

In 1920, Sterchi again commissioned Graf to design his furniture company's 10-story warehouse, now known as Sterchi Lofts, which was completed the following year.The Lumber Manufacturer and Dealer, Vol. 65, 23 February 1920, p. 63. Retrieved: 23 May 2011. The Graf House, the design of which was inspired by the Prairie School movement, was completed in 1923. During this same period, Graf designed two dormitories for Maryville College, Carnegie Hall (1917) and Thaw Hall (1923).

Works

The following were designed by Graf or his firm, R.F. Graf and Sons.

Name Location Completed Status Other information Image Reference Miller's Building (S. Gay St.) Knoxville, Tennessee 1905 Standing Mechanics' National Bank (612 S. Gay St.) Knoxville, Tennessee 1907 (approx.) Standing With Barber & Kluttz Park City High School Knoxville, Tennessee 1909 Demolished Designed with George F. Barber & Co. Robert Booker, Park City made the most of decade of independence, Knoxville News Sentinel, 17 May 2011. Retrieved: 8 June 2011. Chilhowee Park Bandstand (Chilhowee Park) Knoxville, Tennessee 1910 Standing Built for the 1910 Appalachian Exposition Appalachian Exposition - Machinery and Liberal Arts Building (Chilhowee Park) Knoxville, Tennessee 1910 Burned Built for the 1910 Appalachian Exposition; designed primarily by J.R. Graf Knoxville Community Development Corporation, Magnolia Avenue Warehouse District: Redevelopment and Urban Renewal Plan, May 2011. Retrieved: 23 May 2011. Stratford Knoxville, Tennessee 1910 Standing NRHP (#09000536); designed for furniture magnate James G. Sterchi National Conservation Exposition - East Tennessee Building (Chilhowee Park) Knoxville, Tennessee 1913 Demolished National Conservation Exposition - Women's Building (Chilhowee Park) Knoxville, Tennessee 1913 Demolished St. John's Lutheran Church (Broadway) Knoxville, Tennessee 1913 Standing NRHP (#85000700) 2809 Kingston Pike Knoxville, Tennessee 1915 Standing NRHP contributing property (Kingston Pike Historic District) Carnegie Hall (Maryville College) Maryville, Tennessee 1917 Standing NRHP contributing property (Maryville College Historic District) Tennessee Civil War National Heritage Area, The National Heritage Area Program and Blount County, Tennessee: A Feasibility Study , p. 13. Retrieved: 23 May 2011. Sterchi Building (Sterchi Lofts) (S. Gay St.) Knoxville, Tennessee 1921 Standing NRHP contributing property (Southern Terminal and Warehouse Historic District) Knoxville Paper Box Company (200 E Magnolia)Knoxville, Tennessee1921Standing Evarts High School Evarts, Kentucky 1923 Standing School closed in 2009 John Middleton, Evarts High School Had Long History Serving Clover Fork, The Harlan Daily Enterprise, c. 2009. Retrieved: 23 May 2011. Graf House (Woodlawn Pike) Knoxville, Tennessee 1923 Standing Thaw Hall (Maryville College) Maryville, Tennessee 1923 Standing NRHP contributing property (Maryville College Historic District) Ralph Waldo Lloyd, Maryville College: A History of 150 Years, 1819-1969 (Maryville College Press, 1969), p. 54. Journal Arcade (S. Gay St.) Knoxville, Tennessee 1924 Standing NRHP contributing property (Gay Street Commercial Historic District)

See also Charles I. Barber Baumann family (architects) Thomas Hope Bruce McCarty Peter Staub

References

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