Wilson Eyre Jr

• American

Wilson Eyre (1858-1944) studied architecture at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and then apprenticed as a draftsman in the office of James P Sims in Philadelphia. Eyre succeeded Sims in the practice in the early 1880s and began a long career focused in large part on the design of country homes for the wealthy families of Philadelphia and New York City. Eyre had traveled widely in England and in Italy and found there his inspiration in rambling rural houses in which, in his words, "the garden formed as much a part of the house as the roof." In emphasizing aesthetics, craftsmanship, and integration of the house with its setting, Eyre was an influence on other architects of the period. He was active in exhibiting his designs (usually with water-colored charcoal sketches) and published some sixty articles in his lifetime in professional journals. He was a fellow of the American Institute of Architects and was awarded an honorary doctorate by the University of Pennsylvania in 1926. In addition to his architectural activity, he was an avid painter and musician. - US NRHP, 30 June 2000