Washington State University Libraries Manuscripts, Archives, and Special Collections

Summary Information

Repository

Washington State University Libraries, Manuscripts, Archives and Special Collections

Creator

Smith, Stanley Albert, 1889-

Title

Stanley A. Smith Papers

ID

Cage 875

Date [inclusive]

circa 1900-1946

Extent

0.25 Linear feet of shelf space, 1 Box

Language

Collection materials are in English.

Abstract

Drawings, notes, photographs, and other materials created or collected by architect Stanley A. Smith about individual historic structures in the states of Washington and Montana.

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Biography/History

Stanley Albert Smith was born in Brookville, Kansas November 25, 1889. He attended Kansas State College where he earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in 1913, and immediately became an instructor at the college from 1913 to 1920. Smith held professor positions at several universities, including North Dakota Agricultural College (later NDSU), 1920-1923, and the State College of Washington (WSC, later Washington State University), 1923-1955.

While at WSC, Smith was the Head of the Department of Architectural Engineering and the second University Architect, from 1923-1947. While University Architect, he completed fourteen major buildings and fraternity houses. These included: Commons Hall, Duncan Dunn Hall, Bohler Gymnasium, Troy Hall, Hollingbery Field House, Honors Hall, Washington Building, Smith Gymnasium, the Mechanical Engineering Laboratory, the Central Steam Plant, Waller Hall, Wilmer-Davis Hall, Pine Manor, and L. J. Smith Hall (Smith Agricultural Engineering Building)." In 1947, the increased load of building work at WSC, Smith resigned as University Architect and concentrated on his position as Head of the Department of Architectural Engineering.

Additionally, Smith took on projects for private homes and commercial buildings in and around the town of Pullman. Many of these projects, both on and off campus, were undertaken by Smith’s private practices: Smith & Rounds in the 1920s during which Fred G. Rounds, an assistant professor of architecture at WSC, worked as Smith’s partner, and Smith & Weller in the 1930s during which Harry C. Weller, also architectural engineering faculty at WSC, worked as Smith’s partner. Occasionally during the 1930s, Smith and Rounds continued to collaborate on projects, including the addition to Pullman High School in the 1930s. This project was undertaken in part through a Public Works Administration (PWA) grant. The addition to the high school was carried out from 1933-1934, less than a year after the passage of the National Industrial Recovery Act which created the PWA.

Following his position at WSC, Smith became the architectural advisor to the Ataturk University Development Committee in Erzurum, Turkey, which in turn advised the Turkish Ministry of Education in the planning of the new university. This development was a joint Turkish-American effort to strengthen education and research in Turkey at the university level at Ankara University and Ataturk University. In 1954 the University of Nebraska was asked to assist with this effort under the university's Agency for International Development (A.I.D.) contract.

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Scope and Content

This collection consists of several files of material created or collected by Stanley Smith about several individual historic structures in the inland northwest. These include St. Michael's Mission Church in Spokane County, WA; St. Mary's Mission in Stevensville, MT; the Colville Mission (St. Paul's) near Kettle Falls, WA; and the Cashup Davis store in Whitman County, WA.

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Administrative Information

Publication Information

Washington State University Libraries Manuscripts, Archives, and Special Collections  © 2022

https://libraries.wsu.edu/masc/

Terrell Library

P.O. Box 645610

Pullman, WA, 99164-5610 USA

509-335-6691

mascref@wsu.edu

Restrictions on Access

This collection is open and available for research use.

Restrictions on Use

Copyright restrictions apply.

Custodial History

No documentation is available about the origin of these files, but it is likely that they were part of a vertical file collection maintained by the Washington State University architecture library. In 2012, the collections of the architecture library were moved to the Owen Science and Engineering Library.

Acquisition Information

These files were transferred to Manuscripts, Archives, and Special Collections from the Owen Science and Engineering Library in 2017 (MS.2017.12).

Processing Information

Cheryl Gunselman processed this collection in 2017.

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Related Materials

Related Material

Stanley A. Smith Papers, 1954-1963 (Cage 138)

Stanley A. Smith Papers, 1924-1943 (Cage 888)

A. E. Drucker House Architectural Drawings, 1927-1928 (Cage 958)

Stanley A. Smith Oral History Interview, 1960 October (Cage 2072)

State College of Washington University Architect Records, 1923-1956 (Archives 239)

State College of Washington Department of Architectural Engineering Lantern Slides, 1927-1947 (PC 25)

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Names and Subjects

Personal Name(s)

Subject(s) :

• Smith, Stanley Albert, 1889- -- Archives

Subject(s)

• Architecture
• Washington (State)

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Detailed Description of Collection

			box	folder
Correspondence (2 items). 1963-1964			1	1
Cashup Davis store: floor plan drawing by Smith and Begler (1931), photographs, clipping. 1931-1954			1	2
Colville Mission (St. Paul's): notes, drawings, photographs, clippings. circa 1950s			1	3
"Historic Missions:" notes, correspondence, "Protestant Missions of the Pacific Northwest" by Pearl A. Smith (typescript), "The Catholic Missions of the Pacific Northwest" by Elizabeth Kingston (typescript). circa 1930s			1	4
St. Michael's Mission Church (Spokane County): photographs, drawings (note: drawings are fragile and damaged. MASC staff assistance required for handling). circa 1900-1930s			1	5-6
St. Mary's Mission (Stevensville, MT): photographs. circa 1930s			1	7