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Male, US, born 1860-08-20, died 1939-09-26

Associated with the firms network

Cutter and Baume, Architects; Cutter and Lewis, Associated Architects; Cutter and Malmgren, Architects; Cutter and Plummer, Interior Furnishers and Decorators, Incorporated; Cutter and Poetz, Architects; Cutter, Kirtland Kelsey, Architect; Cutter, Malmgren, and Wager, Architects


Professional History

Résumé

Principal, Kirtland Cutter and Company, Architects, Spokane, WA, 1887-1889.

Partner, Cutter and Poetz, Architects, Spokane, WA, 1889-1894. In 1889, the partnership was known as "Kirtland K. Cutter and Company" with an office in the Washington Building according to the R.L. Polk Spokane City Directory of 1889; it became known as "Cutter and Poetz" in 1890; at this time, the firm operated from offices on the sixth floor of the 1st National Bank Building in Spokane.

Partner, Cutter and Malmgren, Architects, Spokane, WA, 1895-1917. In 1908, Cutter and Malmgren occupied an office on the 6th floor of the Exchange Bank Building in Spokane. (See R.L. Polk and Company's Spokane, Washington, City Directory, 1908, p, 333.)

President, Cutter and Plummer, Incorporated, Interior Furnishers and Decorators, Spokane, WA, 1909-1910. Cutter operated this interior design business with Frederick W. Plummer, vice-president and James J. Sanders, secretary-treasurer. In 1909-1910, its studio was located at 719 6th Avenue. (See R.L. Polk and Company’s Spokane, Washington, City Directory, 1909, p. 318 and R.L. Polk and Company’s Spokane, Washington, City Directory, 1910, p. 356.)

President, Cutter Studio, Incorporated, Spokane, WA, c. 1913. In 1913, Cutter was the president, L.M. Davenport the vice-president and James J. Sanders, secretary and treasurer. Llewellyn Marks "Louis" Davenport(1868-1951) opened the renowned Davenport Restaurant in 1913, designed by Cutter. Davenport established his Davenport Hotel a year later on 09/01/1914. The Cutter Studio operated at the same address as Cutter and Malmgren, Architects, in 1913, at 1023 Riverside Avenue. (See R.L. Polk and Company's Spokane, Washington, City Directory, 1913, p. 417.) The studio may have begun as a result of his work with Davenport, who needed furntiure to furnish his restaurant and hotel.

Partner, Cutter, Malmgren and Wager, Architects, Seattle, WA, 1902-1904. In 1903, Kirtland Cutter also had an office in Portland, OR, in Room #2 of the Chambers Building. (See Portland, Oregon, City Directory, 1903, p. 866.)

Partner, Cutter and Baume, Architects, Spokane, WA, c. 1919.

Principal, Kirtland Kelsey Cutter, Architect, Spokane and Seattle, WA, 1918-1923.

Principal, Kirtland Kelsey Cutter, Architect, Long Beach, CA, 1923-1938.

Professional Service

Patron, Seattle Architectural Club, Seattle, WA, 1910.

Member, American Institute of Architects (AIA), Washington Chapter, 1910-1911. At this time, he was the only member from Spokane, WA. He was a charter member of the AIA, Washington Chapter, in 1894, and an officer in the Washington Chapter between 1908-1911.

Cutter was granted a certificate to practice architecture in the State of CA in 05/1924.

Professional Awards

Fellow, American Institute of Architects (FAIA), 1923.

Archives

The 4,000 drawings making up "The Cutter & Malmgren (Spokane, Wash.) Records, 1889-1923," were housed originally at the Eastern Washington State Historical Society Archives, and were transferred to the Eastern Washington State Historical Society / Northwest Museum of Arts and Culture, Joel E. Ferris Research Library and Archives, 2316 W. First Avenue, Spokane, WA, 99201. Tel: 509.363.5313 (2014). (See the "Guide to the Cutter & Malmgren (Spokane, Wash.) Records, 1889-1923," accessed 07/24/2014.)

According to Cutter's biographer, Henry Matthews, other papers by Cutter can be found at: The Idaho Historical Society, Boise, ID; Palos Verdes Home Owners' Association, Malaga Cove, Palos Verdes, CA; Poper Collection, Long Beach, CA, which was to have been transferred to the Architectural Drawings Collection of the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB), Santa Barbara, CA; University of Washington (UW) Libraries, Special Collections Division, Seattle, WA; Whitman College and Northwest Archives, Walla Walla, WA, 345 Boyer Ave, Walla Walla, WA 99362, tel: 509.527.5922 (2014). (See Henry Matthews, Kirtland Cutter Architect in the Land of Prominse, [Seattle: University of Washington Press, 1998], p. 387.)

In 1999-2000, Mr. and Mrs. Richard Poper donated approximately four linear feet of archival materials on Cutter, including eight books from his professional library, to the University Museum of the University of California Santa Barbara (UCSB). According to the UCSB museum: "The Kirtland Kelsey Cutter papers span 4 linear feet and date from 1913 to 1998. The collection primarily contains material related to Cutter's work in Southern California and is composed of black-and-white photographs of Southern Californian residences that Cutter designed, newspaper clippings and ephemera about Cutter that date from the late 1970s to the early 1980s, Cutter’s handbook on architectural practice dated 1928, architectural drawings (primarily presentation drawings) as well as architectural reprographic copies. A few files hold information about buildings in Washington State." (See UCSB, University Museum, Architecture and Design Collection, "Finding Aid for the Kirtland Kelsey Cutter papers, circa 1913-1998 0000126," accessed 03/28/2016.)

Education

Education

Cutter studied illustration at the Art Students' League, New York, NY, c. 1880. He traveled in Europe before 1886, and was known to have studied in Dresden, Germany, and Florence, Italy.

Personal

Relocation

Born in East Rockport Ohio, Cutter spent his childhood in this Cuyahoga County town located on the south shore of Lake Erie. First settled in 1809, it became a prosperous agricultural town by Cutter's time, the southern portion of which focused on general farming and milling, the northern part devoted to fruit growing. The eastern portion of Rockport became renamed "Lakewood" in 1889, and was a comfortable western suburb of Cleveland in later years.

He settled in Spokane, WA, in 1886. The architect was set up in business by his uncle, the banker, Horace L. Cutter (b. 1846), and by Austin Corbin (1827-1896), the Long Island Rail Road tycoon, who was, himself, the son of the mining tycoon, Daniel Chase Corbin (1832-1918).

The 1910 US Census located Cutter and his family residing at 628 7th Avenue in Spokane. The household included his wife, step-daughter Kathryn and two household servants, Hilma Olson (born c. 1886 in Sweden) and Mary Nelson (born c. 1868 in Sweden). The census listed his profession as "artist." This may have been because Cutter opened a sidelight interior and furniture design business called the "Cutter Studio, Incorporated." (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation Year: 1910; Census Place: Spokane Ward 2, Spokane, Washington; Roll: T624_1670; Page: 4B; Enumeration District: 0167; FHL microfilm: 1375683, accessed 09/03/2021.) The Cutters continued to dwell at 628 7th Avenue in 1913. (See R.L. Polk and Company's Spokane, Washington, City Directory, 1913, p. 417.)

He lived and worked in Spokane until the early 1920s.

Cutter relocated to California at the end of his career, from 1923 until 1939. He first moved to Palos Verdes Estates, CA, in 1923. The following year, he and his wife, Katharine, resettled in Long Beach, CA, where they continued to live in 1928.

He passed away in Long Beach, CA. The architect along with his wife and step-daughter were buried in the Christ Church Episcopal Cemetery Kealakekua, Hawaii County, HI.

Parents

Cutter's family members were pioneers in what was then the Connecticut Western Reserve portion of the US, that included approximately 3.3 million acres of land, demarcated on the north by Lake Erie, on the east by PA, on the south by the southern boundary of what became Huron County (at 41 degrees north latitude), and on the west to a line drawn 120 miles from the PA border, at roughly Sandusky Bay. The State of Connecticut sold about 2 million acres east of the Cuyahoga River to the Connecticut Land Company in 1795 for $1.2 million, and this private entity went about surveying and selling land in this section between 1796 and 1800. In 1800, the US Federal Government took over political jurisdiction from the State of Connecticut over the whole parcel.

Spouse

Kirtland married Katharine Phillips Williams (born 11/25/1868 in Reading, PA-d. 10/10/1933 in Long Beach, CA) on 02/19/1906 in Spokane, WA. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation Washington State Archives; Olympia, Washington; Washington, Marriage Records, EA332-2-0-29, accessed 09/02/2021.)

Katharine had wed once before, c. 1890 to a bookeeper, John W. Williams (born c. 04/1867 in OH), and had a daughter Kathryn Phillips Williams Walker (born 01/24/1898 in WA-d. 1963) by her first husband. Katharine and John Williams lived at 1829 1st Avenue in Spokane in 1900. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation Year: 1900; Census Place: Spokane Ward 3, Spokane, Washington; Page: 15; Enumeration District: 0066; FHL microfilm: 1241751, accessed 09/03/2021.)

Biographical Notes

Spokane's Great Fire of 08/1889 greatly expanded Cutter's business, and he rapidly became the most sought-after architect in the city.

A passport application signed by Cutter on 02/17/1896, indicated that he was planning to go to Europe "for a few months" and that his "permanent residence" was in Cleveland, Ohio.

Between 01/04/1928 and 01/08/1928, Cutter and his wife, Katharine, traveled via steamship from Honolulu, HI to San Francisco, CA. The architect, Charles Dickey, also was on board this ship.



Associated Locations

  • East Rockport, OH (Architect's Birth)
    East Rockport, OH

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  • Long Beach, CA (Architect's Death)
    Long Beach, CA

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PCAD id: 1930


NameDateCityState
1st National Bank of Spokane Falls, Downtown, Spokane Falls, WA 1890
1st National Bank of Spokane, Office Building #2, Riverside, Spokane, WA 1889-1890SpokaneWA
Agricultural College, Experiment Station and School of Science of the State of Washington, Building Project, Pullman, WA1889PullmanWA
Augustine, Bean and Hoyt Building, Spokane, WA1889-1890SpokaneWA
Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks (BPOE), Lodge, Spokane, WA1919-1921SpokaneWA
Buchanan House, Palos Verdes Estates, CAPalos VerdesCA
Burne, Dr., House, Lidgerwood Park, Spokane, WA1890SpokaneWA
Burns, Cyrus, House, Spokane, WA1889-1890SpokaneWA
Campbell, Amasa B., House, Browne's Addition, Spokane, WA1898SpokaneWA
City Club, Riverside, Spokane, WA1901SpokaneWA
City of Portland, City Hall #2, Cutter and Poetz Project, Portland, OR1890PortlandOR
City of Spokane, Monroe Street Bridge #2, Riverside, Spokane, WASpokaneWA
Clark, F. Lewis, Gate Lodge, Spokane, WA1890SpokaneWA
Clark, F. Lewis, House Project, Spokane, WA1890SpokaneWA
Clark, F.L., Commerical Building Project, Spokane, WA1891SpokaneWA
Clark, Patrick, House, Spokane, WA1897-1898SpokaneWA
Clemmer Theatre and Office Building, Downtown, Spokane, WA1914-1915SpokaneWA
Conrad, Charles, House, Kalispell, MT1895KalispellMT
Corbin, A.E., House, Spokane, WASpokaneWA
Crary Building #1, Downtown, Seattle, WA 1907-1908SeattleWA
Cushing, Theodore, Building, Spokane, WA1889-1890SpokaneWA
Cushing, Theodore, Houses Project, Spokane, WA1890SpokaneWA
Cutter, Horace, House, Spokane, WA1887-1888SpokaneWA
Cutter, Kirtland, Kelsey, House, Cliff Cannon, Spokane, WA 1887-1888SpokaneWA
Daniels Building Project, Spokane, WA1890SpokaneWA
Davenport Hotel, Riverside, Spokane, WA1913-1914SpokaneWA
Davenport Restaurant, Riverside, Spokane, WA1890
Davenport, Llewellyn Marks, House, Spokane, WA
Fairmont Cemetery Chapel, Spokane, WA1890SpokaneWA
Finch, John Aylard, Farm House Project1895
Finch, John Aylard, House, Browne's Addition, Spokane, WA1897-1898SpokaneWA
Fleming, Victor, House, Balboa Island, Newport Beach, CANewport BeachCA
Gard House, Palos Verdes Estates, CA1927Palos Verdes EstatesCA
Glover, James N., House, Spokane, WA1889-1890SpokaneWA
Griffiths, Thomas F., House, Spokane, WA1890SpokaneWA
Heffernan, John T., House #2, Madison Park, Seattle, WA1915-1917SeattleWA
Honeyman, Robert B., Jr., House, Balboa Island, Newport Beach, CANewport BeachCA
Hoyt, Henry, House, Spokane, WA1891SpokaneWA
Hughson House Project, Spokane, WA1891SpokaneWA
Humbird, T.J., House, Spokane, WA1916-1917SpokaneWA
Johanson House, Seattle, WA1909SeattleWA
Krutz, Harry, Seattle, WASeattleWA
Lunada Bay Plaza, Palos Verdes Estates, CAPalos Verdes EstatesCA
Moore, F. Rockwood, House, Spokane, WA1889SpokaneWA
Norman, B., Houses Project, Spokane, WA1890SpokaneWA
Payne, Waldo, House, Spokane, WA1891SpokaneWA
Pedicord Hotel, Riverside, Spokane, WA1892SpokaneWA
Peyton Building, Riverside, Spokane, WA1898SpokaneWA
Powell, E.J., Building, Spokane, WA1890SpokaneWA
Quirin, William, Building, Spokane, WA1890SpokaneWA
Rainier Club, Clubhouse #3, Downtown, Seattle, WA1904SeattleWA
Rookery Building, Spokane, WA1889-1890SpokaneWA
Schellenberg, F.F., House, Palos Verdes Estates, CA1926-1927Palos Verdes EstatesCA
Seattle Golf and Country Club, Clubhouse, The Highlands, Shoreline, WA1909-1909ShorelineWA
Sherwood Building #1, Spokane, WA1890SpokaneWA
Sherwood Building #2, Downtown, Spokane, WA1915-1916SpokaneWA
Smith, C. J., House, Seattle, WA1906-1908SeattleWA
Spokane Club, Spokane, WASpokaneWA
Spokane Public Schools, Columbia Elementary School, Hillyard, Spokane, WA1892SpokaneWA
Stevens, D.K., House, Tacoma, WA1891TacomaWA
Stimson Mill Company, Lumber and Shingle Mill, Office, Ballard, Seattle, WASeattleWA
Stimson, Charles D. and Harriet, House, First Hill, Seattle, WA1899-1901SeattleWA
Stimson, Charles D., House, The Highlands, Shoreline, WA1909-1914ShorelineWA
Taylor, W.H., Building, Spokane, WA1890SpokaneWA
Thorne, Chester, and Anna Hoxie, House #2, American Lake, Lakewood, WA1908-1911LakewoodWA
Three House Sketches1891
Traders National Bank and Moore, F. Rockwood, Building Project, Spokane, WA1891SpokaneWA
United States Government, Department of the Interior, National Park Service (NPS), Glacier National Park, Many Glacier Hotel, Lake McDonald, MT1914-1915Lake McDonaldMT
United States Government, Department of the Interior, National Park Service (NPS), Glacier National Park, Sperry Chalet Dining Hall, Lake McDonald, MT1913Lake McDonaldMT
United States Government, Department of the Interior, National Park Service (NPS), Glacier National Park, Sperry Chalet Dormitory, Lake McDonald, MT1914Lake McDonaldMT
Wakefield, W.J.C., House, Browne's Addition, Spokane, WA1897-1898SpokaneWA
Wardner Miners' Union Building, Wardner, ID1890WardnerID
Wardner, James F., House, Fairhaven, WA1889-1890BellinghamWA
Western Union Life Building #1, Spokane, WA 1910SpokaneWA
White House Store, Spokane, WA1889-1890SpokaneWA
World's Columbian Exposition, Idaho Building, Chicago, IL 1892-1893ChicagoIL
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