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Male, Canada/US, born 1870-01-31, died 1946

Associated with the firms network

Bodley, Alfred, Architect; Graham and Bodley, Architects; Maclure and Bodley, Associated Architects


Professional History

Résumé

Carpenter, Charles Bodley, Builder, Toronto, ON, Canada, 1888; it appears that Alfred got his earliest architectural instruction from his father for whom the Toronto City Directory lists him working; Charles Bodley operated an office at 36 Rose Avenue in 1888.

Architect, [S.W.] Bodley and Bodley, Building Contractor and Architect, Victoria, BC, Canada, c. 1891.

Building Contractor, London, Ontario, 1895-1897; Bodley had his office at 343-345 Adelaide Street, London, ON.

Principal, Alfred Bodley, Architect, London, Ontario, 1897-1899. He maintained an office in Room #14, Hiscox Building, London, ON. Principal, Alfred Bodley, Architect, Toronto, ON, 1900-1901;

Bodley may have arrived in Seattle, WA, in 1902.

Partner, [John] Graham, Sr., and Bodley, Architects, Seattle, WA, 1904; the Seattle Times described Bodley, not without hyperbole in 02/1904: "On Jan. 1 Mr. Alfred Bodley joined Mr. Graham. Mr. Bodley comes here with a continental reputation, and as a draftsman and a designer is not excelled in America. Trained in the best schools of New York, Paris and London, he has thoroughly mastered the many details of modern construction and designs, as well as the classic. The new firm is undoubtedly the strongest on the Pacific Coast, office 320 Globe Building." (See "Graham & Bodley," Seattle Times, 1904/02/07, p. 51.) It appears that the Graham and Bodley partnership lasted only to about 08/1904. Bodley was listed as a solo practitioner in L.R. Stradley and Company's Seattle Business Directory(1905), (p. 7). Meanwhile, Graham had created a new partnership with David John Myers (1872-1939) by 1905.

Principal, Alfred Bodley, Architect, Seattle, WA, 1905-1907. During this period, Bodley operated his office from Room #236 in Seattle's Burke Building. (See R.L. Polk and Company's Seattle City Directory, [1905], p. 1392, [1906], p. 1320, [1907], p. 1323.)

The Biographical Dictionary of Architects in Canada, 1800-1950, stated of his post-Seattle career: " By 1912 he had returned to Toronto, working as a talented delineator from an office on the same floor as Chapman & McGiffen at 59 Yonge Street. A watercolour perspective signed 'A. Bodley' showing a Methodist Church on Baby Point Road in Toronto and designed by Chapman & McGiffen can be found in the Ontario Archives (OA, Chapman Coll.). Bodley later worked in Toronto for Sanford Smith (in 1914-16), for S.G. Curry (in 1916-22), for Wickson & Gregg (in 1922-29), and in New York City for Lord & Hewlett (1929). By late 1930 he had returned to his home town of Mount Forest." (See Biographical Dictionary of Architects in Canada, 1800-1950, "Bodley, Alfred," accessed 04/05/2016.)

Personal

Relocation

It appears that Bodley never married, and, being unattached, was able to live a peripatetic existence, primarily shuttling back and forth from various cities in the provinces of ON and BC during his life. He also appears to have lived in the US on two brief occasions, first in Seattle, WA, (c. 1903-1907) and in New York, NY, (c. 1924-1925). His date of birth is a matter of conjecture. Find a Grave.com indicated it to have been in 1869. Probably the most authoritative source known, The Registry of Canadian Births, 1869-1913, stated Alfred was born on 01/31/1870 in Mt. Forest, Wellington North, ON. (See Source Citation, Archives of Ontario; Series: MS929; Reel: 4; Source Information: Ancestry.com. Ontario, Canada Births, 1869-1913 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2010, accessed 04/01/2016.) Ochsner, et al., in Shaping Seattle Architecture, placed the date of birth in 1872. (See "Additional Significant Seattle Architects," Shaping Seattle Architecture, J.K. Ochsner, ed., [Seattle: University of Washington Press, 1994], p. 339.) In 1871, the Bodley Family lived in Mount Forest and probably remained here throughout Alfred's childhood. An US Immigration Service memo from 1915 indicated that Bodley first visited the US in 1883. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation, National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), Washington, D.C.; Manifests of Alien Arrivals at Port Huron, Michigan, February 1902-December 1954; Record Group: 85, Records of the Immigration and Naturalization Service; Microfilm Serial: A3441; Microfilm Roll: 10,accessed 04/01/2016.)

Piecing together his whereabouts between 1888 and 1903 is not completely straightforward. According to the Biographical Dictionary of Architects in Canada, 1800-1950, "...He began his career in London, Ont. in 1888. By 1897 he had '..already large experience both in Canada and the United States' (C.A.B., x, May 1897, 90). In 1898 he moved to Victoria, B.C. to work as a draftsman and collaborated there with Samuel Maclure on the design of the Mount Baker Hotel in 1903. He is likely the same '˜Mr. Bodley' who entered the competition for the Carnegie Library in Victoria and was awarded Second Premium (C.R., xiv, 1 July 1903, 2)" (See Biographical Dictionary of Architects in Canada, 1800-1950, "Bodley, Alfred," accessed 04/01/2016.) While it is possible that Bodley worked in London, ON, in 1888, his name did not appear in its city directories for 1887, 1889 or 1890. It seems that he worked in various places as both an architect and a carpenter, depending on where he could find work.

His name did appear in the Canadian Census of 1891, as living in Victoria, BC. A 21-year-old Alfred, who indicated that he worked as an architect, lived with with his brother, Samuel, and his wife, Ida. Samuel was a building contractor in 1891. (See Ancestry.com. Source Citation:Year: 1891; Census Place: Victoria City Johnson Street Ward, Victoria, British Columbia; Roll: T-6292; Family No: 125,accessed 04/01/2016.) Alfred continued to reside with Samuel on McGregor Avenue in Victoria in 1893. (See Williams' Official British Columbia Directory, 1893, for Victoria City, p. 472.) He next appeared in The London City and Middlesex County Directory of 1895, in two places; one in an alphabetical list of residents indicating that he lived at 400 Dundas Street (p. 152) and a second, professional listing under "Carpenters," that noted he worked at 343 Adelaide Street (p. 359). Bodley was known to have undertaken commissions in London in 1897, the William J. Reid House and alterations to "Norwood," the house of Charles J. Mills. He continued to appear in voter records residing in London in 1898: "Bodley, Alfred, 0ffice 14 Hiscox Bldg--pt II, w Richmond." (See Ancestry.com, Ontario Canada, Voter Lists, 1867-1900, London Township, First Ward, 1898, p. 34.) The Toronto City Directory had him living in Toronto in 1900, working as an architect at 75 Yonge Street near the city's Financial District. In 1901, the Canadian Census of that year indicated that he lived with four of his sisters (Elizabeth, the eldest, Agnes, Adeline and Violetta), in a Toronto, ON, residence.

He also was listed in Henderson's British Columbia Gazetteer and Directory and Mining Companies for 1900-1901, as residing in Victoria, BC, in that year. (See Source Information: Genealogical Research Library, Ontario, Canada. Canadian Genealogy Index, 1600s-1900s [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2005, accessed 04/01/2016.) It appears certain that the architect was in Victoria again in 1901 and remained there until 1903; he assisted architect Samuel Maclure on Victoria's Oak Bay Hotel, on Mount Baker Road, in 1903.

Alfred Bodley came to Seattle, WA, probably from Victoria, BC, in 1903. He remained in Seattle from approximately 1903-1907, when his name disappeared from Seattle city directories. The 1915 US Immigration Service memo mentioned above also indicated that he had previously left the US in 07/1907. This document recorded that Bodley lived in Toronto and entered the US at Port Huron MI, on his way to the Statler Hotel in Detroit for professional reasons. (The Detroit Statler, designed by the noted NY architect of hotels, George B. Post and Sons, opened in 1915 and hosted many professional conferences in its first year.)

An immigration manifest filed at Niagara Falls, NY, on 09/22/1924, indicated that Bodley had left his permanent residence in Toronto and entered the U.S. on that date to resettle permanently in New York, NY. This form indicated that he had been in the U.S. between 1902-1924 in Seattle, WA, although this was not completely accurate. (His name disappeared from the Seattle city directory in 1907.) At age 54, he indicated himself to be an "architectural designer" and carried $200 in cash with him into the US. With no spouse, his sister, Elizabeth Bodley, was listed as his next of kin, residing at 43 Metcalf Street in Toronto. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation: The National Archives at Washington, D.C.; Washington, D.C.; Manifests of Alien Arrivals at Buffalo, Lewiston, Niagara Falls, and Rochester, New York, 1902-1954; National Archives Microfilm Publication: M1480; Roll: 10; Record Group Title: Records of the Immigration and Naturalization Service; Record Group Number: 85,accessed 04/01/2016.)

Bodley returned to Canada via Quebec on 09/24/1925 aboard the Canadian Pacific steamer, S.S. Melita. He traveled third class from Cherbourg, France with his final destination being Mount Forest, ON, his hometown, via the Canadian Pacific Railroad. His address was said to be on John Street in Mount Forest. (See Ancestry.com. Canadian Passenger Lists, 1865-1935 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2010, Accessed 04/05/2016.) Bodley died in 1946, and was buried in the Bodley family plot in the Mt. Forest Cemetery. Oddly, he died in 1946, his sister, Violetta died in 1945, and another sister, Agnes, passed away in 1944.

Parents

On Alfred's 1870 birth record, his father, Charles Bodley (born c. 1830-d. 01/31/1916) was listed as a carpenter, He worked as a builder in ON according to the Canadian Cenuses of 1871 and 1881. By 1891, he had become an Inspector of Public Works in East Toronto, ON. Alfred Bodley's mother was Mary Jane Whitman Bodley (1836-1877), who managed the household and had many children. Both of his parents came from England, although Charles's family had a Scottish lineage. According to the 1871 Canadian Census, Charles and M.J. had had 10 children, with Alfred being the youngest. Official census data on Bodley Family members is not always consistent. In 1871, Alfred's brothers and sisters included: Charles (born c. 1852), Mary (born c. 1854), John (born c. 1856), E.J. (girl, 1863-1953), Samuel (born c. 1863), E.J. (boy, born c. 1864), Annie Leah (born c. 1865-d. 07/19/1879), Adeline (born c. 1866), and E.S. (boy, born c. 1868). The 1881 Canadian Census recorded the children as follows: Elizabeth (age 19), Samuel W. (age 17, who later became a carpenter), Adeline (age 15), Emma (age 13), Agness (age 11, 1872-1944), Alfred (age 10), and Violetta Ruth (age 5, 1876-1945). The family was recorded on 04/29/1891 as follows: Elizabeth (age 29), Adeline (age 24), Emma (age 22), "Agness" (age 19), and "Viola" (age 15). Find a Grave also noted another sister named Alice Maud Bodley (1874 - 1878), who died in early childhood. Charles Bodley remarried to a woman named Ann Rixon Bodley (born c. 1840-d. 08/07/1916).

The 1901 Canadian Census recorded that he lived in Toronto, ON, with his sisters: Elizabeth (head of the house, born 11/22/1865), Adeline (born 08/06/1870), "Agness" (born 10/27/1872), and "Violette" (born "Violetta Ruth," perhaps also named "Margaret," Wellington County, ON, 10/28/1875). Agness's birth certificate indicated her birth date to have been on 10/27/1871.

Biographical Notes

In 1891, Alfred Bodley indicated that he was a Baptist. In 1924, Bodley stood 5 feet 10 inches tall, was described as having gray hair, fair complexion and blue eyes. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation: The National Archives at Washington, D.C.; Washington, D.C.; Manifests of Alien Arrivals at Buffalo, Lewiston, Niagara Falls, and Rochester, New York, 1902-1954; National Archives Microfilm Publication: M1480; Roll: 10; Record Group Title: Records of the Immigration and Naturalization Service; Record Group Number: 85,accessed 04/01/2016.)

In 1925, while living in London, ON, he traveled between Cherbourg to Quebec, from 09/24/1925 to 10/04/1925 aboard the Arlita, a steam trawler commissioned in 1916 and sunk by the Nazis on 09/18/1939. Bodley was still traveling to Europe in 1939, when he, at age 69, traveled to Liverpool, England. from Canada, aboard the Canadian Pacific steamship, Empress of Britain. While in Liverpool, he stayed at the Adelphi Hotel. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation: The National Archives of the UK; Kew, Surrey, England; Board of Trade: Commercial and Statistical Department and successors: Inwards Passenger Lists.; Class: BT26; Piece: 1185; Item: 46,accessed 04/05/2016.)



Associated Locations

  • Mount Forest, Ontario Canada (Architect's Birth)
    Mount Forest, Ontario Canada

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PCAD id: 2262