Résumé

Draftsman, McKim, Mead and White, Architects, New York, NY, before 1904.

Draftsman, [E. Francis] Baldwin and Pennington, Architects, Baltimore, MD, before 1904; (Baldwin and Pennington operated as a favorite architecture firm of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad).

Draftsman, Mayre and Wright, Architects, Washington, DC, before 1904.

Principal, Edgar Blair, Architect, Washington, DC, 1904-1906; Blair relocated to Seattle, WA, in 1906.

Draftsman, James Stephen, Architect, Seattle, WA, c. 1907-1908. When Blair first appeared in the Seattle city directory, he was listed as a Stephen's draftsman. (See R.L. Polk and Company's Seattle City Directory, 1907, p. 230.)

Head Draftsman, Seattle Public School District Architect, James Stephen, Architect, Seattle, WA, c. 1909. On 08/10/1909, the Seattle Times reported: "Edgar Blair, at present head draughtsman on the school board staff, will act temporarily as school architect, and, if he gives satisfaction, he will probably get the place permanently. This was the decision reached yesterday by the school board, in considering the applications caused by the resignation of James Stephens [sic]. It was decided that Mr. Stephens' resignation will not be effective until September 1. Blair's salary was advanced to $200 a month, with an addition of $50 a month during the interim after September 1." (See "Edgar Blair Will Be Temporary Architect," Seattle Times, 08/10/1909, p. 7.)

District Architect, Seattle Public Schools, Seattle, WA, 1910-1918; Blair worked on approximately 32 schools in the Seattle area. In 1913, he worked on construction of new schools with a consulting engineer, J. Gordon Turnbull (1891-1953).

Principal, Edgar Blair, Architect, Seattle, WA, 1919-1924.

College

Coursework, Des Moines College, Des Moines, IA; coursework, Iowa State University, Ames, IA. B.Arch., Columbia University, New York, NY;

Relocation

Edgar Blair spent his formative years in the State of Iowa. His parents lived in Des Moines, IA, in 1880, where his father worked as a florist. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation Year: 1880; Census Place: Des Moines, Polk, Iowa; Roll: 360; Family History Film: 1254360; Page: 290B; Enumeration District: 162; Image: 0101, accessed 01/23/2017.) Twenty years later, Rufus and Jessie Blair lived at 1215 10th Street in Des Moines, IA, with their children, Edgar and Gertrude. Edgar's paternal grandparents lived with the family at this time, Alexander (born 08/1809 in PA) and Sara (born 12/1811 in PA). (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation Year: 1900; Census Place: Des Moines, Polk, Iowa; Roll: 454; Page: 7A; Enumeration District: 0080; FHL microfilm: 1240454, accessed 01/23/2017.)

Blair's name did not appear in the Seattle city directory of 1906, suggesting that he may have gotten to the city after it had gone to press. He did appear in the 1907 directory, living at 716 Madison Street in Seattle. (See R.L. Polk and Company's Seattle City Directory, 1907, p. 230.)

Edgar and Mary Blair lived at 6321 Wilson Street, Seattle, WA, in 1910. Their daughter, Dorothea, was born in 1909. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation Year: 1910; Census Place: Seattle Ward 12, King, Washington; Roll: T624_1662; Page: 3A; Enumeration District: 0198; FHL microfilm: 1375675, accessed 01/23/2017.) Ten years later, the family, with the addition of one son, resided in the same house. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation Year: 1920; Census Place: Seattle, King, Washington; Roll: T625_1930; Page: 1A; Enumeration District: 311; Image: 793, accessed 01/23/2017.)

After Edgar's premature death, Mary Blair worked as an editor and lived with her two children at 606 1st Avenue according to the US Census of 1930. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation Year: 1930; Census Place: Seattle, King, Washington; Roll: 2499; Page: 8B; Enumeration District: 0135; Image: 275.0; FHL microfilm: 2342233, accessed 01/23/2017.)

Parents

His father, Rufus Blair (born 12/1839 in PA), worked in 1900 as a florist, his mother, Jessie McDonald (born 03/1841 in Nova Scotia, Canada) stayed at home raising the family's two children, Gertrude (born c. 10/1868 in IA) and Edgar.

Spouse

He married Mary Fox Blair (born c. 1875 in PA) c. 1908. The 1920 US Census indicated that she worked as a writer of books and magazine articles. Her father was born in NY, her mother, Ireland.

Children

Edgar and Mary had a daughter, Dorthea M. Blair, and a son, Donald Blair.

• Seattle, WA (Architect's Death)
  Seattle, WA

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• Des Moines, IA (Architect's Birth)
  Des Moines, IA

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