Harry Wild Jones

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Harry Wild Jones (June 9, 1859 – September 25, 1935) was an American architect based in Minneapolis who designed buildings across the United States and beyond. Born in Schoolcraft, Michigan, he studied at Brown University for two years before transferring to MIT, where he completed the architecture program in 1882. After working as a draftsman for Henry Hobson Richardson in Boston, he moved to Minneapolis with his wife Bertha Juliet Tucker in 1883. He worked with James C. Plant and William Channing Whitney, then started his own practice in 1885, operating from the Lumber Exchange Building from 1886 to 1921. Jones is credited with introducing Shingle Style to Minneapolis and was known for his versatility across styles from neoclassical to eclectic. He designed more than 400 structures, including the Minnetonka Yacht Club clubhouse, the Lake Harriet Pavilion, the Butler Brothers Warehouse, the Lakewood Cemetery Chapel, the Northfield Bank, and the Washburn Park Water Tower. His work extended to Hawaii, China, Burma, and other places after a 1907 world cruise following a car accident. In 1890 he helped reorganize the architecture program at the University of Minnesota, becoming the first formally trained professor in the field. He also served twelve years on the Minneapolis Park Board, shaping recreation and park design. Jones and Bertha had three children: Howard Malcom, Mary White Smith, and Arthur Leo. He died in Minneapolis in 1935 and was buried at Lakewood Cemetery.