Esenwein & Johnson Explained

Esenwein & Johnson
Type:	Private company
Industry:	Architecture
Foundation:	1898
Location:	Buffalo, New York
Founder:	August Esenwein James A. Johnson

Esenwein & Johnnson was an architectural firm of Buffalo, New York.

Firm history

It was a partnership of German-born August Esenwein (1856-1926) and James A. Johnson (1865-1939). The partnership was started in 1898;^[1] the firm designed "many of Buffalo's outstanding buildings including the Lafayette High School and the General Electric Building".^[2]

A number of their works are listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places. In 2007, the Buffalo History Museum, then called the Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society, held an exhibition of their work entitled, "Art Nouveau and Other Expressions: Rediscovering the Architecture of Esenwein & Johnson."^[3]

Works

Works include (with attribution):

• Ansonia Building (1906), 712-726 Main Street (at W. Tupper), Buffalo, New York (Esenwein & Johnson)^[4]
• Automobile Club of Buffalo, 1910-1911, Clarence, New York (Esenwein & Johnson), NRHP-listed ^[5]
• Bancroft Hotel, built 1912, 50 Franklin St. Worcester, Massachusetts (Esenwein & Johnson), NRHP-listed
• Buffalo Museum of Science, built in 1929, (Esenwein & Johnson)
• The Calumet (1906), 46-58 West Chippewa St., Buffalo, New York (Esenwein & Johnson), NRHP-listed^[6]
• Colonial Flats and Annex, 399-401 Delaware Ave., Buffalo, New York. Designed the "Annex" (1900), (Esenwein & Johnson), NRHP-listed.
• Dnipro Ukrainian Cultural Center, originally Fraternal Order of Orioles Headquarters (1914), 562 Genesee St., Buffalo New York (Esenwein & Johnson) ^[7]
• The Durant, 607 E. 2nd Ave. Flint, Michigan (Esenwein & Johnson), NRHP-listed^[8]
• Hotel Utica in Utica, New York
• Iroquois Hotel, Buffalo in Buffalo, New York, Built 1889 and demolished in 1940 (known as the Gerrans Building at that time) to make way of Bond Clothing Company Building (1940-1964) and now site of One M&T Plaza^[9]
• Fosdick-Masten Park High School,aka Masten Park High School (1914), Masten Ave. and E. North St., Buffalo, New York (Esenwein & Johnson), NRHP-listed^[10]
• General Electric Tower, aka Niagara-Mohawk Building and Electric Tower, 535 Washington St., Buffalo, New York (Esenwein & Johnson), NRHP-listed^{[11] [12]}
• Louis Kurtzman House (1907-1909), 24 Lincoln Parkway, Buffalo, New York (Esenwein & Johnson)^[13]
• Lafayette High School, 370 Lafayette Ave., Buffalo, New York (Esenwein & Johnson), NRHP-listed
• Hotel Lafayette (1902), 391 Washington St., Buffalo, New York (Esenwein & Johnson), NRHP-listed
• Linde Air Products Factory (1910, 1911 Additions), 155 Chandler St., Buffalo, New York (Esenwein & Johnson), NRHP-listed
• The Niagara, 201 Rainbow Blvd. Niagara Falls, New York (Esenwein and Johnson of Buffalo, NY), NRHP-listed
• Portage Hotel, 10 N. Main St. Akron, Ohio (Esenwein & Johnson), NRHP-listed
• Robert Keating Root Building (1912), 70-86 West Chippewa Street, Buffalo, New York (Esenwein & Johnson)^[14]
• Sinclair, Rooney & Co. Building (1909-1911), 465 Washington St., Buffalo, New York, NRHP listed^[15]
• John Sinclair House (1909-1911), 94 Jewett Parkway, Buffalo, New York (Esenwein & Johnson), part of the NRHP-listed Parkside East Historic District^[16]
• Hotel Statler (original, c. 1908), Buffalo, New York (Esenwein & Johnson)^[17]
• Taylor Signal Company-General Railway Signal Company (1902-1906), Buffalo, New York (Esenwein & Johnson)^[18]
• Temple of Music (1901), Buffalo, New York (Esenwein & Johnson)^[19]
• United Office Building (1929), 222 1st Street, Niagara Falls, New York (James A. Johnson), NRHP-listed^[20]
• M. Wile and Company Factory Building, 77 Goodell St., Buffalo, New York (Esenwein & Johnson), NRHP-listed

A more complete list of works is found on the Buffalo Architecture and History web site.^[21]

External links

• Esenwein & Johnson records 1891-1942: An inventory at EmpireADC.org, courtesy of the Buffalo History Museum.
• Esenwein & Johnson client list: A list courtesy of the Buffalo History Museum.

Notes and References

1. Web site: Bios - Eisenwein & Johnson. Buffalo Architecture and History.
2. Web site: National Register of Historic Places Registration: Fosdick-Masten Park High School. March 1983. 2009-06-14. Claire L. Ross. New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. 6. 2012-06-14. https://web.archive.org/web/20120614183721/http://www.oprhp.state.ny.us/hpimaging/hp_view.asp?GroupView=2220. dead. See also: Web site: Accompanying nine photos.
3. Web site: Art Nouveau and Other Expressions: Rediscovering the Architecture of Esenwein & Johnson. Buffalo History Museum. 2007. 2013-07-06. 2014-02-18. https://web.archive.org/web/20140218054911/http://www.buffalohistory.org/Explore/Exhibits/virtual_exhibits/esenwein_johnson/index.htm. dead.
4. Web site: Ansonia Building. Buffalo Architecture and History.
5. Web site: National Register of Historic Places Listings. 2012-08-17. Weekly List of Actions Taken on Properties: 8/06/12 through 8/10/12. National Park Service. 2012-12-24. 2014-02-22. https://web.archive.org/web/20140222145425/http://www.cr.nps.gov/nr/listings/20120817.htm. dead.
6. Web site: The Calumet Building. Buffalo Architecture and History.
7. Web site: Buffalo History Museum Architecture Map . 2015-01-06 . https://web.archive.org/web/20141206174046/http://batchgeo.com/map/c53b058b18b5f126d9899b656ce2b88f . 2014-12-06 . dead .
8. Web site: History. The Durant, Flint, Michigan. 2012-09-28. https://web.archive.org/web/20140814110612/http://www.thedurant.com/content.cfm?id=2. 2014-08-14. dead.
9. Web site: Iroquois Hotel . Buffaloah.com.
10. Web site: From Masten Park to City Honors: The 1914 Building - Exterior. Buffalo Architecture and History.
11. Web site: National Register of Historic Places Registration Form for General Electric Tower. New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. July 25, 2008. September 28, 2012. October 15, 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20121015013546/http://www.oprhp.state.ny.us/hpimaging/hp_view.asp?GroupView=102570. dead.
12. Web site: Electric Tower: Project Profile . The Electric Tower . 23 February 2020.
13. Web site: Louis Kurtzman House. Buffalo Architecture and History.
14. Web site: Robert Keating Root Building . Buffalo Architecture and History.
15. Web site: National Register of Historic Places Listings. 2016-02-12. Weekly List of Actions Taken on Properties: 2/01/16 through 2/05/16 . National Park Service.
16. Web site: John Sinclair House . Buffalo Architecture and History.
17. Web site: Hotel Statler (1905-1908)- later Hotel Buffalo. Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society.
18. Web site: "Cultural Resource Information System (CRIS)" . https://archive.today/20150701003048/http://cris.parks.ny.gov/ . dead . 2015-07-01 . . Searchable database . 2015-11-01 . Note: This includes Web site: "National Register of Historic Places Registration Form: Taylor Signal Company-General Railway Signal Company" . 2015-11-01 . Martin Wachadlo and Francis R. Kowsky . PDF . February 2014 . and Accompanying photographs
19. Web site: Temple of Music. Buffalo Architecture and History.
20. Web site: United Office Building. Buffalo Architecture and History.
21. Web site: Online Buildings - Esenwein & Johnson. Buffalo Architecture and History.