John H. Burton Explained

John Haven Burton
Nationality:American
Birth Date:28 May 1857
Birth Place:Salt Lake City, Utah
Death Place:Salt Lake City, Utah

John H. Burton (1857-1887) was an American architect based in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Life and career

John Haven Burton was born May 28, 1857, in Salt Lake City to Robert T. Burton, a Mormon official, and Maria S. (Haven) Burton, his first wife.[1] [2] His education is not known, and he may have been self-trained in architecture. He was practicing as an architect by 1881, when he was commissioned to design the Territorial Insane Asylum in Provo, Utah in association with Don Carlos Young as civil engineer. The south wing of the institution were finished in 1883, but the entire building was not completed until after his death by Richard K. A. Kletting. In 1883 he was also commissioned to design University Hall of the University of Deseret. He is believed to have obtained these commissions through his father's influence.[2] He also is known to have designed a variety of residential and commercial structures in Salt Lake City. The only building he designed that is known to survive is the home of James Glendinning, built for John W. Epley in 1882 and bought by Glendinning in 1884. The house is now home to the offices of the Utah Division of Arts and Museums.[3] [4]

Burton was joined in 1883 by an assistant, Richard K. A. Kletting, who would establish an independent practice circa 1885.[5] Burton was shot and killed by an Alfred H. Martin on May 29, 1887, in Salt Lake City.[2] [1]

Personal life

Burton married in 1883 to Kathleen Ferguson of Salt Lake City. They had two children. One, Charles H. Burton, would become a noted engineer in Twin Falls, Idaho.[6]

It is not known if Burton was related to Harold W. Burton, another architect of Salt Lake City.

Notes and References

  1. "John Haven Burton," utahcfa.org, Utah Center for Architecture, n. d. Accessed August 25, 2021.
  2. P. Bradford Westwood, "The Early Life and Career of Joseph Don Carlos Young (1855-1938)." Thesis in the Graduate Program in Historic Preservation at the University of Pennsylvania. 1994.
  3. Allen Dale Roberts, Salt Lake City's Historic Architecture (Charleston: Arcadia Publishing, 2012): 108.
  4. "Utah Arts & Museums Celebrates 40 Years at Glendinning Home," artsandmuseums.utah.gov, Utah Division of Arts and Museums, 2019. Accessed August 25, 2021.
  5. News: Richard K.A. Kletting (1858-1943) - Leading Utah Architect . Charles M. Shepherd . The Utah Heritage Foundation Newsletter . Fall 2009.
  6. Hiram T. French, "Charles H. Burton" in History of Idaho; A Narrative Account of Its Historical Progress, Its People and Principal Interests (Chicago and New York: Lewis Publishing Company, 1914): 1032.