Charles Franklin Sparrell
Charles Franklin Sparrell was born in Boston, Massachusetts in 1852 and died in Newport, Kentucky in 1934. His father was John Turner Sparrell, Jr., a marble worker, and farmer. His mother was Elizabeth Ann Sparrell. He was the most influential architect in the city of Columbus, Indiana in the late 19th century. When he arrived in the city in the early 1880s he was credited as having attended an "institute of technology" in Massachusetts, but Massachusetts Institute of Technology does not list him as an alumnus. More than 10 of his buildings remain in the city, many of which are on the National Register of Historic Places listings in Bartholomew County, Indiana.
Architectural career
Before starting his own practice, he worked for Hege and Company Contracting as a shop foreman. His own offices were located on 330, 332, and 334 Fifth Street and his employees included Georgia Wills, a woman who worked for him as an assistant draftsman.Among his most notable buildings are the Columbus City Hall and the Maple Grove School.
Columbus City Hall was completed in 1895 and remains at 445 Fifth Street. Today it is operated as an apartment complex. This brick romanesque revival building features a tall, square bell tower and limestone detailing. When first opened it contained the police station and the jail. It also had a banquet hall, a dance hall, a basketball court, and an exhibit area. A farmers market operated out of the basement that opened to the public on the west side of the street.
While the Maple Grove School has been home to a variety of organizations and was quickly renamed the Garfield Elementary School, it was built in 1896 as a four classroom school house. In the late 1980s Arvin Industries renovated and expanded the building to serve as the company's headquarters. Today it serves as the administrative building for the Bartholomew Consolidated School Corporation.
List of buildings designed by Sparrell
It is not clear if the former A. J. Banker's Hospital or Reeves Pulley Company were designed by Sparrell; only one published source indicates he designed these buildings.| Image | Name | Address | GPS Coordinates | Year Completed |
| Ruddick-Nugent House | 1210 16th Street | 1884 | ||
| Fehring Block | 520 Washington Street | 1885 | ||
| Central Christian Church | 628 7th Street | 1886 | ||
| Washington School | 718 Pearl Street | 1887 | ||
| First United Methodist Church | 618 8th Street | 1887 | ||
| The Crump Theatre | 425 Third Street | 1889 | ||
| J. Will Prall House | 605 Fifth Street | 1891 | ||
| Odd Fellows Hall | 601 Washington | 1891 | ||
| McKinley School | 1198 17th Street | 1892 | ||
| Columbus City Hall | 445 Fifth Street | 1895 | ||
| Overstreet House | 1034 Washington Street | 1895 | ||
| Maple Grove School | One Norbitt Plaza | 1896 | ||
| U.S. Post Office | 548 Washington Street | 1897 | ||
| Crump House | 1008 Washington Street |