James Gallier


James Gallier was a prominent 19th-century New Orleans architect.

Biography

Early life

He was born James Gallagher in Ravensdale, County Louth, Ireland in 1798. He changed his last name to a French surname when he moved to New Orleans.

Career

He worked in England during his early career, designing the Godmanchester Chinese Bridge which crosses a mill stream of the River Great Ouse in 1827, and then working on the redevelopment of the Grosvenor Estate in Mayfair. He became bankrupt, and emigrated to America in 1832.
He was one of a group of architects who created the idea of Architectural Practice, with the architect working for the clients, and managing those who actually build the structures that have been designed.
His significant works that are National Historic Landmarks include:
His other significant works include:
In 1823, while in England, he met and married Elizabeth Tyler. Their only surviving child was James Gallier Jr., who also became an architect. Elizabeth died in July 1844, in her mid-forties.
On June 23, 1850, in Charleston, South Carolina, he married Catherine Maria Robinson of Mobile, Alabama, who was born November 18, 1822, in Hardwick, Massachusetts, to Colonel Joseph Robinson and Ann Maria Ruggles Walton. She was 24 years his junior.
On October 3, 1866, Mr. and Mrs. Gallier were passengers on board the Evening Star, a paddle-wheel steamer en route from New York City to New Orleans, when it sank in a hurricane about 175 miles east of Savannah, Georgia. There were only a half-dozen survivors out of approximately 250 people.