Flip Book for a virtual tour of Austin Allen designs
Samuel Austin Allen arrived in Joplin in 1890 at the age of 10. His father was J.W. Allen an early pioneer and successful mine operator in the area. Austin graduated from Joplin High School in 1898. He received a degree in architecture at the University of Pennsylvania in 1902 and later went to Paris where he pursued his interest in architecture. Returning to the United States Allen became associated with Bruce Price of New York, one of the foremost architects in the United States. After two years in New York he returned to Joplin to begin practicing his craft in 1905. Allen was an extremely successful architect with offices in Kansas City and in the Frisco Building in Joplin. His professional Joplin resume included such handsome structures as the Newman Building, Saint Peter’s Catholic Church, Olivia Apartments, Joplin High School, United Hebrew Temple, Elks Lodge, and many impressive homes. Mr. Allen was a member of the American Institute of Architects. His obituary in their journal noted, “that his work was marked by a “chaste dignity and scholarly restraint.” Mr. Allen married Belle Taylor and had three children.
The land this house sets on was deeded by Lulie Taylor to her daughter, Belle Taylor Allen for “$1 and Love and Affection.” The house is not first period, meaning two houses were razed and lots combined so Austin could design and build the house you see today. Belle’s parents, John H. and Lulie Taylor were Joplin pioneers and made their fortune in mining and real estate.
The living room is paneled in rich dark oak. Some of the features include a large brick fireplace, diamond paned bay windows with built-in window seats, beamed ceilings, and a leaded glass bookcase. After Belle and Austin moved to Kansas City, Missouri, this house was sold to Frank Wallower. The U.S. Census shows Frank, wife Marie, three sons, a private cook, and a private nurse residing here in 1920. The Wallowers moved out in 1943.
The Arts and Craft movement heavily influenced Austin Allen when he designed his home in 1905, for it clearly reflects the movements principals, beautiful materials and honest craftsmanship. Prominent feature in the home include the rich polished wainscoting. Curved built-in window seats, massive brick fireplace and leaded glass bookcases. The most impressive feature however is the elegant coffered ceiling, reminiscent of the homes of the English Tudor and Jacobean periods.
The Allen Mausoleum is located at Mount Hope Cemetery. Inside Allen’s mausoleum is a resolution from the Kansas City Chapter of the American Institute of Architects. Several family members are interred in the mausoleum.
The mausoleum architecture features solar disks between the pair of falcon wings at the very top. It represents the sun god, Re and rebirth. Mr. Allen married Belle Taylor and had three children. He died at the early age of thirty-six from typhoid fever.
Interred S. Austin Allen -3-3-1917, Walter Scott Estes -2-12-1926. Linda McOwen Allen -6-6-1926, Whitby J. Allen -5-22-1930 and Austin Allen Jr. – 12-2-1940
Mr. Allen was a prolific architect who left a lasting impression on the region’s building landscape. He was the most distinguished architect during Joplin’s first fifty years. In a short span of fourteen years, Mr. Allen accomplished what most architects could only dream of in their lifetime. Most of his lasting cherished commercial designs in Joplin, Webb City, and Oronogo are highlighted in this booklet. Many of those buildings are listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and some have local designations. Today his elegantly designed buildings, all over 100 years old, remain a testimony to his talent and continue to be some of Joplin’s most admired and honored building blocks. Austin Allen treasured designs. While Mr. Allen created many grand residential houses, according to the March 28, 1916, Joplin News Herald, he also designed and constructed four-room houses in Joplin’s East Town for “home loving people of moderate means.” The houses were modern bungalows with overhanging porches and roofs. According to Jasper County probate documents, the Allen’s children inherited numerous developed and non-developed lots in East Town.
HMP plans on conducting additional research, partnering with community groups, and identifying houses that may still exist in East Town.
