{{Short description|American architect}} {{Infobox architect |name=George Dahl |image=George Dahl.jpg |birth_date={{birth date|1894|5|11}} |birth_place= [[Minneapolis]], [[Minnesota]] |death_date={{death date and age|1987|7|18|1894|5|11}} |death_place= [[Dallas]], [[Texas]] |significant_buildings= [[Titche-Goettinger Building]], Hillcrest State Bank, [[The Dallas Morning News]] building, Southwestern Life building, [[Ling-Temco-Vought|LTV Aerospace]] Center, [[Dallas Public Library]], [[Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium]]<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.architectural-images.com/gdi.htm |title=''George L. Dahl'' (Architectural Images) |access-date=2010-04-10 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110707155555/http://www.architectural-images.com/gdi.htm |archive-date=2011-07-07 |url-status=dead }}</ref> |significant_projects=[[Texas Centennial Exposition]], [[University of Texas]] |awards= }}
'''George Leighton Dahl''' (May 11, 1894 – July 18, 1987) was a prominent American [[architect]] based in [[Dallas]], [[Texas]] during the 20th century. His most notable contributions include the [[Art Deco]] structures of [[Fair Park]] while he oversaw planning and construction of the 1936 [[Texas Centennial Exposition]]. In 1970, in anticipation of imminent commercial growth brought on by the impending development of the [[Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport]], he designed the First National Bank of [[Grapevine, Texas|Grapevine]] building at 1400 South Main Street. This iconic cubist structure served as a harbinger of the area's upcoming economic development.
==Background== George Dahl was born in [[Minneapolis]] to [[Norwegian American|Norwegian immigrant]] parents, Olaf G. and Laura (Olson) Dahl. He received a [[Bachelor of Architecture|B.Arch.]] from the [[University of Minnesota]] and a [[Master of Architecture|M.Arch.]] from [[Harvard Graduate School of Design|Harvard University]] in 1923. He subsequently spent two years in [[Italy]] as a fellow at the [[American Academy in Rome]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.lib.utexas.edu/taro/utaaa/00028/aaa-00028.html |title=''George Dahl: An Inventory of his Papers, 1916-1991'' |work=Texas Archival Resources Online |publisher=University of Texas at Austin |accessdate=2009-10-19}}</ref>
==Career== In 1926, he began work for the [[Herbert M. Greene]] Co. in [[Dallas]], Texas. He became a partner in Greene's firm in 1928, and the name of the firm was changed to Herbert M. Greene, LaRoche, and Dahl (later LaRoche and Dahl).
In 1943, Dahl founded his own firm, George Leighton Dahl, Architects and Engineers, Incorporated, with a nationwide practice. Dahl was also a pioneer in [[fast-track construction]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/dahl-george-leighton|title=TSHA | Dahl, George Leighton|website=www.tshaonline.org|accessdate=26 October 2021}}</ref> Upon his retirement in 1973, he had produced some 3,000 projects throughout the country that are estimated to be worth $2 billion.
==Personal life== Dahl was married twice: in 1921 to Lillie E. Olson, with whom he had one daughter, and in 1978 to Joan Renfro. Dahl died of dehydration at the age of ninety-three at his home in Dallas.
==Significant work== [[File:Dallas Fair Park Esplanade.jpg|thumb|right|300px|Art Deco buildings in [[Fair Park]]]]
[[File:Dallas Elm Place.jpg|thumb|right|300px|First National Bank Tower (Elm Place)]]
[[File:Bank_of_America_Building_(Midland).jpg|thumb|right|300px|303 W. Wall St., Midland, TX; formerly the First National Bank Building, still tallest building in [[Midland, TX]] in 2018]]
'''Dallas Projects:'''
{| cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" style="margin: 0 1em 1em 0; font-size: 90%;" |- |- bgcolor="#cccccc" !Year Completed||Building||Address||Notes |- | 1927 || [[Neiman Marcus Building]] || 1618 Main Street |- bgcolor="efefef" | 1929 || [[Titche-Goettinger Building]] || 1900 Elm Street |- | 1930 || Volk Brothers Building || |- bgcolor="efefef" | 1934 || [[Singer Building (Dallas, Texas)]] || 1514 Elm |- | 1936 || [[Fair Park#Tower Building|Tower Building]] || [[Fair Park]] |- bgcolor="efefef" | 1936 || [[Fair Park#Esplanade|Esplanade of State]] || [[Fair Park]] |- | 1936 || [[Cotton Bowl (stadium)|Cotton Bowl]] || [[Fair Park]] |- bgcolor="efefef" | 1938, 1972 || Hillcrest State Bank || || First [[drive-through]] bank |- | 1947 || Mayfair Department Store || 141 Elm Street |- bgcolor="efefef" | 1948 || American Poster & Printing Building || 1600 S Akard Street |- | 1949 || [[Remington Rand]] Building || 2100 N Akard Street |- bgcolor="efefef" | 1949 || [[Dallas Morning News]] Building || 508 Young Street |- | 1949 || Merchants State Bank || Ross/Henderson |- bgcolor="efefef" | 1949 || Philipson's Fashions || Elm/St Paul |- | 1950 || Employers Insurance Building || |- bgcolor="efefef" | 1950 || Great American Reserve Insurance Building || 2020 Live Oak Street |- | 1951 || [[Park Cities, Texas|Park Cities]] [[YMCA]] || 6000 Preston Road |- bgcolor="efefef" | 1953 || [[Grupo Bimbo|Mrs. Baird's Bakery]] || Central Expressway/Mockingbird |- | 1955 || [[Old Dallas Central Library]] || 1954 Commerce Street |- bgcolor="efefef" | 1956 || [[Congregation Shearith Israel]] || |- | 1957 || Dallas Federal Savings and Loan || 1505 Elm Street |- bgcolor="efefef" | 1957 || [[Dallas Memorial Auditorium]] || |- | 1962 || The Whittle Music Building || 2733 Oak Lawn Avenue |- bgcolor="efefef" | 1964 || Southwestern Life Building || Ross/Akard |- | 1964 || Northway Baptist Church Sanctuary || 3877 Walnut Hill Lane |- bgcolor="efefef" | 1965 || Owen Fine Art Center || [[Southern Methodist University]] |- | 1965 || [[The Drever|First National Bank Tower]] || 1401 Elm Street |- bgcolor="efefef" | 1968 || [[St. Pius X Catholic Church, Dallas|St. Pius X Catholic Church (Dallas, Texas)]] || 3030 Gus Thomasson Road || Mid-century modern sanctuary combining mission-inspired detailing and laminated wood construction |- | 1969 || [[Turtle Creek, Dallas|Turtle Creek Village]] || Oak Lawn/Blackburn |- bgcolor="efefef" | 1970 || [[Ling-Temco-Vought|LTV Aerospace]] || Grand Prairie |- | 1970 || First National Bank of Grapevine || 1400 South Main Street, Grapevine |- bgcolor="efefef" | 1971 || [[Earle Cabell Federal Building and Courthouse|Earle Cabell Federal Building]] || |} '''Other projects:''' * First National Bank Building, 303 W. Wall St., Midland, TX, 1952<ref>{{cite web |url=http://texashighways.com/family/item/6705-web-extra-midland-s-mid-century-modern-architecture |title=''Midland's Mid-Century Modern Architecture'' |website=Texashighways.com|access-date=2011-07-01 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180329054525/http://texashighways.com/family/item/6705-web-extra-midland-s-mid-century-modern-architecture |archive-date=2018-03-29 |url-status=dead }}</ref> * Tanglewood Resort, [[Lake Texoma]], 1960 * DC Stadium, later renamed to [[RFK Stadium]], [[Washington, D.C.]], 1962 * Medical facilities for: Dallas Methodist Hospital, Dallas Public Health Center * Central Library for The [[University of Texas at Arlington]]<ref>Barker, Evelyn and Lea Worcester. ''University of Texas at Arlington, the Campus History Series'' (Charleston: Arcadia, 2015), p.63.</ref> * Texas Hall for The University of Texas at Arlington <ref>{{Cite web |url=http://library.uta.edu/digitalgallery/items/show/23329 |title=[Untitled] · UTA Libraries |access-date=2017-11-20 |archive-date=2017-11-16 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171116022142/http://library.uta.edu/digitalgallery/items/show/23329 |url-status=dead }}</ref> * Education facilities for: [[University of Texas]], [[University of North Texas]], [[Texas A&M University–Commerce|East Texas State College]], [[University of Plano]], [[Southern Methodist University]], [[Jesuit College Preparatory School of Dallas|Jesuit High School]] * Prisons for the [[Texas Department of Corrections]] * Retail stores for [[Sears|Sears, Roebuck and Co.]]
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== * [http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/fda86 Texas Handbook Online] * [http://www.lib.utexas.edu/taro/utaaa/00028/aaa-00028.html University of Texas Library] * [https://web.archive.org/web/20110707155555/http://www.architectural-images.com/gdi.htm Architectural Images]
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Dahl, George}} [[Category:1894 births]] [[Category:1987 deaths]] [[Category:American people of Norwegian descent]] [[Category:20th-century American architects]] [[Category:Artists from Dallas]] [[Category:Architects from Minneapolis]] [[Category:University of Minnesota School of Architecture alumni]] [[Category:Harvard Graduate School of Design alumni]] [[Category:Architects from Texas]]