Gilbert Stanley Underwood

Gilbert Stanley Underwood (1890-1960) was an American architect best known for his National Park lodges. Born in 1890, Underwood received his B.A. from Yale in 1920 and a M.A. from Harvard in 1923. After opening an office in Los Angeles that year, he became associated with Daniel Hull of the National Park Service. This led to a commission with the Utah Parks Company of the Union Pacific Railroad which was developing the parks in hopes of producing destinations for travelers. During this time Underwood designed lodges for Cedar Breaks National Monument, Zion National Park, Bryce Canyon National Park, and North Rim of the Grand Canyon National Park. In addition, he was contracted to design Yosemite National Park's Ahwahnee Hotel, probably his greatest triumph in the rustic style.

Underwood also designed stations for the Union Pacific, culminating in the art deco style station in Omaha in 1929. Then in 1932, Underwood joined the Federal Architects Project. While working for the federal government, Underwood produced the preliminary designs for the Timberline Lodge, Mount Hood, Oregon, and went on to design more than 20 post offices, two major federal buildings, and the U.S. State Department Building. From 1947 to 1949, he was appointed as federal supervisory architect.

Following retirement and utilizing an association with John D. Rockefeller, Jr., and the Williamsburg Lodge project in Virginia, Underwood designed as his last major commission the Jackson Lake Lodge (1950-1954), Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming. He died in 1960.

Underwood's works include:
* Old Faithful Lodge, Yellowstone National Park - completed 1923
* Bryce Canyon Lodge, Bryce Canyon National Park - completed 1925
* The Ahwahnee, Yosemite National Park - completed 1926
* Zion Lodge - completed 1927, burned 1966, rebuilt (different style)
* Union Passenger Depot, Omaha, Nebraska - completed 1931 (Now housing the Durham Western Heritage Museum)
* Grand Canyon Lodge (North Rim) - completed 1928, burned 1932, rebuilt (modified style, same footprint)
* The post office in Beacon, New York (with Charles Rosen) - completed 1934
* Sun Valley Lodge - completed 1936
* Jackson Lake Lodge, Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming - completed 1954

External links

* [http://www.cr.nps.gov/history/online_books/sontag/underwood.htm National Parks Service biography]
* [http://www.archsculptbooks.com/neb07omahaunionstation.htm architectural sculpture on Omaha Union Station]