Marker Details

Marker Text: Maurice J. Sullivan, son of Maurice and Margaret (Fitzsimons) Sullivan, was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He attended Detroit College (1901-1903) and studied structural and civil engineering at the University of Michigan (1904-1906). While working at engineering firms from 1909-1912, Sullivan taught himself architecture. He married Anne Winston and they had four sons and three daughters.



After moving to Houston in 1912, Sullivan was appointed City Architect by Mayor Baldwin Rice and took on numerous projects, including Dora B. Lantrip elementary school (1916). Known for being an eclectic architect who frequently worked in popular revival styles including Romanesque, Mediterranean, and Neo-Gothic, Sullivan opened his own practice in 1919, sharing an office with Birdsall P. Briscoe for 35 years. His ecclesiastical work is considered his most significant and includes the Villa de Matel Chapel (1923-28), Holy Rosary Church (1933), St. Anne Catholic Church (1940) and First Presbyterian Church (1949). Other prominent buildings include the Petroleum Building (now the Great Southwest building), which introduced the stepped-back skyscraper to Houston, Houston Negro Hospital (now Riverside Hospital), St. Thomas High School, Ripley House, and St. Mary's Seminary.



In 1922, Sullivan designed his family home at the corner of Southmore Boulevard and Fannin Street in the picturesque Manorial style, exemplifying the houses associated with 1920s and 1930s elite Texas residential neighborhoods. In 1924 and 1933, he served as president of the South Texas Chapter of the American Institute of Architects. Sullivan is buried in Holy Cross Cemetery. In 1992 private citizens purchased the home for use as a commercial property.



175 Years of Texas Independence * 1836-2011

Marker is property of the State of Texas