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Douglas Orr

American architect (1892–1966)

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Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionMar 9, 2026
Entity authorityQ5301858 ↗
Source-derived summary

Douglas William Orr (March 25, 1892 – July 29, 1966) was an American architect based in New Haven, Connecticut.

Biography

Douglas Orr was born in Meriden, Connecticut, to Adam and Mary Orr. He was prolific and designed many public and commercial buildings, primarily in the New Haven area. He was president of the American Institute of Architects from 1947 to 1949. In 1949, he also helped to renovate the White House. He died in 1966 in Stony Creek, Connecticut.

Orr worked for H. Wales Lines Company before starting the firm Orr & Booth in 1916, partnering with Robert H. S. Booth. The firm received many commissions, including the office and factory of the Connecticut Telephone and Electric Company, but business was interrupted when both partners served in the armed forces on entry of the United States into World War I; Orr served in the army. After receiving his undergraduate degree from Yale University, he opened his own architectural practice in 1919. He completed a master's degree in fine arts at Yale in 1927, where he designed the Taft Memorial Tower and Harkness Memorial Hall.

Editorial summary

This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Douglas Orr” as american architect (1892–1966). Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.

Editorial reviewA useful biographical orientation record, particularly for establishing names, roles and a first chronology. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—1892, 1966, 1947, 1949—that can be checked directly. The linked authority record independently contributes the date 1892-03-25. The account is most persuasive where Douglas, American and architect can be independently traced.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

The subject matters to the people & ideas register because the source frames it as american architect (1892–1966). Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.

Evidence profile

Biographical claims are most persuasive when dates, appointments and relationships can be traced to records created close to the events described. The source revision retrieved here is dated Mar 9, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q5301858. VIAF identifies the subject as 95695309. The Library of Congress control number is n2009163124. 3 of 3 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1892, 1966, 1947 and 1949.

Critical limits

A concise life account rarely captures disputed attribution, private networks or the changing language used to describe a career. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Read biographical claims against dates, named institutions and the cited references. Distinguish a subject’s later reputation from evidence produced during their lifetime.

Best used for
  • Establishing names and roles
  • Building a first chronology
  • Locating cited institutions
Verify next

Personal papers, civil or court records, institutional files and the scholarship cited by the source.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “Douglas Orr”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow Douglas Orr primary sources, Douglas Orr archive and Douglas research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Douglas Orr”?
  2. Which claims depend on a single source or contested interpretation?
  3. Which primary records establish identity, chronology and institutional ties?
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Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from “Douglas Orr” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.