Roland Wehner – Iowa City’s Architect Of Historic Places.

The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the official list of the nation’s historic places worthy of preservation. Authorized by the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, the National Park Service’s National Register of Historic Places is part of a national program to coordinate and support public and private efforts to identify, evaluate, and protect America’s historic and archeological resources. At the end of 2023, there were more than 98,000 properties listed in the National Register with 94 of those historic places located in Johnson County, Iowa. As we write this post in December 2024, we have just found out that there is, now, a 95th entry to that Johnson County list…

***Roland and Marilyn Wehner House – 3112 lowa Highway 1 – Iowa City – 1959 – NRHP-September 9, 2013***.

***Robert A. Lee Recreation Center – 220 S. Gilbert Street – Iowa City – 1964 – NRHP-December 5, 2024.***

Quite honestly, it’s rare for a living architect to have one of his or her creations listed on the National Register of Historic Places – let alone two! First of all, any building that is nominated for the NRHP list must go through a rigorous test that proves its historic value, and secondly, that same historic building must be at least 50 years old at the time of its nomination! Finally, with these two rules in place, this bring us to the logical conclusion that any living architect of a qualifying building must have had 1) a long career in architecture, 2) they created their classic early in their career, and 3) they are fortunate enough to still be living a long life!

***In this case, our long-time Iowa City architect & 2X NRHP winner fits the bill!***

Roland C. Wehner – Iowa City architect from 1956 to 1996 – was born in 1931, designed his two NRHP award-winning buildings in the late 1950’s and early 1960’s when he was in the first decade of his long, 40-year career, and today (Summer 2024), is still a robust go-getter at age 92.

Roland Wehner was born in Hancock County, Illinois, on November 28, 1931, and the Wehner family moved to Oakville, Iowa – a small Iowa town north of Burlington – after the family’s Illinois farmland flooded in the 1940’s. Wehner was valedictorian in his nine-member Class of 1949 at Oakville High School and he tells us that his introduction to “the sciences” began when he and his fellow seniors constructed an electrified scoreboard for their new gym using light bulbs, electrical wire, and a pile of empty grapefruit cans! Arriving at Iowa State College in Ames, Wehner first studied electrical engineering before switching over to architecture – graduating in 1954.

At his first job, working at Dane D. Morgan & Associates in Burlington, Iowa, Wehner met Marilyn Ruth Duke, who was a secretary at the firm. Marilyn was born in Burlington on March 2, 1934, graduating as a valedictorian for her 1952 senior class at Burlington High School.

The two married on New Year’s Day 1956, and after a Chicago honeymoon, the Wehners moved to Iowa City where Marilyn enrolled at SUI in Education, while Roland started working, as an intern, with Iowa City’s first registered architect – Henry L. Fisk.

***Above is a copy of the July 5, 1955 invitation letter Henry L. Fisk extended to Roland Wehner. You can read Roland’s remembrances of Henry L. Fisk here.***

Working with Henry L. Fisk was an opportunity Roland Wehner said he’s “grown to appreciate”, never realizing until his later years, as he ran his own business, how very generous Fisk was in opening doors for Roland to put his hands into projects that were far beyond his experience at the time.

Wehner started as an intern architect with Fisk in 1956, became licensed in 1958, and a full partner in the firm from 1960 to 1962. Over those six years, Fisk and Wehner worked together on houses, schools, and other municipal buildings throughout the city. Sadly, Henry L. Fisk died suddenly of a heart attack on July 13, 1962, leaving Roland in the middle of several important work assignments. More details on three of those projects later.

After Henry Fisk’s sudden death, Wehner instantly found himself, not only as the senior partner of the architectural firm, but also in great need of assistance for the firm’s many projects. He subsequently convinced his college classmate – Harvey W. Henry – to join the firm and renamed it – Wehner and Henry, Architects.

Over the years, the Iowa City-based architectural firm went by various names as partners changed, but Wehner makes it very clear that his long-term success relied heavily on his partners: architects Richard ‘Dick’ Pattschull, William ‘Bill’ Nowysz, John Pfiffner, and his longtime secretary – Doris Schornhorst. The firm worked on numerous projects (see list above) – homes, schools, city buildings, churches, apartment buildings and more – primarily in Iowa, but also in Illinois, Missouri, South Dakota and other states.

“We approached every job with the same kind of dedication,” Wehner states. All of the firm’s drawings – nearly 1,800, all under the name “The Pattschull Collection”, since he was the last architect to retire – were donated to the State Historical Society Research Center in Iowa City (above right) in 2013.

In spring 1957, the Wehners bought a wooded lot just off Highway 1 north of Iowa City. The two moved their house trailer to the lot and started to think what they wanted their house to look like, even building a small model of it.

The first set of construction drawings with Roland Wehner’s name as a registered architect was for the Iowa City home he and his wife, Marilyn, designed and built in the late 1950’s just off Highway 1 north of Iowa City. The home — 3112 Highway 1 NE, Iowa City — was built in two phases. The main part was built in 1959 and the bedroom wing completed in 1965. The house is built of Anamosa stone and California redwood, and inspiration for the house’s design came from Frank Lloyd Wright, an architect whose work Wehner has admired since college.

The house has a “pinwheel” stairway (above left) that leads to the five levels. “There’s nothing in our house that copies something cold out of a Frank Lloyd Wright house, but the overall feeling — the grammar, the sense of shelter, close relationship with the site — were all Wrightian principles,” Wehner states.

Roland and Marilyn loved living in the woods and would hike through them often. “It was a beautiful place to live,” Marilyn says, noting the many wildflowers, migratory birds, opossums, raccoon, baby fox and deer. She loved the home’s family room where the family spent most of their time. The house also had a photography darkroom in the basement, a must for Roland – an avid photographer.

The Wehners lived in this beautiful home for 57 years – until 2017 – and, as we mentioned earlier, the house was officially listed on the National Register of Historic Places on September 9, 2013.

In 2016, Roland Wehner gives an overview of designing his award-winning home in Iowa City.

In 1958, just as Roland Wehner was becoming fully licensed, the City of Iowa City hired the architectural team of Fisk and Wehner to oversee a large-scale, three-phase plan to re-imagine city buildings using modern design principles and construction techniques. It’s this big assignment that, quite honestly, put Fisk and Wehner on the map here in Iowa City, with the city buildings that came out of this three-pronged project still with us today. Allow me here, to give you a brief overview of this impressive triad…

Phase 1 – Police & Fire Station – 1959. Iowa City’s City Hall stood on the northwest corner of Washington and Linn Streets since 1881. The building (see above) also housed the city’s police and fire departments. You can read more about this Iowa City iconic building here. The initial concept drawings for a new, expansive Civic Center included Phase 1 – a new Fire Station and Police Station (see below), both of which were completed in 1959.

***Today (below) – on Gilbert Street (attached to City Hall on Washington Street), you’ll find Fisk & Wehner’s Police and Fire Stations.***

Phase 2 – Civic Center – 1961. Phase 2 of these municipal improvement projects called for an administrative unit to replace a deteriorating City Hall built in 1881. Completed in 1961/1962, the Civic Center demonstrated success with a comprehensive, well-conceived plan for municipal buildings and public services.

***Pictured below, the Civic Center has been re-purposed numerous times over the years and today, Fisk & Wehner’s creation remains as Iowa City’s City Hall located at 410 East Washington.***

Phase 3 – Recreation Center – 1963. As with previous phases of the project, the Iowa City Community Recreation Center – located at 220 S. Gilbert Street – was planned to coordinate with the aesthetics and in function with these neighboring municipal buildings.

When designing the Recreation Center, Roland Wehner reports that he and Henry Fisk incorporated plenty of glass into the design of the 44,000-square-foot building so it would seem open and inviting – a feature that was cutting edge at the time. Another unique feature was the maple floor of the gym, which they designed extra thick so visitors could roller skate on it.

***The center, which opened in 1964, used funding from a bond issue after the American Legion Recreation Center (see below) burned to the ground (1955) at the same spot where the current center stands.***

The Iowa City Rec Center was named after Robert (Bob) A. Lee in 1983, who was the recreation superintendent for the City of Iowa City from 1951-1983. Wehner recalls that Lee was a well-regarded figure in the community who generated public support for passing the bond issue that helped fund the center. Lee also insisted on locating the center in downtown Iowa City as opposed to on the edge of town, where other communities were building their recreation centers.

***Wehner looks back on designing the Robert A. Lee Recreation Center fondly. “If you rank work that you’ve done over the years, it’s probably in the top 10,” Roland said.***

As we mentioned earlier, on December 5, 2024 – the Robert A. Lee Recreation Center has now been approved for being listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP).

Over the years, Roland Wehner has drawn up plans for many religious organizations in the area: Wesley Center; Trinity Christian Reformed Church; First Christian Church; Our Redeemer Lutheran Church; Hillel House Jewish Student Center; and an addition for Coralville Methodist Church. But when asked about his favorite work assignment, Roland Wehner responded… “(While) each project was a challenge on its own, one that stands out is the Newman Catholic Student Center at 104 E Jefferson Street in Iowa City.”

***Above is a short history of The Newman Club – which, over the years, developed into the Newman Catholic Student Center in Iowa City.***

In the late 1980’s, former Newman Center director – Father Ed Fitzpatrick – launched an ambitious building campaign to tear down the aging St. Mary’s school and construct a modern student center that would serve as a focal point for Catholics at the University. Fitzpatrick immediately reached out to Roland Wehner, and by the summer of 1987, excavation of the site had begun. Early in 1988, the cornerstone was blessed as construction commenced, and on January 15, 1989, the Newman Catholic Student Center was dedicated by Bishop Gerald O’Keefe.

Roland is particularly proud of his creation – serving as the lead architect on the project, and doing all of the drawings and specifications. Wehner fondly recalls his Saturday morning meetings with Father Ed (below left), who dropped into the firm’s office as Roland was finishing up what didn’t get done during the week. “That was a very good relationship – client and architect,” Wehner states. “When people ask who designed the Newman Center, I say Father Ed and I.”

When interviewing Roland recently, he shared that it’s his hope that in 2039, when the Newman Center will finally become eligible, his friends and comrades will nominate this classic Wehner creation for his third NRHP award! Who knows, maybe Roland just might live to see this one as well – though he’d be 108!

Roland Wehner retired in 1994, continuing to work part-time, finishing up on-going assignments, for two more years until 1996. From 2001 to 2006, he volunteered for Habitat for Humanity, drafting and helping build twenty-five houses. Roland also continued his long-time interest in photography, which goes back to his high school years. In 2016, Wehner donated about 30,000 images to the State Historical Society of Iowa, digitizing all of the images before turning them over to the Iowa City office. Marilyn Wehner, after graduating from Graceland College (1954), and the University of Iowa (1957), taught in the Iowa City public school system for several years, and more recently, became actively involved with numerous community organizations, including Project Green.

Asked about what he hopes people take away from the buildings he and his firms have designed, Wehner said it’s difficult to put into words…

“I hope that the buildings have a timelessness about them…that they don’t necessarily pick up the latest fad, that they’re practical and functional, but yet interesting.”

Marilyn & Roland Wehner moved out of their award-winning home in 2017, and now live in Coralville. Here’s a big thank you to both! We who live here in Iowa City & Johnson County are true beneficiaries of your generous lives! Godspeed!