Gilbert Stanley Underwood was an American architect renowned for his mastery of the Rustic architectural style in national park lodges. Born in Oneida, New York, he pursued architecture at prestigious institutions, earning his B.A. from Yale University in 1920 and M.A. from Harvard in 1923. After opening his Los Angeles practice in 1923, Underwood forged a pivotal partnership with National Park Service landscape architect Daniel Ray Hull, which led to his career-defining work with the Utah Parks Company of the Union Pacific Railroad.
His career spanned multiple phases: the 1920s national park lodge era, 1930s Art Deco railway stations, federal government service (1932-1949) including his role as federal supervisory architect, and a final period designing Jackson Lake Lodge before retiring to Fort Lauderdale, Florida in 1954.
NOTABLE WORKS
Zion Lodge (1927), Zion National Park – NRHP
Old Faithful Lodge (1923), Yellowstone National Park – NRHP
U.S. Mint (1937), San Francisco
Desmonds Department Store Building (1928-29), Los Angeles
Los Angeles Terminal Annex Building (1939-1940), Los Angeles