Vonnegut & Bohn

Vonnegut & Bohn
Company type	Architectural firm
Industry	Architecture
Founded	1888
Founder	Bernard Vonnegut Sr., Arthur Bohn
Defunct	1946
Fate	Merged to form Vonnegut, Wright & Yeager
Successor	Vonnegut, Wright & Yeager
Headquarters	Indianapolis, United States
Area served	Indiana
Key people	Bernard Vonnegut Sr., Arthur Bohn, Kurt Vonnegut Sr., O.N. Mueller
Products	Architectural design services

Vonnegut & Bohn was an architectural firm headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. Established in 1888 by Bernard Vonnegut Sr., FAIA (1855–1908), alongside Arthur Bohn (born 1861), the duo were German-American architects educated in both the United States and Germany, which shaped their unique architectural approach. Their portfolio included a wide array of public, institutional, commercial, religious, and residential structures throughout Indiana, with a notable concentration in Indianapolis.

Following Bernard Vonnegut's passing in 1908, his son Kurt Vonnegut Sr. (1884–1957) entered the firm as principal in 1910 after completing his architectural education in Germany. The firm later expanded to include Mueller as a partner and was renamed Vonnegut, Bohn & Mueller Architects. Arthur Bohn retired during the 1940s.

In 1946, Kurt Vonnegut Sr. combined forces with George Caleb Wright from Pierre & Wright and Ralph Oscar Yeager of Miller & Yeager (based in Terre Haute, Indiana), resulting in the creation of Vonnegut, Wright & Yeager. This new entity maintained offices in both Indianapolis and Terre Haute.

Kurt Vonnegut Sr. is also known as the father of novelist Kurt Vonnegut Jr., who frequently mentioned him in his literary works.

Works by Vonnegut, Bohn & Mueller Architects

The Athenæum (Das Deutsche Haus), located at 401 E. Michigan Street, Indianapolis, Indiana, designed in the German Renaissance Revival style and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1973; (Created by Bernard Vonnegut and Arthur Bohn)
William H. Block Company Building, Indianapolis, Indiana, constructed post-1910; (Designed by Bernard Vonnegut and Arthur Bohn)
Herron Art Institute, Indianapolis, Indiana; (Designed by Bernard Vonnegut)
L. S. Ayres Building, Indianapolis, Indiana, completed in 1905; (Designed by Bernard Vonnegut)
The Students Building at Indiana University Bloomington; (Designed by Bernard Vonnegut)
Delaware Street Temple, Indianapolis, Indiana; (Designed by Bernard Vonnegut)
Shortridge High School, Indianapolis, Indiana; (Designed by Bernard Vonnegut)
Federal Building, located in Vincennes, Indiana; (Designed by Bernard Vonnegut)
Indiana Bell Building, situated in Evansville, Indiana, listed on the NRHP
Indiana Bell Telephone Building, Indianapolis, Indiana; (Designed by Kurt Vonnegut Sr.)
All Souls Unitarian Church, at 1453 N. Alabama Street, Indianapolis, Indiana; original structure designed by Kurt Vonnegut
Anderson Bank Building, located in Anderson, Indiana; (Designed by Kurt Vonnegut)
Pre-World War II buildings for Hook's Drug Stores; (Designed by Kurt Vonnegut)
Residence at 4365 North Illinois Street, Indianapolis 4th Ward Washington Township, Marion County, Indiana, circa 1929; (Designed by Kurt Vonnegut Sr.)
Residence of Kurt Vonnegut Sr., William's Creek, Indiana, built in 1941; (Designed by Kurt Vonnegut)
Chemico Laboratories, Indianapolis, Indiana, completed in 1944; (Collaboration between Kurt Vonnegut Sr. and George Caleb Wright)
Evansville Telephone Building, Sycamore Street, Evansville, Indiana, built in 1922; (Joint design by Kurt Vonnegut, Arthur Bohn, and O.N. Mueller)
Merchant's Building, located at Capitol Avenue and Georgia Street, Indianapolis, Indiana, constructed in 1914; (Designed by Kurt Vonnegut and Arthur Bohn)
Office building for the United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America in Indianapolis, Indiana, dated 1908; (Created by Bernard Vonnegut and Arthur Bohn)
Vonnegut Hardware Company, situated at 120 East Washington Street, Indianapolis, Indiana, completed in 1948; (Designed collaboratively by Kurt Vonnegut, George Caleb Wright, and Ralph Oscar Yeager)
Meridian Service Company, Automobile Service Plant, located at 2421 North Meridian Street, Indianapolis, Indiana, built in 1926; (Design credits to Kurt Vonnegut, Arthur Bohn, and O.N. Mueller)

External links

Image of the Athenæum
Photograph of the Herron Art Institute
Vonnegut and Bohn Architectural Records, Ball State University Libraries, Drawings and Documents Archive.