Perry E. Crosier papers

Perry E. Crosier was born in Minneapolis on November 17, 1890. In 1909 Crosier began his career in architecture as a draftsman for Harry W. Jones, a Minneapolis architect. From 1910-1913 Crosier worked for Bertrand and Chamberlin, architects, Harrington-Skiles, a real estate company and J. L. Hedden, building contractors, and in Minneapolis. Between 1914 and 1916, Crosier had his own company of architects and contractors, the Crosier Construction Company. After the breakup of his company, Crosier continued to practice independently for most of his life. In 1921 he worked briefly with the architectural firm Liebenberg & Kaplan and continued to collaborate with them, especially in the design of movie theaters, throughout his career. Crosier's son Paul joined his father in practice in 1946 and the firm became Perry E. Crosier & Son. After the elder Crosier's death in August 1953, the firm continued as Paul E. Crosier Co. until 1955.

Perry Crosier is best known for his designs of movie theaters built throughout Minnesota in the thirties and early forties. Those in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area include the Boulevard Twins Theatre (1939), the Avalon Theatre (1937), the St. Louis Park Theatre (1938), the Hopkins Theatre (1941) and the West Twins Theatre, West St. Paul. Those he is known to have designed in collaboration with Liebenberg & Kaplan are the Westgate Theatre (1934), the Cinema Theatre in Detroit Lakes, MN, the Princess Theatre in Wabasha, WI, and Village Theatre in Faribault, MN (1944-46). Crosier also designed several apartment complexes. The best known of these are the Belmont (n.d.), the Oak Terrace (n.d.) and the Fair Oaks (1939). He also designed the Loring Medical Building (1926), also located in Minneapolis.