Encyclopedia Dubuque
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RAGUE, John Francis
RAGUE, John Francis. (Scotch Plains, NI, Mar. 24, 1799--Dubuque, IA, Sept. 24, 1877). Rague studied architecture in New York City in the early 1800s. It is believed he was a student of Minard Lafever who published the first in a series of architectural plan books in 1829.
Rague's move to Springfield, Illinois, in 1831, led to him opening a bakery shop. He also advertised as a barterer and wholesaler. He served as Springfield's market master in 1833 and was elected a church trustee. He was serving as a town trustee in 1836 when interest rose in moving the state capitol from Vandalia to Springfield. Perhaps realizing that being a shop owner would not impress people, he returned to New York perhaps to be near his mentor Lafever. When Rague returned to Springfield, he won the 1837 competition to design the capitol building. His Greek Revival plan was soon to be repeated.
In 1839 Rague planned Iowa's first capitol which stands today on the campus of the University of Iowa as "Old Capitol." Rague and the building committee soon were in disagreement, however, and he returned to Illinois where he was supervising the capitol's construction. In 1850 he received a commission to design several campus buildings at the University of Wisconsin. The same year the Italianate Phoenix building in Milwaukee was constructed.
Rague journeyed to Dubuque in 1854 when he was fifty-five at the request of Stephen HEMPSTEAD who had just completed his term as the Governor of Iowa. Often considered the most significant architect in Dubuque history, Rague designed the OLD JAIL (1857); Central Market and DUBUQUE CITY HALL (1857-1859); the First, Third, and Fifth Ward schools; and private homes for Frederick Ezekiel BISSELL and Edward LANGWORTHY.
In 1862 Rague began losing his eyesight, a fact that brought Rague's first wife to Dubuque to help his second wife care for him. In his last months, Rague wrote his own epitaph, designated the hymns to be sung for his funeral, and chose the singers and his pallbearers.
The 1858-1859 Dubuque City Directory listed Main between 10th and 11th.
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Source:
Hudson, David; Bergman, Marvin; Horton, Loren. The Biographical Dictionary of Iowa. Iowa City: University of Iowa Press, 2008