RYE, Chris and Carl L.

RYE, PARKER, WINTER, ADAMS, FARRELL, WHITE, COURSHON, SMITH, CARLSON, BLYTHE, SCHNEIDER, OLARY, DRAKE, YOUNGBLOOD, DECKER, CRABB, CURRIE, HENKEL, LUND, NOREM, HARRIS

Posted By: Sharon R Becker (email)
Date: 11/28/2013 at 08:34:06

Biography ~ Chris Rye and Carl Rye

Globe Gazette
Mason City, Cerro Gordo County, Iowa
May 07, 1931, Page 16

Rye Construction Company Has Large Building Record

Has Erected Variety of Buildings Over Wide Area

Hundreds of building projects in all parts of Iowa and Southern Minnesota is the record of the Rye Construction company.

Chris Rye, the senior member of the firm, has been a dominant factor in the construction field here for practically 40 years. Carl Rye joined his father in the business in 1915 and some time later the firm was incorporated.

Chris Rye's construction career in Mason City started upon his arrival here in 1892. Since then he has not only built scores of buildings in Mason City, but has had a hand in the erection of school buildings, business blocks, railroad stations, churches, as well as residences in North Iowa and Southern Minnesota from Calmar to Emmetsburg and Welcom, Minn.

Built Local Churches.

His first construction ventures in Mason City were three residences for Carl A. Parker, George Winter and a Mr. Adams, court reporter at that time. He then built the Trinity Lutheran church and some time later the St. James Lutheran church and parsonage and the Presbyterian church.

The elder Mr. Rye joined with Dan Farrell and George White in the construction of the First Baptist church, the Burns and Gale building on South Federal avenue, the building occupied by the L. P. Courshon company, the chapel in Elmwood cemetery and the S. H. Smith house.

Mr. Rye had charge of all the construction on the old brick Central school building with the exception of the brick and stone. He built an addition on the Grant schoolhouse and erected most of the buildings on the North Iowa fairgrounds. He had charge of the carpenter work on St. Joseph's Catholic church and reconstrcted the Adams block.

Erects Rock Glen Homes.

While Mr. Rye built scores of the larger residences in the community, probably the outstanding ones are a group of the Rock Glen homes. He had charge of the construction of the J. E. Blythe home, the Dr. F. G. Carlson residence, the Sam Schneider home, now occupied by Mr. and Mrs. H. A. O'Larey, and the Same Drake house, occupied by J. B. Youngblood.

Mr. Rye did the first constrcution work for Jacob E. Decker when an old stone building was remodeled to form the nucleus of teh packing industry. He also built the ice houses for the company.

The out-of-town building projects included a business block and a creamery at Welcome, a store building at Emmetsburg, three stores in Kensett, three stores in Joice and a store building and a library at Blue Earth, besides numerous residences and smaller projects.

Joined Firm in 1915.

After Carl Rye joined the firm in 1915, school buildings were erected at Otranto, Grafton and Ventura and an $80,000 church was built at Lake Mills. Mason City projects included construction of the Central school heating plant, the rebuilding of the Memorial university structure to form the Roosevelt school, the Ford garage, reconstruction of the Wier building, erecting the MacNider building at 200 North Federal, the two Kresge stores, the Palais Royal adddition, as well as the Chinese laundry and construction and remodeling jobs. Later residential jobs were the home of Dr. George M. Crabb and the rebuilding of the Frank Currie home.

Two Kresge stores were build in other parts of Iowa, one at Dubuque and another at Fort Dodge. Considerable reconstruction work was done for the Hart-Parr company at Charles City.

Did Remodeling

Recent remodeling projects included the Style Shoppe, New York Fashion ship, Hollywood shop, Finnegan Clothing company, Hugh's store, Boyd's bowling alleys and pool hall, Tom Brown's, Damon's Inc., D. K. Lundburg and company, Brewer Tire and Battery shop, Cecil theater, Lapiner garage and Joe Daniel's superstation. Three Shell gasoline stations were erected.

In the past year the Rye Construction company has constructed the St. John's Episcopal church, the new Jay Decker home at Clear Lake and has had the general contract for the Globe-Gazette remodeling project.

NOTE: Chris Rye was born in 1858 and died in 1934. He was interred at Elmwood-St. Joseph Cemetery, Mason City, Iowa.

~ ~ ~ ~

Globe Gazette
Mason City, Cerro Gordo County, Iowa, 1947

OBITUARY ~ CARL T. RYE

Funeral services will be held at the Patterson funeral home Monday afternoon at 2 for Carl T. Rye, 57, member of the building contracting firm of Rye and Henkel Construction companies, Associated, who died Wednesday evening of heart disease. The service will be charge of the Rev. Alvin N. Rogness of the Trinity Lutheran church and burial will be in Elmwood cemetery.

Mr. Rye is survived by 2 sons, Thomas, an employee of the construction firm, and Curtis, yeoman 3rd class on the U.S.S. George Randall, 2 grandchildren, and 2 sisters, Mrs. A. S. Lund, Northwood, and Mrs. E. A. Norem, Mason City.

Mr. Rye had just returned from a 1,200 mile circuit of construction jobs in South Dakota, accompanied by Lyman Harris, and was at the Harris home at Clear Lake at the time of death. Born on a farm near Decorah, Jan. 13, 1890, Mr. Rye spent practically his entire life in Mason City. He had been engaged in construction work for more than 30 years, first with his father, Chris Rye, and for the last 12 years in the Rye and Henkel partnership.

NOTE: Thomas M. Rye was born on September 17, 1919. He served as a Platoon Sergeant with the U.S. Marine Corps during World War II. Thomas died on December 5, 1993, and was interred at Elmwood-St. Joseph Cemetery, Mason City.

Transcriptions and note by Sharon R. Becker, November of 2013

Cerro Gordo Biographies maintained by Lynn Diemer-Mathews.
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