Nicholas J. Clayton

• Name — Nicholas Joseph Clayton • Honorific Suffix — FAIA • Born — 1 November 1839 • Birthplace — Cloyne, County Cork, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (present-day Republic of Ireland) • Died — 9 December 1916 • Place of death — Galveston, Texas, U.S. • Resting Place — Calvary Catholic Cemetery, Galveston • Occupation — Architect • Years Active — 1872-1916 • Children — 5 • Practice — * Jones & Baldwin • Clayton & Lynch • N.J. Clayton and Company • Significant Buildings — Bishop's Palace, Ashbel Smith Building, Main Building (St. Edward's University), St. Mary Cathedral, Holy Trinity Catholic Church, National Shrine Cathedral of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Stafford Opera House, Beach Hotel (destroyed), many buildings in Galveston's East End and Strand historic districts, and elsewhere • Illustration — Saint Mary's Cathedral, Austin, TX • Illustration — The Beach Hotel, Galveston • Illustration — Bishop's Palace, postcard

Clayton was born on November 1, 1839, in Cloyne, County Cork, Ireland. His father, also named Nicholas Joseph Clayton, died in 1848. Margaret O'Mahoney Clayton, his mother, moved from Ireland to Cincinnati the same year. He served as a yeoman in the United States Navy during the Civil War. Following the war, he worked throughout the American South and Midwest as a craftsman and draftsman, finally settling in Galveston in 1872.

Clayton constructed many grand religious and public buildings in Galveston including the First Presbyterian Church (Galveston, Texas). He is also credited as the architect of Sacred Heart Catholic Church (Tampa, Florida) and of the Main Building of St. Edward's University in Austin, Texas. He also designed an addition to St. Mary Cathedral in Galveston. In 1887, Clayton was consulted in the design process of the fourth (and current) Texas State Capitol building in Austin, serving on an advisory board for the dome's construction and assisting with the selection of interior furnishings.

• Illustration — Bishop's Palace, Galveston • Illustration — Ashbel Smith Building, also known as "Old Red Building," University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston • Illustration — Main Building, St. Edward's University, Austin • Illustration — Sacred Heart, Tampa, Fla.-interior • Illustration — Grace Episcopal Church (Galveston, Texas)

The following is established of the heading itself.

The following works and productions are recorded by name or by count. Institutional cataloguing adds that vol.