User:DFrederickJames/sandbox

Edgar Symonds Wortman (July 22, 1906 - 1969)was an architect who began practicing his profession in Palm Beach County, Florida, in 1936. He graduated from Bellefontaine High School in Ohio and later attended Chicago Technical College, from which he graduated in 1932. He was admitted to practice his profession in the state of Ohio in 1934; in Florida in 1935; and also admitted to practice in Georgia, North Carolina, and Mississippi.

Mr.Wortman designed many public and private structures. Among his public structures were hotels, bank buildings and particularly schools as he was later an architect for the Palm Beach County Board of Public Instruction. Among his works are the Lake Worth Library and Museum; Clewiston Inn; The Bank of Palm Beach and Trust Company; Commerce Bank of Lake Worth; Dreyfoos School of the Arts Vocational Building (designed along with Architect William Manly King) and many other buildings and homes including an oceanfront five-story, 68 unit building built in 1962 which included an unusual marketing push - access to an "on-site air-raid and fallout shelter", Palm Beach Daily News, January 20th, 2013.

Some of Mr.Wortman's architectural designs are featured in the publication, " Art Deco of the Palm Beaches" by Sharon Koskoff. These include two "twin" Nautical Moderne designed homes on the water in Lake Worth, FL and the Lake Worth Casino, rebuilt by Mr. Wortman in 1948. Also, one of his West Palm Beach private home designs included a sunken screened porch which lead to a sunken patio. In the interior, the living room is separated from the sunken screened porch by cypress pocket doors with glass panels. At the time of construction, these pocket doors functioned exteriorly; these were the precursor to today's sliding glass doors.

Mr.Wortman is a past president of the Palm Beach Chapter of the American Institute of Architects and past president of the Florida Association of Architects. Two of Mr.Wortman's buildings are listed on the National Register of Historic Places; Osborne School, built in 1948, and Clewiston Inn, built in 1938.