The firm's chief designer was Henry Charles Trost, who was born in Toledo, Ohio, in 1860.
Between 1903 and Henry Trost's death on September 19, 1933, the firm designed hundreds of buildings in the El Paso area and in other Southwestern cities, including Albuquerque, Phoenix, Tucson, and San Angelo.
Throughout his career, Henry Trost demonstrated his ability to work in a variety of styles, including Art Deco, Mission Revival, Prairie, Pueblo Revival, and Bhutanese Dzong architecture, at the University of Texas at El Paso.
From 1892 to 1896, Trost served as vice president of Chicago Ornamental Iron Company.
The company is associated with metal ornament that formed the front railings of the boxes and balconies in the Lafayette Square Opera House in Washington, DC.