J. N. Preston

J. N. Preston FAIA (October 5, 1832 – December 8, 1922) was an American architect in practice in Austin, Texas and Los Angeles from 1875 until his retirement in 1907.

This firm was responsible for the Williamson County Courthouse (1879) in Georgetown and was dissolved in 1878 over Ruffini's charges of unprofessional conduct against Preston.

In April 1881, during the architect selection process for that building, Ruffini's allegations against Preston first became public, with Ruffini and a Mr. Loving, contractor for the Williamson County project, charging that Loving had paid a large bribe to Preston to obtain the contract.

They were responsible for the Driskill Hotel (1886) in Austin but relocated to Los Angeles shortly before the building was completed.

[4] McKeown, the 23-year-old spendthrift heir of a Pennsylvania oilman and husband to a granddaughter of Peter Studebaker, lost the house almost immediately, and Preston and the general contractor, as lien holders, foreclosed on the property.

His major extant works in Texas include the Bell County Courthouse (1885) in Belton and the Driskill Hotel (1886) in Austin.

Seehorn continued to practice only until 1911, when he joined the staff of the Los Angeles Railway, where he would work until his death in 1943.

[1] In 1889 the WAA merged with the American Institute of Architects (AIA), and Preston, like all members, was made a Fellow.

[1] Three of his works, all designed in partnership with his son, have been listed on the United States National Register of Historic Places.