The Arts

Louis Amateis in Studio (Architect of the Capitol, Washington, DC).

We seldom think much about “The Arts” when speaking of the Imles. Not that they were uncultured, just agrarian, at least the earlier ones. But Helen Imle, daughter of Christian (“Chris”) and Alta Imle, did provide a connection to The Arts when, around the time of the second World War, she married Harold Louis Amateis. For Harold had been born 5 Mar 1908 in DC to Louis and Dora (Ballin) Amateis, an artistic family of greatness and tragedy.

Harold’s father, Louis was born 13 Dec 1855 in Turin, Italy, where he was educated at the Institute of Technology and also the Royal Academy of Fine Arts, the latter awarding him a gold medal for his work. After further studies in Paris and Milan, Louis immigrated to the United States in 1882, living first in New York City and then, after marrying, in Washington DC. It was at the nation’s capital that Louis achieved real fame, by his sculptures and by his founding and heading of the School of Architecture and Fine Arts at Columbian (now, George Washington) University. Although best known for the bronze “Amateis Doors” that graced the west front entrance to the Capitol (now on display within the building), Louis also sculpted the Heurich Mausoleum in Rock Creek Cemetery, the Qualities of Womanhood spandrels on Hearst Hall near the National Cathedral, and busts of Chester A. Arthur, Winfield Scott Hancock, General John Logan, and Andrew Carnegie, among others. His Texas Revolution Monument was erected in Galveston, and his Nathan Baldwin memorial, in Milford, Connecticut.

Amateis Doors (Architect of the Capitol).

But the family’s life of fame and fortune included a significant measure of distress. the first child Edmond, died a violent death on 4 Aug 1896 from accidental burns with carbolic acid. (A later son was named “Edmond Romulus Amateis” in his honor.) And at the height of his fame, on 16 Mar 1913, at the relatively young age of 57, Louis died suddenly from a stroke, leaving behind a widow and three sons, Roland Paul, the second Edmond, and Harold, the youngest, who had just turned five.

It was too much for Louis’s widow to take. A year later, on 12 Sep 1914, after setting up some small investments to care for her children, Dora placed a shotgun to her side and pulled the trigger.

Two of the three children were old enough to take care of themselves, but Harold had to be placed in St. John’s orphanage in Washington, DC, where he may have received little consideration. The orphanage, incorrectly claimed that Harold had been born in Italy, with Italian as his first language. 

Our Amateis story does not end here but this is sufficient for now. A continuation will follow.

All genealogical data reported in these posts are from primary and/or reputable secondary sources, or reliable transcriptions thereof, and never from online trees. Contact the author to request sources, which have been omitted here to improve readability. Permission is granted to use any posted material for any purpose as long as this source is cited.