Background
Edwin James Jr. Lewis was born in 1859 at Roxbury (in the greater Boston area), Massachussets, United States.
Edwin James Jr. Lewis was born in 1859 at Roxbury (in the greater Boston area), Massachussets, United States.
The young man attended the city's public schools (Roxbury), and after completing a course in architecture at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1881.
He began to work as draftsman with the well known firm of Peabody & Stearns. During the nineties Mr. Lewis started practice under his own name, and maintained an office at No. 9 Park Street for many years, active in designing both residential and church buildings. More than thirty-five churches in the U. S. and Canada are said to have been erected from his plans. Among these the Second Unitarian Church in Boston was his best known work near Boston.
He was also known as a lecturer on historical and ecclesiastical topics, and an active worker in municipal reform.
Elected to the American Institute of Architects early in his career and advanced to Fellowship in 1891, Mr. Lewis was an active member of the Boston Society of Architects, and served as its Secretary for a decade.