FRANK ALBERT DePASQUALE, AIA (1925-2010)

DePasquale (pronounced duh-pass-kwull) grew up in Roselle Park NJ and served in the Army during WWII. He entered the NCSU School of Architecture and Engineering in 1946 and graduated in 1951. He worked for Platt and Davis Engineers, John Latimer, and Thomas Hayes. Starting in 1956, he worked for and became a partner at the firm of George Watts Carr. Three years later, H. Leslie Walker, an architect formerly from Durham, enticed DePasquale to come to Tampa FL. In late 1961, Walker's firm dissolved and DePasquale established a solo firm in Tampa.

A recession in late 1962 caused DePasquale to come back to Durham in 1963 to work again for George Watts Carr. In 1964 Carr reorganized the firm as a partnership, renaming it Carr Harrison Pruden and DePasquale Architects. In 1978, DePasquale left Carr and founded DePasquale Markham Thompson Wilson Architects & Planners, later called DTW Architects & Planners. His partners were Felix Markham, Warren Wilson, and son-in-law John F. Thompson.

DePasquale formally retired in the mid-1990s from DTW but came into work almost every day. He was President Emeritus of the Historic Preservation Society of Durham. He also designed many churches including his own, St. Luke's Episcopal, and Grace Lutheran Church. Awards included the AIANC Merit Award for the Durham Arts Council Building in 1990; the AIANC Tower Award for the Hayti Heritage Center in 1993; and the Golden Leaf Architectural Award for Design Excellence in the City and County of Durham in 2005. DePasquale was honored at a Durham Tribute Luncheon in April 2010. He died later that year.

Architect Gene Brown recalls: "I couldn't help chuckling over the parenthetical pronunciation guide for Frank DePasquale's name. He actually referred to himself as that in public rather than using the actual Italian pronunciation of "Dee-pass-KWA-leh. One year when I was Chair of the Design Awards Committee for NCAIA, I had the occasion to present an award to Frank at the convention in Pinehurst. I started by saying that "This award is going to a fine architect and one of the nicest guys in the profession, but he's the only Italian I know who can't pronounce his own name!"

DePasquale (far right) with Frank Lloyd Wright during a visit to NCSU in May 1950.

1959 - The Melvin and Cynia Brown Shimm House, 2429 Wrightwood Avenue, Durham NC. DePasquale also did a freestanding studio addition. Sold in 2006 to Jeremy Packer and Sarah Sharma. Sold in 2019 to Ashley W. and Adam J. Roberts.

1962 - The Gordon and Alida Tennant House, 514 South Riverhills Drive, Temple Terrace FL.Sold to Don Saff. Sold in 1991 to Leon and Sara Mandell. Kitchen remodeled in 2003. The house was on the cover of the Temple Terrace brochure for years. Featured in the Tampa Tribune with photos. The Mandells were told that while it was being built, people in the neighborhood were calling it the "Frank Lloyd Left" house. Still owned by the Mandells as of 2014. B/W photos by Frank DePasquale. Color photo by Grant Rimbey.

2011 Video

1962 - The Randolph and Betty Jo Jackson House, 530 South Riverhills Drive, Temple Terrace FL. Sold around 1981 to owners who put in a pool and enclosed the open carport. There have been several owners since, and the carport has been reopened. Sold to Leonard Stefanisko. Sold in 2012 to Robert Knutowicz.

1962 - The Salber Residence, 5708 Puritan Road, Tampa FL. Sold to Katherine and John E. Cicero II. Sold in 1984 to John and Alcyone Barltrop. Passed through various entities under Barltrop control. Sold to Morgan Michaels. Sold in 2013 to David Clark Anderson Jr. Sold in 2018 to Valerie P. and Luc Bernard Didier. Photos by Todd Foley.

1963 - 2442 Alpine Road, Durham NC. 1949 sf. Sold to Edgar and Twila Q. Gardner. Sold in 1991 to David Covington and Elin Nagel who still owned it as of 2012. Photos by Henry Yang.

1963 - The Brown House, 2814 Welcome Drive, Durham NC. 2850 sf. Featured in Better Homes and Gardens, November 1964. Built by Herndon. Sold. Sold in 1992 to Duke architect C. Ray and Kate Walker who still owned it as of 2019. Bottom photo by Ray Walker.

1964 - The Frank DePasquale House, 126 Chateau Road, Durham NC. Sold in 2006 to Jacob Sternfeld. Sold in 2016 to Sydney Dotterer and Aaron Poteate.

1966 - The Herbert and Elaine K. Crovitz House, 2745 Montgomery Street, Durham NC. Sold in 1990 to John and Myrna Longenecker. Sold in 2003 to Nancy Weigle and architect Norman A. Smith Jr. Top photo by Julie Hollenbeck.

1966 - The Frank and Berniece Daddario House, 2438 Alpine Road, Durham NC. 3143 square feet. According to architect Edgar Carr, design credit should also go to W. P. (Denny) Dinsmore White who was working summers in the office while in school at NCSU. The Daddarios lived there for over 40 years. Sold in 2009 to Rebecca and Bill Newton. Sold in 2014 to Shannon R. and Luke G. Decock. Bottom four photos by Leilani Carter.

1974 - The Brown House II, 714 Pine Forest Road, Charlotte NC. The family moved from Durham to Charlotte and asked DePasquale to make a copy of his Durham design for them. The Durham design was featured in Better Homes and Gardens, November 1964 (bottom photo). Sold to Noelle Singleton.

1978 - The David and Diane Rose House, 3205 Cameron Drive, Henderson NC. Sold in 2018 to Dana S. and Tracy S. Greenway.

1981 - 1723 Tisdale Street, Durham NC. Sold in 2020 to Patricia and Robert McAlister.

1989 - The Kenneth and Cynthia Diehl House, 20 Birnham Lane, Durham NC. Sold in 2020 to Gary and Cristina Burchill.

Sources include: Julie Hollenbeck; Rebecca Newton; Frank DePasquale; DTW Architects & Planners.