Wold | HFR Design

HFR DESIGN traces its origins back to 1910, when architect Russell Eason Hart relocated from New York to Nashville to serve as field supervisor and resident architect during the construction of the Hermitage Hotel.Simultaneously, F. Eugene Freeland and Martin Smith Roberts, both engineering graduates of Vanderbilt University, joined forces to start their practice. After forming a series of individual companies and designing several projects on their own, Hart Freeland and Roberts merged in 1920, creating one of Tennessee's first architectural/engineering firms. This was a bold move in the early years of the Twentieth Century and the beginning of the company's long history of providing comprehensive architectural and engineering services. The founding partners made significant contributions to Nashville's fine architectural and engineering design legacy, both individually and collectively. Noteworthy examples from the early years include: the replica of the Parthenon (the city's best known classical symbol); Lifeway Christian Resource's Frost Building; the Leslee Cheek Residence (now part of the First Presbyterian Church); Old Hickory Bridge (spanning the Cumberland River), the Christ Episcopal Church Bell Tower, Third National Bank at Fourth Avenue and Church Street; and the Executive Residence for the Governor of Tennessee (formerly the William Ridley Wills Home). Their attention to detail and responsiveness to clients' needs led to these numerous monumental projects that have become part of Nashville's rich architectural heritage.