Kahn, Albert

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KAHN, ALBERT

KAHN, ALBERT (1869–1942), U.S. industrial architect. Kahn was born in Rhaunen, Germany, and was taken to the United States in 1881. He was trained in Detroit and specialized in factory design. He was engaged by Henry Ford as one of his principal architects. He also designed assembly plants for other leading automobile companies. His outstanding buildings include the General Motors Building in Detroit (1901) and the Ohio Steel Foundry Company Building (1940). In 1930 the Soviet government engaged him to design a series of factories in the Volga region, and members of his staff helped supervise the construction of industrial plants for the second 5-year plan. He built two Reform synagogues in Detroit for the Beth-El congregation of which he was a member, both in the classical style.

bibliography:

R. Wischnitzer, Synagogue Architecture in the United States (1955); J.M. Fitch, American Building, 1 (19662), index; J. Burchard and A. Bush-Brown, Architecture of America (1961), index.

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