Firm History
Woollen, Molzan and Partners was founded by Evans Woollen, who opened an office on Monument Circle in Indianapolis in 1955 to start a new architectural firm bearing his name. The firm’s early work centered on bank facilities and private residences. In 1960 Butler University of Indianapolis chose Evans Woollen to design Clowes Hall, a 2,200 seat concert hall for the University and the Indianapolis Symphony. It was the firm’s first major work, and led to the design of a series of performing arts facilities.

In March of 1960 Evans Woollen moved the office to a triangular building on the north side of Indianapolis’ downtown, facing Obelisk Square. Senior partners Lynn Molzan and Laurence O’Connor joined the firm in 1965. The firm’s bank facility work continued in the 60’s, and in middle of the decade it was joined by two significant commissions- the new Indianapolis Federal Building and the Indiana University Musical Arts Center in Bloomington. The firm also started work on its first academic library, for Marian College in Indianapolis. The firm name became Evans Woollen and Associates.

Retirement housing and communities became a major area of work for the firm in the 1970’s. Its clients included the Indianapolis Housing Authority, Federal Property Management, and Presbyterian Housing, Inc. For the Presbyterians, the firm designed retirement communities in Indianapolis, Muncie, Lafayette, and Clarksville in Indiana and in Bloomington, Illinois and Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Other prominent projects in the 70’s included the Strider Theatre at Colby College in Waterville, Maine, and the renovation of the Indiana Theater in Indianapolis. The firm’s work in Cincinnati, at the Pilot Center in the Over-the-Rhine neighborhood became a milestone in its professional development. It was here that Evans Woollen and Larry O’Connor first initiated the firm’s “live-in” approach to design process and client participation, which continues today. Particularly satisfying to the firm was its work in New Harmony, Indiana where it produced designs for an inn and the renovation of a community auditorium. The New Harmony Inn remains one of the firm’s premier projects. In 1973 the firm incorporated and changed its name to Woollen Associates, Inc.

In 1979 and in the early years of the next decade the firm began its design work at St. Meinrad Archabbey, a Benedictine monastery in Southern Indiana. Its architectural designs started with a new monastery and academic library. Most recently the firm designed the renovation of the centerpiece of the Archabbey- its Abbey Church. The work at St. Meinrad led to Woollen Associates’ extensive architectural services for the Benedictine Order of Cleveland, Ohio.

In 1980 the leaders of the firm formed a separate partnership and purchased the historic Majestic Building, a ten story building at the southeast corner of Indianapolis’ downtown. The firm’s base of operations was moved to the top floor. Woollen Associates provided architectural services for the overall remodeling of the building and for the building’s new tenants. Significant projects within the building were the Majestic Oyster Bar and Grill and the Architectural Center Bookstore. Partner and Controller William Brady joined the firm in 1980. In 1982 the firm became Woollen, Molzan and Partners.

In the 1980’s churches, libraries, museums, historic renovations and performing arts facilities were hallmarks of the firm’s work. The award-winning Cushwa Leighton Library at St. Mary’s College, Notre Dame, Indiana became the star of the firm’s academic library portfolio. It is a prime example of Woollen, Molzan’s ability to successfully design in the context of a building’s setting. Other significant building designs of the 1980’s include the additions to the Indianapolis Children’s Museum, Christ Church Episcopal Cathedral renovations and additions, the renovation of Indianapolis’ historic Union Station, the Moody Music Building for the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, the St. Joseph County Public Library and the Evansville, Indiana Museum of Arts and Science. Partner Kevin Huse joined the firm in 1985.

The 1990's began with the completion of the renovation of Hall Auditorium on the campus of Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. Timothy Fleck joined Woollen, Molzan and Partners in 1990. Later that year the firm began its work on the Wabash Valley Correctional Institution, the first all-new prison facility in Indiana in over 100 years. This project started the firm’s work in the correctional market, and it continues today. Woollen, Molzan and Partner’s academic library work blossomed in the decade, with the Grainger Engineering Library Information Center at the University of Illinois, the Davis and Beeson Libraries at Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama, the St. Ambrose University O'Keefe Library in Davenport, Iowa, the ACES agricultural library at the University of Illinois, and the Park Library at Central Michigan University. Other significant projects include the White River Gardens Conservatory Complex at the Indianapolis Zoo. The firm’s work for churches continued with major projects throughout central Indiana and Illinois. At the close of the decade the firm was awarded the commission to design an addition and renovations to the Indianapolis-Marion County Public Library's Central Library facility.

Early in 2001 Tim Fleck became a partner. New commissions for Woollen, Molzan and Partners included buildings for several churches and a major planning study for the University of Louisville's library system.

Contact Lynn Molzan: lmolzan@woollenmolzan.com