Fred Fielding Willson was born to General Lester S. Willson and Emma Weeks Willson in Bozeman, Montana on November 11, 1877. He had two brothers: George, who died as an infant and Lester Eugene, who died in 1893 at the age of 14. Willson was raised in Bozeman and lived the majority of his life in the town of his birth. He attended Bozeman public schools, the Bozeman Academy and Montana State College of Agriculture and Mechanical Arts. After his junior year at Montana State he left to attend Columbia University in NYC where graduated with a B.A. in Architecture in 1902. Upon graduation Willson returned to Montana and accepted a position with architect C.S. Haire in Helena, Montana. He worked in Helena for two years. In November 1904 Willson went on an extended tour of Europe to further his architectural education. He visited several countries including France, Germany, Italy and Britain. His diaries during this period document his impressions of European architecture and daily life in Europe during the early 20th century. While in France Willson was introduced to a French clergyman named L. Didice who would become a lifelong friend and correspond with Willson and his family for over twenty-five years. After returning to the U.S. in 1906 Willson worked briefly for the architecture firm Visscher and Burley in NYC. Willson moved back to Montana in late 1906 and went to work for Link and Haire in Butte. He was in charge of their office there for four years. Willson returned to Bozeman for good in January of 1910 and began to work as an architect under his own name. In 1928 he helped form the partnership of Shanley, Willson and Hugenin and remained in the partnership until 1932 when he again went to work for himself and remained working in this way until his death on August 13, 1956. Willson established a name for himself as a skilled architect and is credited by many in the profession for influencing the look of Bozeman. He designed several buildings in town including the Gallatin County Court House, the Baxter Hotel and Hamilton Hall on the MSU campus. Willson married Helen Fisher on October 15, 1913. They had three children Lester, Virginia and Beverly. Willson was active in the local community and in professional organizations. He served as a member of the city council and later the city commission, was a member of the Montana State Board of Architectural Examiners for Licensing, a Masonic Lodge member, member of the local Elks club and served as the Regional Director of the American Institute of Architects.
From the guide to the Fred F. Willson Papers, 1889-1956, (Montana State University-Bozeman Library, Merrill G Burlingame Special Collections)
