William George Brust, Jr. was born in Columbus, Ohio, on August 28, 1885. He studied architecture at the University of Pennsylvania, graduating in 1907. He moved to Seattle around 1910 and began working in the office of E.F. Champney (1912-1915) serving as head draftsman. Brust then went to work for architect John Graham, Sr.

In 1917, Brust joined the firm James Stephens & Son, where he eventually became a partner in 1920. At that time, the name of the firm was changed to Stephens, Stephens & Brust. With valuable experience at hand, Brust opened his own independent practice in 1926. While Brust’s early designs reflect his formal Beaux Arts training, like many architects of his day, he gradually shifted to a more modern aesthetic after World War II.

Brust specialized in ecclesiastical designs. His known projects in the Seattle area include the West Seattle Full Gospel Tabernacle (1941);  Our Redeemer Lutheran Church (1947); Hope Lutheran Church (1948); Calvary Temple (1948); Sand Point Heights Lutheran Church (1954); Immanuel Lutheran Church in Puyallup (1956); Lake Hills Lutheran Church (1958); Faith Lutheran Church (1959); Bethlehem Lutheran Church (1959); and Cross & Crown Lutheran Church in Renton (1960). He also designed the Industrial Arts Building for Seattle Pacific College (1952); the Women’s and Men’s Dormitory at Seattle Pacific College (1958); the curtain wall O.E. Turnquist Construction Co. Office at 430 Yale Avenue N (1959, demolished); and a theater in Ketchikan, Alaska (1959).

Brust retired in 1961 and died in Seattle on January 26, 1969.

– Michael C Houser