Bradenton Architect Walter B. Rise Jr., Designer of Florida Landmarks, Dies at 95

Bradenton architect Walter B. Rise, Jr., who shaped public, commercial and residential buildings across Florida, died Sept. 4 at 95.

Rise's death marked the loss of a lifelong Bradenton resident whose work and family history tied him to the city. He entered the world at Bradenton Memorial Hospital on June 2, 1931, after Walter B. Rise, Sr., and Myrtle Mae Rise (Geech) welcomed him. He remained a lifelong member of First United Methodist Church in downtown Bradenton.

A Florida education and military service

Rise attended Ballard Elementary School and graduated from Manatee County High School in 1949. He earned a degree from the University of Florida School of Architecture in 1954, where he embraced modernism during the post-World War II period of architectural experimentation.

After college, Rise served in the Army during the aftermath of the Korean War. He earned recognition for meritorious service after organizing and planning the 1956 Mona Lisa Arctic Resupply mission between Seattle and Alaska during the Cold War. He reached the rank of captain before receiving an honorable discharge.

Career and family

Rise returned to Bradenton and began his architecture career with Croll & Wilkinson. There he met Beverly Ann Beville, the firm's secretary. They married in 1961 and remained together for 49 years until Beverly's death.

The couple moved to Vero Beach after their marriage. After the birth of their eldest son, Eric Walter, they relocated to Tallahassee, where they welcomed their middle child, Bruce William, while Rise worked for the Florida Department of Education. An IBM position then took the family to Merritt Island, where their daughter, Kimberly Ann, was born.

Rise moved his family back to Bradenton in 1969. The following year, they moved into the home he designed for the family. He lived there for 47 years. In 1976, he opened his own architecture firm and continued designing public, commercial and residential structures until retiring in 2002.

Rise's survivors include his children, Eric Walter, Bruce William and Kimberly Ann. He was preceded in death by his parents, his wife and his sisters, Helen Walker, Jean King and Rose Cobb.

No funeral or memorial service details accompanied the biographical account of Rise's life.