Paul Johannes Pelz (18 November 1841 – 30 March 1918) was a German-American architect. He is best known as architect of the main building of the Library of Congress.
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Paul J. Pelz was born 18 November 1841 in Seitendorf, Waldenburg, Silesia (now part of Germany). From 1854, he was educated in Breslau, Germany, at the colleges of St. Elizabeth and Holy Spirit. In 1858, he emigrated to New York, where he served as apprentice to architect Detlef Lienau.
In 1864, he was employed as chief draftsman at a New York architectural firm. In 1866, he became a member of the American Institute of Architects. In 1867, he was engaged as a civil engineer for the United States Lighthouse Board, where from 1872 to 1877 he served as chief draftsman.
In 1873, he and John L. Smithmeyer won first prize for the architectural plans for the Library of Congress. In 1892, they submitted their final plans for the building.
In 1895, he married Mary Eastbourne Ritter Meem (1849–1914). On 30 March 1918, he died in Washington, D.C.