Charles Follen McKim (August 24, 1847 – September 14, 1909) was an American Beaux-Arts

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

of the late 19th century. Along with William Rutherford Mead and Stanford White, he provided the architectural expertise as a member of the partnership

McKim, Mead & White McKim, Mead & White was an American architectural firm that came to define architectural practice, urbanism, and the ideals of the American Renaissance in fin de siècle New York. The firm's founding partners Charles Follen McKim (1847–1909), Wil ...

Life and career

McKim was born in Chester County, Pennsylvania. His parents were James Miller McKim, a Presbyterian minister, and Sarah Speakman McKim. They were active abolitionists and he was named after Charles Follen, another abolitionist and a

Unitarian Unitarian or Unitarianism may refer to: Christian and Christian-derived theologies A Unitarian is a follower of, or a member of an organisation that follows, any of several theologies referred to as Unitarianism: * Unitarianism (1565–present ...

minister. After attending Harvard University, he studied architecture at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris before joining the office of Henry Hobson Richardson in 1870. McKim formed his own firm in partnership with William Rutherford Mead, joined in 1877 by fellow Richardson protégé Stanford White. Morgan Library McKim Building from west

For ten years, the firm became primarily known for their open-plan informal summer houses. McKim became best known as an exponent of Beaux-Arts architecture in styles of the American Renaissance, exemplified by the Boston Public Library (1888–95), and several works in New York City, including the Morningside Heights campus of

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manha ...

(1893), the University Club of New York clubhouse (1899), the

Pierpont Morgan Library The Morgan Library & Museum, formerly the Pierpont Morgan Library, is a museum and research library in the Murray Hill neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City. It is situated at 225 Madison Avenue, between 36th Street to the south and 37th ...

(1903), New York Penn Station (1904–10), and The

Butler Institute of American Art The Butler Institute of American Art, located on Wick Avenue in Youngstown, Ohio, United States, was the first museum dedicated exclusively to American art. Established by local industrialist and philanthropist Joseph G. Butler, Jr., the museum h ...

in Youngstown, Ohio (1919). He designed the Howard Mansion (1896) at Hyde Park, New York. McKim, with the aid of

Richard Morris Hunt Richard Morris Hunt (October 31, 1827 – July 31, 1895) was an American architect of the nineteenth century and an eminent figure in the history of American architecture. He helped shape New York City with his designs for the 1902 entrance fa� ...

, was instrumental in the formation of the American School of Architecture in Rome in 1894, which has become the

American Academy in Rome The American Academy in Rome is a research and arts institution located on the Gianicolo (Janiculum Hill) in Rome. The academy is a member of the Council of American Overseas Research Centers. History In 1893, a group of American architects ...

, and designed the main campus buildings with his firm McKim, Mead, and White. McKim first married Annie Bigelow in 1874 and after divorcing Bigelow married Julia Amory Appleton in 1885. McKim died at age 62 in

St. James, New York St. James is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) in Suffolk County, New York, United States. The population of the CDP was 13,487 at the 2020 census. St. James is part of the Town of Smithtown and is located on the North Shore of Long ...

on September 14, 1909.

Memberships

McKim was a member of the

Congressional A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...

commission for the improvement of the Washington, D.C., park system, the New York Art Commission, the Accademia di San Luca ( Rome, 1899), the

and the Architectural League. He was an honorary member and former president of the

American Institute of Architects The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is a professional organization for architects in the United States. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach to ...

, and honorary member of the Society of Mural Painters. He became a National Academician in 1907. He belonged to the University, Lambs, and Racquet and Tennis Clubs of New York, and to the

St. Botolph Botolph of Thorney (also called Botolph, Botulph or Botulf; later known as Saint Botolph; died around 680) was an English abbot and saint. He is regarded as the patron saint of boundaries, and by extension, of trade and travel, as well as vario ...

and Somerset Clubs of Boston.

Awards and honors

McKim received numerous awards during his lifetime, including the Medaille d'Or at the

1900 Paris Exposition The Exposition Universelle of 1900, better known in English as the 1900 Paris Exposition, was a world's fair held in Paris, France, from 14 April to 12 November 1900, to celebrate the achievements of the past century and to accelerate developmen ...

and a gold medal from

Edward VII of the United Kingdom Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910. The second child and eldest son of Queen Victoria an ...

. The royal gold medal from Edward VII was awarded for the restoration of the White House. In 1902 Congress appropriated $475,445 for this purpose to be spent at the discretion of President Theodore Roosevelt. He received honorary doctorates from the University of Pennsylvania and

, and the honorary degree of A.M. from

Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of hig ...

in 1890, and from Bowdoin in 1894. He was elected a Fellow of the

in 1877, and received the AIA Gold Medal, posthumously, in 1909.

References

External links

* *
The McKim Mead & White Architectural Records Collection at the New York Historical Society
{{DEFAULTSORT:McKim, Charles Follen * American neoclassical architects Beaux Arts architects 1847 births 1909 deaths Architects from New York City American alumni of the École des Beaux-Arts People from Chester County, Pennsylvania Recipients of the Royal Gold Medal Fellows of the American Institute of Architects Presidents of the American Institute of Architects Harvard University alumni 19th-century American architects Architects of the Boston Public Library Recipients of the AIA Gold Medal