Thomas C. Hubka (born 1946) is an American architectural historian whose primary focus is

vernacular architecture Vernacular architecture is building done outside any academic tradition, and without professional guidance. This category encompasses a wide range and variety of building types, with differing methods of construction, from around the world, bo ...

and related issues of

architecture Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing building ...

and cultural meaning.

Education

Hubka received his Bachelor of Architecture (

B.Arch. The Bachelor of Architecture (B.Arch.) is a bachelor's degree designed to satisfy the academic requirement of practising architecture around the world. Australia Architectural education in Australia varies depending on the university offering th ...

) from

Carnegie-Mellon University Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) is a private research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. One of its predecessors was established in 1900 by Andrew Carnegie as the Carnegie Technical Schools; it became the Carnegie Institute of Technology ...

in 1969, and his Master of Architecture ( M.Arch.) from the

University of Oregon The University of Oregon (UO, U of O or Oregon) is a public research university in Eugene, Oregon. Founded in 1876, the institution is well known for its strong ties to the sports apparel and marketing firm Nike, Inc, and its co-founder, billion ...

in 1972. While at Carnegie Mellon, he was a varsity football player and played quarterback.

Career

He taught at the University of Oregon from 1972 to 1983. From 1987 to 2011, he was a professor in the Department of Architecture at the

University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee The University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee (UW–Milwaukee, UWM, or Milwaukee) is a public urban research university in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It is the largest university in the Milwaukee metropolitan area and a member of the University of Wiscon ...

. After retiring in 2011, he moved to

Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the list of cities in Oregon, largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, Columbia rivers, Portland is ...

. He is currently an adjunct faculty member in the Architecture program at

Portland State University Portland State University (PSU) is a public research university in Portland, Oregon. It was founded in 1946 as a post-secondary educational institution for World War II veterans. It evolved into a four-year college over the following two decad ...

. Although Hubka is trained as an architect, he was an early advocate for widening

architectural history The history of architecture traces the changes in architecture through various traditions, regions, overarching stylistic trends, and dates. The beginnings of all these traditions is thought to be humans satisfying the very basic need of shelt ...

research to include

. He is best known for his work on connected farm buildings in

New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the Can ...

. His book ''Big House, Little House, Back House, Barn'' was the 1985 winner of the "Abbott Lowell Cummings Award" of the

Vernacular Architecture Forum The Vernacular Architecture Forum (VAF) is a scholarly organization founded in 1980 to support the study and preservation of all aspects of vernacular architecture and landscapes. The organization has brought together scholars and practitioners ...

. Hubka's research on eastern European synagogues, begun in the mid-1980s, addressed 18th century wooden synagogues of Eastern Europe emphasizing the relationships between Jewish culture and eastern European contextual factors. This research received significant funding support from the

National Endowment for the Arts The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal ...

and the

National Endowment for the Humanities The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) is an independent federal agency of the U.S. government, established by thNational Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act of 1965(), dedicated to supporting research, education, preserv ...

, and led to his 2003 book, ''Resplendent Synagogue: Architecture and Worship in an Eighteenth-century Polish Community'', which won the "Henry Glassie Award" of the

in 2006. The book also received an honorable mention from the

American Association for the Advancement of Slavic Studies The Association for Slavic, East European, and Eurasian Studies (ASEEES) is a scholarly society dedicated to the advancement of knowledge about the former Soviet Union (including Eurasia) and Eastern and Central Europe. The ASEEES supports teach ...

(AAASS)/Orbis Books prize committee in 2004. In recent years Hubka has researched workers' housing in

Milwaukee Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee ...

and other cities. This research led to his book ''Houses Without Names: Architectural Nomenclature and the Classification of America's Common Houses'' published in 2013. Hubka served on the Wisconsin Historic Preservation Review Board for twelve years; during this time he chaired its Architecture Committee. The ACSA (

Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture Association may refer to: *Club (organization), an association of two or more people united by a common interest or goal *Trade association, an organization founded and funded by businesses that operate in a specific industry *Voluntary associatio ...

) honored Hubka with the ACSA Distinguished Professor Award in 2009-10.ACSA Archives, Distinguished Professor Award winners.
/ref> In 2021, his book ''How the Working-Class Home Became Modern, 1900-1940'' was the recipient of the

University of Mary Washington The University of Mary Washington (UMW) is a public liberal arts university in Fredericksburg, Virginia. Founded in 1908 as the Fredericksburg Teachers College, the institution was named Mary Washington College in 1938 after Mary Ball Washi ...

Center for Historic Preservation Book Prize.

Selected writings

* Hubka, Thomas C., ''Big House, Little House, Back House, Barn: The Connected Farm Buildings of New England'', University Press of New England, Hanover NH 1984, * Hubka, Thomas C., ''Resplendent Synagogue: Architecture and Worship in an Eighteenth-century Polish Community'', Brandeis University Press, published by University Press of New England, Hanover NH 2003, * Hubka, Thomas C., ''Houses Without Names: Architectural Nomenclature and the Classification of America's Common Houses'', University of Tennessee Press, Knoxville TN 2013, * Hubka, Thomas C., and Ochsner, Jeffrey Karl, "H.H. Richardson: The Design of the William Watts Sherman House," ''Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians'' 51/2 (June 1992), pages 121-145. * Hubka, Thomas C., and Ochsner, Jeffrey Karl, “The East Elevation of the Sherman House, Newport, Rhode Island.” ''Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians'', 52/1 (March 1993), pages 88–90. * Hubka, Thomas C., "H.H. Richardson's Glessner House: A Garden in the Machine," ''Winterthur Portfolio'' 24/4 (Winter 1989), pages 209-229.

References

External links

University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hubka, Thomas C. 1946 births Living people American architectural historians American architecture writers American male non-fiction writers Writers from Milwaukee Carnegie Mellon University College of Fine Arts alumni University of Oregon alumni University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee faculty Architects from Milwaukee Historians from Wisconsin