Eldridge Hirst Lovelace (March 16, 1913 – November 7, 2008) was a

city planner An urban planner (also known as town planner) is a professional who practices in the field of town planning, urban planning or city planning. An urban planner may focus on a specific area of practice and have a title such as city planner, town ...

and

author An author is the writer of a book, article, play, mostly written work. A broader definition of the word "author" states: "''An author is "the person who originated or gave existence to anything" and whose authorship determines responsibility f ...

who prepared comprehensive plans for many large US cities.

Early life

Lovelace was born in Kansas City,

Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to th ...

, on March 16, 1913. He was married to Marjorie Van Evera Lovelace from 1937 to her death in 2005.Eldridge Lovelace Obituary, The Kansas City Star, Nov. 27, 2008
/ref> They had two children: Jeanie Lovelace Stinchcombe and

Richard V. E. Lovelace Richard Van Evera Lovelace is an American astrophysicist and plasma physicist. He is best known for the discovery of the period of the pulsar in the Crab Nebula (Crab pulsar), which helped to prove that pulsars are rotating neutron stars, for d ...

Education

He attended the

University of Kansas The University of Kansas (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States, and several satellite campuses, research and educational centers, medical centers, and classes across the state of Kansas. T ...

and the

University of Illinois The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I, Illinois, University of Illinois, or UIUC) is a public land-grant research university in Illinois in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana. It is the flagship institution of the Univer ...

, and in 1935 he received his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Landscape Architecture from the University of Illinois He studied under

Harland Bartholomew Harland Bartholomew (September 14, 1889 – December 2, 1989) was the first full-time urban planner employed by an American city. A civil engineer by training, Harland was a planner with St. Louis, Missouri, for 37 years. His work and teachings ...

, who was Professor of Civic Design at Illinois, and upon graduation he joined the firm Harland Bartholomew and Associates in St. Louis.

City planner

Lovelace's professional career was entirely with Harland Bartholomew and Associates. He became partner in 1943, senior partner in 1961, and chairman of the board upon the firm's incorporation in 1978. He retired in 1981. During the 46 years that Lovelace was with Harland Bartholomew and Associates, he prepared comprehensive plans for such cities as: *

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

Vancouver, British Columbia Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the city, up from 631,486 in 2016. The ...

Dallas, Texas Dallas () is the third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 million people. It is the largest city in and seat of Dallas County ...

Waco, Texas Waco ( ) is the county seat of McLennan County, Texas, United States. It is situated along the Brazos River and I-35, halfway between Dallas and Austin. The city had a 2020 population of 138,486, making it the 22nd-most populous city in the st ...

* Corpus Christi, Texas *

Lincoln, Nebraska Lincoln is the capital city of the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Lancaster County. The city covers with a population of 292,657 in 2021. It is the second-most populous city in Nebraska and the 73rd-largest in the United Sta ...

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, it ranks 20th among United States cities in population, and ...

Baton Rouge, Louisiana Baton Rouge ( ; ) is a city in and the capital of the U.S. state of Louisiana. Located the eastern bank of the Mississippi River, it is the parish seat of East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana's most populous parish—the equivalent of counties ...

* Hamilton County, Ohio *

Kansas City, Kansas Kansas City, abbreviated as "KCK", is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Kansas, and the county seat of Wyandotte County. It is an inner suburb of the older and more populous Kansas City, Missouri, after which it is named. As of ...

* St. Louis County, Missouri * Racine, Wisconsin *

Kenosha, Wisconsin Kenosha () is a city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the seat of Kenosha County. Per the 2020 census, the population was 99,986 which made it the fourth-largest city in Wisconsin. Situated on the southwestern shore of Lake Michigan, Kenos ...

He also prepared comprehensive plans for numerous smaller cities and suburbs, particularly those of

St. Louis St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, and

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

. Lovelace was recognized as an authority in long-range planning, including plans for military installations. During his career, he prepared plans for naval facilities in

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only state ...

and the

Philippine Islands The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

as well as numerous Army and Air Force installations across the country. In his long career, Lovelace also prepared land-use control programs and site planning projects in the United States and Canada. His site-planning projects included

Kaanapali, Hawaii Kaanapali ( haw, Kāanapali) is a census-designated place (CDP) in Maui County, Hawaii, United States, on the island of Maui. The population was 1,161 at the 2020 census. The master-planned town is located in the Old Hawaii ahupuaa of Hanakaʻ ...

, and the grounds at the

Gateway Arch National Park Gateway Arch National Park is an American national park located in St. Louis, Missouri, near the starting point of the Lewis and Clark Expedition. The memorial was established to commemorate: *the Louisiana Purchase and subsequent westward mo ...

(then known as Jefferson National Expansion Memorial) in St. Louis, Missouri. Arch Reflection 1 (5263608871)

He offered

expert testimony An expert witness, particularly in common law countries such as the United Kingdom, Australia, and the United States, is a person whose opinion by virtue of education, training, certification, skills or experience, is accepted by the judge as ...

in numerous land use control litigation cases. Lovelace devised methodologies for relating urban park and recreational plans to the needs and interests of a population. Notable works in this field include the master plan for Balboa Park in

San Diego, California San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United Stat ...

, and for the park system of Charlotte and Mecklenburg counties in

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and ...

. He also prepared plans for recreation areas, including Cannon Reservoir, Missouri, and Babler State Park, also in Missouri. In another facet of his career, Lovelace prepared campus master plans for universities and secondary schools in Wisconsin, Alabama, New York, and Hawaii. He also prepared plans for private residences and neighborhoods. One of Lovelace's last design interests was a courtyard for the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 ...

Biological Station at Joker's Hill. Lovelace investigated the problems of the extension of cities. Along with Herbert Hare, he developed the concept of planning for flooding during

urbanization Urbanization (or urbanisation) refers to the population shift from rural to urban areas, the corresponding decrease in the proportion of people living in rural areas, and the ways in which societies adapt to this change. It is predominantly t ...

. Lovelace and William Weismantel developed concept of the Density Zoning.E.Lovelace. W.L.Weismantel. Density zoning; organic zoning for planned residential developments. Washington, Urban Land Institute, 1961; OCLC: 224394137 Lovelace also worked on land protection.

Organizational membership

Lovelace was a Fellow of the

American Society of Landscape Architects The American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) is a professional association for landscape architects in the United States. The ASLA's mission is to advance landscape architecture through advocacy, communication, education, and fellowship ...

. He served as National Secretary and as the first chairman of Council of Fellows of the American Society of Landscape Architects. He was also the ASLA delegate to the

International Federation of Landscape Architects The International Federation of Landscape Architects (IFLA) is an organisation which represents the landscape architectural profession globally. It aims to provide leadership and networks to support the development of the profession and its effe ...

for six years, after which he served as Secretary General and as Vice President (1975–77). Lovelace was a Fellow of the

American Society of Civil Engineers American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

and a member of the

American Institute of Certified Planners The American Institute of Certified Planners (AICP) is the American Planning Association's professional institute. AICP certifies professionals in the United States in the field of town planning and assists planners in the areas of ethics, profess ...

. He was a member of the American Institute of Consulting Engineers and the

National Society of Professional Engineers The National Society of Professional Engineers (abbreviate as NSPE) is a professional association representing licensed professional engineers in the United States. NSPE is the recognized voice and advocate of licensed Professional Engineers repr ...

. In addition to his professional memberships, Lovelace participated in and supported numerous civic and environmental organizations, from The

Nature Conservancy The Nature Conservancy (TNC) is a global environmental organization headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. it works via affiliates or branches in 79 countries and territories, as well as across every state in the US. Founded in 1951, The Nat ...

to the Missouri Prairie Foundation. Lovelace was active in the Open Space Council of Metropolitan Saint Louis and served as its secretary and president. He was a member of the American Planning Association St. Louis Metropolitan Section. In 1971 Lovelace was appointed a Commissioner of

Tower Grove Park Tower Grove Park is a municipal park in the city of St. Louis, Missouri. Most of its land was donated to the city by Henry Shaw in 1868. It is on 289 acres (1.17 km²) adjacent to the Missouri Botanical Garden, another of Shaw's legacies. I ...

, and he later served as board president, from 1988 to 1995. The master plan that he had prepared for the park in 1985 was adopted by the board and provided the basis for critical rehabilitation and reforestation within the park. He remained deeply interested in the park as a commissioner emeritus.

Awards

In December 2006, the St. Louis chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects selected Eldridge Lovelace to receive the Robert Goetz Award for a Distinguished Career in Landscape Architecture. This award recognizes a landscape architect who has practiced the profession with integrity, distinction, and excellence.

Works

Eldridge Lovelace contributed numerous articles to professional journals and to newspapers and authored one book: *Lovelace, Eldridge, 1992, ''Harland Bartholomew: His Contributions to American Urban Planning,'' Published by University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Department of Urban and Regional Planning. *Lovelace, E.H., Papers, Vol. I, 1943-1965

References

*"Harland Bartholomew and Associates Collection" (HTML).

Washington University in St. Louis Washington University in St. Louis (WashU or WUSTL) is a private research university with its main campus in St. Louis County, and Clayton, Missouri. Founded in 1853, the university is named after George Washington. Washington University is r ...

. *"Harland Bartholomew: His Contributions to American Urban Planning" (PDF). American Planning Association.

External links

Lovelace's book available online on the City of St. Louis' website
2008 deaths American urban planners Writers from St. Louis University of Illinois College of Fine and Applied Arts alumni