George Howe (1886–1955) was an American architect and educator, and an early convert to the International style. His personal residence,

High Hollow High Hollow, also known as the George Howe House, is a historic Chestnut Hill residence in Northwest Philadelphia designed and built by American architect George Howe. Design High Hollow's design is derived in-part from Howe's thesis while stu ...

(1914-1917), established the standard for house design in the

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

region through the early 20th century. His partnership with William Lescaze yielded the design of Philadelphia's

PSFS Building The PSFS Building, now known as the Loews Philadelphia Hotel, is a skyscraper in Center City, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. A National Historic Landmark, the building was the first International style skyscraper constructed in the United States. ...

(1930–32), considered the first International style skyscraper built in the United States.

Biography

He was born in

Worcester, Massachusetts Worcester ( , ) is a city and county seat of Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Named after Worcester, England, the city's population was 206,518 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the second-List of cities i ...

in 1886 to James and Helen Howe. He received his

Bachelor of Architecture 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 Harvard in 1908, and graduated from the

École des Beaux-Arts École des Beaux-Arts (; ) refers to a number of influential art schools in France. The term is associated with the Beaux-Arts style in architecture and city planning that thrived in France and other countries during the late nineteenth centur ...

in 1912. He worked for the

firm of Furness, Evans & Co. from 1913 to 1916. In 1916, he joined the partnership of Walter Mellor & Arthur Ingersoll Meigs. He served in the military from 1917 to 1919, during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. Mellor Meigs & Howe's commissions were mostly residential and minor commercial buildings, with

Bryn Mawr College Bryn Mawr College ( ; Welsh: ) is a women's liberal arts college in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania. Founded as a Quaker institution in 1885, Bryn Mawr is one of the Seven Sister colleges, a group of elite, historically women's colleges in the United ...

's Goodhart Hall (1926–29), a Neo-Gothic auditorium, being their largest commission of the 1920s. He left in 1928, and in 1929 formed a partnership with William Lescaze, a younger Swiss architect who had studied at ETH Zurich, and had first hand knowledge of the

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...

avant-garde The avant-garde (; In 'advance guard' or ' vanguard', literally 'fore-guard') is a person or work that is experimental, radical, or unorthodox with respect to art, culture, or society.John Picchione, The New Avant-garde in Italy: Theoretical ...

. Their collaboration yielded the landmark

in Philadelphia. The partnership was dissolved in 1932. After leaving Howe & Lescaze, Howe designed several private residences in the Philadelphia area. Throughout the late 1930s, Howe collaborated with

Louis Kahn Louis Isadore Kahn (born Itze-Leib Schmuilowsky; – March 17, 1974) was an Estonian-born American architect based in Philadelphia. After working in various capacities for several firms in Philadelphia, he founded his own atelier in 1935. Whi ...

at the Philadelphia Housing Authority; and again in 1940, along with Oscar Stonorov, on the design of housing developments in other parts of

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

. Howe was Architect in Residence at 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, ...

from 1947 to 1949 and Chair of the Architectural Department at

Yale Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wor ...

from 1950 to 1954. In 1951 he was elected into the

National Academy of Design The National Academy of Design is an honorary association of American artists, founded in New York City in 1825 by Samuel Morse, Asher Durand, Thomas Cole, Martin E. Thompson, Charles Cushing Wright, Ithiel Town, and others "to promote the f ...

as an Associate Academician. He is buried with family members in the Mount Auburn Cemetery,

Cambridge, Massachusetts Cambridge ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. As part of the Boston metropolitan area, the cities population of the 2020 U.S. census was 118,403, making it the fourth most populous city in the state, behind Boston ...

Selected works

* "

" (George Howe mansion), Chestnut Hill, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (1914–17). * "Ropsley" (Francis S. McIlhenny mansion), 8765 Montgomery Avenue,

Wyndmoor, Pennsylvania Wyndmoor is a census-designated place (CDP) in Springfield Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 5,498 at the 2010 census. Wyndmoor has the same ZIP code, 19038, as the towns of Glenside, North Hills, ...

(1916–18), Mellor, Meigs & Howe. * "Laverock" (Arthur E. Newbold, Jr. mansion), Willow Grove Avenue,

(1921–28, demolished), Mellor, Meigs & Howe. Won the Architectural League of New York's 1925 Gold Medal for Excellence in Design. * Alterations to " Glenays" (Michael Erickson mansion), 926 Coopertown Road, Radnor Township, Pennsylvania (1925–28), Mellor, Meigs & Howe. * "Oxmoor" (Orville H. Bullitt mansion), Skippack Pike, Whitemarsh, Pennsylvania (1926), Mellor, Meigs & Howe. * Robert C. McLean mansion, Sheaff Lane, Whitemarsh, Pennsylvania (1927–29), Mellor, Meigs & Howe. * Alterations to Riggs-Riley House, 3038 N Street NW, Washington, D.C. (1930). * Philadelphia Savings Fund Society Building, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (1930–32), with William Lescaze. * "Square Shadows" (William Stix Wasserman house), 6024 Butler Pike, Whitemarsh, Pennsylvania (1932–34). Now Gloria Dei Lutheran Church. * Robert F. Welsh house, 7802 Cobden Road, Cheltenham, Pennsylvania (1934–35). * Alterations to Philadelphia Bulletin Building, NE corner Juniper & Filbert Streets, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (1937–43, demolished), with Louis Erhardt McAllister. * Alterations and additions to Chapel Hill, Berryville, Virginia (1938-1941). an
''Accompanying four photo''
/ref> * Carver Court, housing development in Coatsville, Pennsylvania (1944).

References

* *

External links

* *http://www.greatbuildings.com/architects/Howe_and_Lescaze.html *http://www.philadelphiabuildings.org/pab/app/ar_display.cfm/25206 *http://www.philadelphiabuildings.org/pab/app/ar_display.cfm/21829 *http://www.philadelphiabuildings.org/pab/app/ar_display.cfm/21630
George Howe papers, 1926-1974
{{DEFAULTSORT:Howe, George 1886 births 1955 deaths Yale University faculty The Harvard Lampoon alumni American alumni of the École des Beaux-Arts Architects from Philadelphia Members of the Philadelphia Club Burials at Mount Auburn Cemetery