Architectural practice

It was only in the 19th century that architecture began to be practiced as a full-time profession, when specific training and accreditation began to be offered. In the United States, Charles Bulfinch is the first American believed to have worked as a full-time professional architect. Henry Hobson Richardson may have been one of the first to have an established office and McKim, Mead, and White may have been among the first to resemble the large, modern architectural firm. The oldest active architecture firms in the United States are SmithGroup of Detroit, MI and Luckett and Farley of Louisville, KY, having both been founded in 1853. In the United Kingdom, Brierley Groom is the oldest continuing practice, having been founded in 1750 at York, England. They may be the oldest active architectural practice in the world.