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G. Edwin Brumbaugh papers

 Collection
Identifier: Col-0034

Dates

  • Creation: 1915-1983

Creator

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open to the public. Copyright restrictions may apply.

Biographical / Historical

G. Edwin Brumbaugh was a restoration architect. Born in 1890 in Huntington, Pa., he was the son of former Pennsylvania Governor Martin Grove Brumbaugh and Anna Konigmacher. He graduated from Central High School in Philadelphia and received his B.S. in Architecture from the University of Pennsylvania in 1913. From 1912 to 1914, he was a draftsman for Mellor & Meigs. In 1915, Brumbaugh began working for Charles Barton Keen and as late as 1923 supervised the work of Keen's office while Keen resided and worked in North Carolina. By 1916, however, Brumbaugh had also established as independent practice which concentrated on residential design. Over the years of his practice, much of the project emphasis changed to one of restoration and an interest in historical architecture, culminating in his receiving in 1979 an award from the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission for his restoration of the Edward Morgan Log House and, in 1980, the National Trust for Historic Preservation Award. Brumbaugh worked on some of the best-known historic properties in the East. He headed the committee that supervised the restoration of George Washington's Headquarters at Valley Forge and worked on other landmarks such as Old Fort Mifflin, Ephrata Cloister, Danial Boone's Homestead, Lafayette's Headquarters at Chadds Ford, the Thompson-Neely House, the Stenton Mansion, Old Swedes Church, Head House Square, Fort Muhlenberg, and part of Carpenter's Hall.

Biographical / Historical

Brumbaugh joined the American Institute of Architects in 1920 and was elevated to fellowship status in 1946. He was also a member of the T-Square Club, Architectural Society of the University of Pennsylvania, and the Architectural Advisory Committee formed to supervise the restoration of Independence Hall. Brumbaugh was the recipient of the Arthur Spayd Brooke medal in 1913 and during, his senior year at the University, taught watercolor rendering.

Full Extent

237 ft.

Language of Materials

English

Metadata Rights Declarations

  • License: This record is made available under an Universal 1.0 Public Domain Dedication Creative Commons license.

Arrangement

Organized into 11 series: A.I.A. files, Bank accounts, Client lists, Completed work, Drawings, Office records, Photographs and negatives, Rendered Studies, Specifications, Surveys, and Miscellaneous.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Gifts and purchases from various sources.

Publications About Described Materials

Amber Elizabeth Degn, "Houses from the reservoirs of memory: G. Edwin Brumbaugh and the restoration of early Pennsylvania architecture" thesis, University of Delaware, 2000. (A copy of the thesis is shelved with the collection.)

Summary

Primary papers consist of survey drawings, correspondence and data, letter files related to his early work, approximately 400 photographs and negatives, working and detailed drawings, specifications, and nearly 700 renderings and mounted sketches, memorabilia, notes, drafts of talks and lectures, and other research papers. Office records include information on finances and personnel. Some of the material in the collection pertains to restoration projects on individual homes as well as his larger projects.

Summary

The collection also includes three documents about Francis Hover (or Hoover), an ancestor of Brumbaugh. A 1797 document names Hover as a surgeon's mate in the 2d Regiment of the Salem County, New Jersey, militia; the document is signed by Richard Howell, governor of New Jersey, and John Beatty, secretary. In 1809, Hover was confirmed a member of Trinity Protestant Episcopal Church, Swedesboro, New Jersey. In 1827, Hover was named a Justice of the Peace in Kent County, Delaware; this certificate was signed by Charles Polk, governor, and John M. Clayton, secretary of Delaware. All three documents are printed forms, and the first and last described have state seals embossed on them. These are located with the miscellaneous files.

Processing Note

Action: Accessioned--Time/Date of Action: 02/--/84

Description rules
Appm
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin

Repository Details

Part of the Winterthur Library Repository

Contact:
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