Thomas Rogers Kimball

Infobox Person
name = Thomas Rogers Kimball

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caption = Thomas Rogers Kimball
birth_date = 1862
birth_place = Cincinnati, Ohio
death_date = 1934
death_place = Omaha, Nebraska
occupation = Architect
spouse =
parents = Mary Rogers Kimball
children =

Thomas Rogers Kimball (1862 – 1934) was an American architect in Omaha, Nebraska. An architect-in-chief of the Trans-Mississippi Exposition in Omaha in 1898, he served as national President of the American Institute of Architects from 1918-1920 and from 1919-1932 served on the Nebraska State Capitol Commission. [ [http://historicbuildings.unl.edu/people.php?peopleID=12&cid=12 Historic Buildings at UNL: Thomas R. Kimball] . University of Nebraska. Retrieved 4/7/08.]

Kimball was credited with pursuing 871 commissions, which included designing 167 new residential buildings and 162 new non-residential structures, served as architectural adviser to commissions responsible for erection of Missouri and Nebraska state capitols, the Kansas City liberty war memorial, and the Indiana state war memorial in Indianapolis, and was member of national council of fine arts established by U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt to evaluate all plans for public buildings, monuments, and statutes. [(1936) "National Cyclopedia of American Biography." Volume 25, p 364-365.] [(1942) "Who Was Who in America." p 676.] [Withey, H. and Withey, E. (1956) "Biographical Dictionary of American Architects." New Age Publishing. p 344-345.]

Biography

Born in 1862 in Linwood, Cincinnati, Ohio, he moved to Omaha, Nebraska with his parents when he was in his early teens. After graduating from high school in 1878, he attended the University of Nebraska at Lincoln for two years, but did not graduate. He next went to Boston, where he worked with a private tutor for another two years. Kimball then entered the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he studied architecture until 1887. He did not graduate, but was later given an affiliation with the School of Architecture.

Kimball then moved to Paris, where he spent a year studying art at L'Ecole des Beaux Arts. Returning to Boston in 1888, he began working for a publishing company. The following year, Kimball married Annie McPhail in Boston. [ [http://www.omahapubliclibrary.org/transmiss/buildings/kim.html Thomas Rogers Kimball] , Omaha Public Library. Retrieved 4/7/08.]

Walker and Kimball

In 1891, Kimball formed an architectural firm with MIT instructor C. Howard Walker and architect Herbert Best. Best soon retired. Walker remained in Boston to run the office there; Kimball moved back to Omaha and opened an office. Both operated under the name Walker and Kimball. In 1892, Kimball was commissioned to design a public library building in Omaha; Kimball had been able to get the job through connections established by his father, railroad executive Thomas Lord Kimball. However, the younger Kimball was well-qualified for the work. He was also something of a curiosity in 1890s Omaha, since he has been educated in the East and had studied architecture both in the United States and in France. Kimball began attracting many high-profile projects in Omaha, including St. Frances Cabrini Church and the Burlington Train Station. In 1893, some of his architectural plans were shown in Chicago at the World Columbian Exposition. [ [http://www.nebraskahistory.org/publish/publicat/timeline/kimball_thomas_rogers.htm "Thomas Rogers Kimball"] , Nebraska State Historical Society. Retrieved 4/7/08.]

Trans-Mississippi Exposition

The 1898 Trans Mississippi and International Exposition was a World's Fair-like event that required the construction of many buildings. Kimball and Walker were named co-architects-in-chief for the event. The two men were responsible for the overall site development, including perimeter buildings. They designed several major buildings, some smaller structures and the Arch of States (a main entrance). "The other 'name' architects who were there did a main building and nothing else," Batie said.

The buildings were constructed of strips of wood covered with staph, which was a mixture of plaster and horsehair. They were temporary by design, built at about half the cost of permanent buildings. The lower cost allowed the construction of larger structures. Kimball was already successful, but his Exhibition work made him even more so. Kimball won commissions for major new projects, such as St. Cecilia Cathedral and the Fontenelle Hotel in Omaha, and the Electricity Building at the 1904 World's Fair in St. Louis. [ [http://www.nebraskasocialstudies.org/notable/kimball.html Thomas Rogers Kimball] . Nebraska Social Studies Association. Retrieved 4/8/08.]

Late career

By 1918, he had gained tremendous stature among his peers and was elected national president of the American Institute of Architects, an office he held until 1920. Kimball was involved in many architecture-related activities, including supervision of the 1920 design contest that selected Bertram Goodhue as architect of the Nebraska State Capitol. In 1927, Kimball went into a partnership with architect William L. Steele. [ [http://www.cityofomaha.org/landmarks/designated_landmarks/architects/Kimball.htm Thomas Kimball] , City of Omaha Landmark Heritage Preservation Commission. Retrieved 4/6/08.]

Death

His success could not survive the Great Depression, which hurt Kimball financially. He died a pauper in 1934.

Notable designs

Kimball also designed the original "Omaha World-Herald" building, the First National Bank in Grand Island and the Hastings, Nebraska Railroad Station. At the Trans-Mississippi and International Exposition he prepared the layout for the park and designed the Arch of the States, the Administration Building, Transportation Building, and the Boys' and Girls' Building. [ [http://www.nebraskahistory.org/publish/publicat/timeline/kimball_thomas_rogers.htm "Thomas Rogers Kimball"] , Nebraska State Historical Society. Retrieved 4/7/08.]

ee also

*John Latenser, Sr.
*Architecture in Omaha, Nebraska
*Architecture in North Omaha, Nebraska
*Omaha Landmarks

References