Bruce Crabtree (September 1, 1923 – May 3, 2014) was an American architect and politician. He designed many buildings in

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

, including the Andrew Jackson State Office Building and the James K. Polk State Office Building. He served as the vice mayor of

Belle Meade, Tennessee Belle Meade is a city in Davidson County, Tennessee. Its total land area is , and its population was 2,901 at the time of the 2020 census. Belle Meade operates independently as a city, complete with its own regulations, a city hall, and police ...

Early life

Crabtree was born on September 1, 1923, in

Chattanooga, Tennessee Chattanooga ( ) is a city in Hamilton County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. It is located along the Tennessee River and borders Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the south. With a population of 181,099 in 2020, it is Tennessee ...

. He attended

Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private university, private research university in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and railroad magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provide ...

in 1942,

Clemson University Clemson University () is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university near Clemson, South Carolina, United States. - The blue-shaded pattern denotes university property. This shows Clemson University is ''out ...

in 1943–1944, and the

Virginia Polytechnic Institute The Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, commonly referred to as Virginia Tech (VT), is a Public university, public Land-grant college, land-grant research university with its main campus in Blacksburg, Virginia, United States ...

, where he earned a bachelor's degree in architecture in 1948.

Career

Crabtree co-founded the architectural firm Taylor & Crabtree in 1952. They designed Ben West Library (then the

Nashville Public Library Nashville Public Library (NPL) is the public library system serving Nashville, Tennessee and the metropolitan area of Davidson County. In 2010, the Nashville Public Library was the recipient of the National Medal for Museum and Library Service. ...

) in 1966, the Andrew Jackson State Office Building in 1969, the James K. Polk State Office Building in 1981, and the Rachel Jackson State Office Building in 1985. He was elected as a fellow of the

American Institute of Architects The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is a professional organization for architects in the United States. It is headquartered in Washington, D.C. AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach progr ...

in 1983. With fellow architects David and Ed Johnson, Crabtree co-founded Johnson Johnson Crabtree Architects, another architectural firm, in 1991. Crabtree also designed the St. Henry Catholic Church. Crabtree first served on the planning zoning boards of

, where he was the chairman of the zoning board of appeals for six years. In 1988, he succeeded John Clay as interim commissioner of

, and he was elected in November of the same year. He served as its vice mayor by 1992. He "shaped the community and rewrote its zoning ordinance", and made it look like "an almost

Norman Rockwell Norman Percevel Rockwell (February 3, 1894 – November 8, 1978) was an American painter and illustrator. His works have a broad popular appeal in the United States for their reflection of Culture of the United States, the country's culture. Roc ...

esque community" according to his son. Crabtree was awarded the Medal of Merit by the Tennessee Society of Architects.

Personal life and death

Crabtree married Dolly Nance Fischer in 1948. They had five children. They resided in Belle Meade. Crabtree died on May 3, 2014. His funeral was held at the St. Henry Catholic Church in Nashville.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Crabtree, Bruce 1923 births 2014 deaths People from Chattanooga, Tennessee People from Belle Meade, Tennessee Vanderbilt University alumni Clemson University alumni Virginia Tech alumni Architects from Tennessee